Virtual Architect Professional Home Design 12

Description Overview New Features in 12 Product Features Professional Version Features Kitchen Builder Wizard Bathroom Builder Wizard Interior Decorating Landscaping, Decks & Patios Garden Design Home Design Remodeling Extra Features Image Gallery System Requirements

Description

Take a fresh approach to the way you live with Virtual Architect Professional Home Design 12. This innovation in home design software delivers the powerful tools and inspiration you need to transform your living space, plus expert help to get the job done right.

With Virtual Architect Professional Home Design 12, you can plan room additions and other home improvement projects with ease, make your home energy efficient with new lighting and appliances, breathe new life into an outdated kitchen, bathroom or bedroom and so much more. You can even design your dream home, complete with landscaping or a deck, from scratch. No design experience necessary – with our wizard-driven interface, all you have to do is point and click!

Overview Back to the top

With Virtual Architect Professional Home Design 12, you can tackle home improvement projects with ease, make your home energy efficient with new appliances, breathe new life into an old kitchen or bath and so much more. You can even design your dream home, from scratch. No design experience necessary – with our wizard-driven interface, all you have to do is point and click!

Design Your Dream Home
from Scratch

Decorate Rooms Using
Your Own Photos

Digital Interior Design
Change paint, stain and fabric colors in your own digital photos. We've even included real paint colors from nationally known brands.

Furniture and Appliances
We've included hundreds of tables, chairs, sofas, dressers, and much more in virtually every style imaginable, plus a complete library of large and small appliances and electronics.

Remodeling
Easily plan room additions, remodeling and other projects. Then see the results in photo-realistic 3D! Even take a virtual “walkaround” your new space.

Paint Surfaces and Fabrics
Replace your floors with hardwood, travertine or scores of other surfaces. Explore new fabrics and leather upholstery options for sofas and chairs. Even scan in your own texture or material.

Kitchen Builder Wizard
We've included all of the tools you need to refinish cabinets, lay new floors, and replace countertops with granite and marble surfaces

Cabinets
Add style and functionality to any kitchen, bathroom, home office or pantry with our collection of cabinetry. Then customize with choices of woods, paints and stains.

New Features in 12 Back to the top

Wall Systems - Walls have been completely re-imagined, allowing for precise depiction of construction methods and materials. The new wall system element in V12 enables multiple finishes on either side of the wall. Each wall comprises a core and limitless layers of materials, including sheathing, insulation, and finishes.
Trim Packages - In conjunction with the new wall system, wall trim boards can now be applied at both the project level and on a per-wall basis. Choose a trim package to apply to all walls in a project or select specific trim for individual walls. You can easily switch out the entire trim package for the project.
Trim boards are defined within trim packages, allowing for compound trims and unlimited custom trims. Trim boards can be easily applied to sloped walls, gable frieze boards, and framed openings. Additionally, there are options for how trim boards behave on walls with multiple finishes giving you expanded control.
Patterned Mode - All hatch patterns now support both a hatch pattern and a solid fill background color, enhancing the appearance of elevation views. This feature allows you to show the hatch pattern with a defining color behind it, elevating the overall look of your model.
Cut Height - The cut height for a plan view is now configurable from the Locations dialog. Whether a 5-foot cutting plane better displays the features of the floor plan or a 2-foot cutting plane reveals more detail, you can choose the cutting plane height that works best for your project.
Surfaces - By user request, surfaces can now be created and displayed independently of floors, ceilings, or roofs. Using the surface tool, you can represent any horizontal or sloped surface, with each surface’s visibility controlled separately.
Roof to Surfaces – Roofs can now be converted to surfaces for finite customization.
Electrical Schedules—With a single click, you can create a schedule of your model's electrical elements. The schedule is fully customizable and expandable, making producing working drawings easier and more accurate.
Window and Door Marks - The auto mark style now supports the industry standard “3040” mark style. Update the window size, and the tag will adjust automatically!
Center Opening - You can now right-click on an existing opening to center it within the wall. You can then drop your windows in quickly and easily adjust them after the fact for an efficient model and working drawing creation.
Cabinet Swings—Parametric cabinets now support left and right swing doors. You can change the swing on the fly and illustrate precisely how the cabinet will appear.
IFC Import/Export - The IFC Import has been enhanced to recognize models created by any design software. The extended support includes additional elements, improved fault tolerance, and wall conversion.
Sketchup Import - Expanded support for SketchUp blocks with the recognition of transparent textures and the ability to optimize imports by recognizing single-sided elements.
New Textures - We sourced the latest new materials and put them in the catalog so you can design with all the latest textures.
New Blocks - We curated the catalog to remove dated elements and add new content so you have the latest elements for your projects.

Product Features Back to the top

For Makeovers and Remodeling

Powerful Home Design Features

	Intelligent Walls: Easily draw interior and exterior walls that automatically connect and repair
	Doors: Use the Door Wizard to add simple doors, bi-fold doors, French doors, sliding doors, garage doors and more
	Windows: Just click along a wall to insert casement, hung, sliding, bay, vent, hopper or louvered windows, plus windows in virtually any shape
	Hundreds of Lighting Fixtures

Flexible Interior Design Features

	Replace Paint and Fabric: Take a digital picture of any room and visualize your new space
	Flooring Materials Library: Woods, tiles, carpets and more
	Countertops Library, including granites and marbles
	Brand Name Content and Materials
	Complete Furniture & Appliance Library: Hundreds of 3D models to choose from!

Realistic Visualization Features

	Design in Photorealistic 3D: The changes you make in 3D are simultaneously made to your 2D plan - automatically!
	3D Walkthrough: Create virtual tours to visualize your finished living space before you ever start your project
	Accurate Natural Lighting: Visualize your home's interior at different times of day
	Easy Zoom and Navigation
	And Much More!

For Home Design, Kitchen, and Baths

Powerful Home Building Features

	Complete Electrical Planning: From outlets and switches to home networking and home theatre systems
	Automatic Roofs: Insert roofs in any shape or style
	Complete HVAC and Plumbing Planning
	Easy Materials Selection: Brick, stone, wood siding and more

Complete Kitchen and Bath Design

	Enormous Library of Appliances: Just drag and drop!
	Granite & Marble Countertops
	Cabinet Wizard with complete control over style and finishes
	Dozens of Sink, Shower and Bath Options
	Adapt Bathrooms for Disabled Use

For Landscaping, Decks, and MoreAdvanced Landscaping Features

	Terrain Modeling: Easily specify hills and valleys
	Complete Plant Encyclopedia: 7,500+ entries with lighting and watering requirements
	Garden Visualizer: View plant growth and seasonal changes
	Plant Care Calendar: Identify the optimal times for planting, watering, pruning, fertilization and spraying

Features for Outdoor Living

	Deck Builder Wizard: Automatically build decks and patios in virtually any shape, size or material
	Gazebos and Sheds
	Retaining Walls
	Add New Landscape to Your Own Digital Photos

Complete Hardscape Features

	Fences and Gates in a large number of styles
	Sidewalks, Pathways and Driveways
	Lighting and Irrigation
	Accessory Library, including fountains, waterfalls, barbecues and patio furniture

Powerful Drawing Features

	Terrain Modeling Tools: Design your home anywhere, regardless of topography
	Collision Control prevents objects from being inserted where they do not belong
	Garden Beds, Ponds and Edging
	Add Digital Photos of any home furnishing to your 3D home designs. Even add a photo of your family

Unparalleled Visualization Tools

	3D Real View™: Exclusive technology assures photorealism
	And Much More!

Professional Version Features Back to the top

Walk through your dream home in virtual reality! Design and create a model in Virtual Architect Professional Home Design, then put an Oculus Rift™ or HTC Vive Helmet™ on and enter VR mode. Exploring your designs in 3D has never been easier

Get enhanced realism in your 3D renders with Presentation Mode.

The Room Dimension, Area and Perimeter tools display precise measurements right on your floor plans and models

Kitchen Builder Wizard Back to the top

Want to update your kitchen? Considering a small project like refinishing cabinets or a totally new space complete with granite countertops, hardwood floors, stainless steel appliances and more? <em >Whatever size project you have in mind, Virtual Architect’s kitchen design software gives you the easy yet powerful creative tools needed to turn your dreams into reality today!

No Design Experience Necessary- Using a wizard- driven interface with drag and drop simplicity, Virtual Architect's kitchen design software makes it easy.

Kitchen Ideas

Get Started Fast - Just import photos of your current kitchen or use the kitchen design wizard to sketch out an entirely new room. With just a few clicks, you can see what your kitchen will look like before investing in costly labor and materials!

Select Materials Easily – You can easily select from a wide variety of materials using Virtual Architect kitchen design software:

Paint & Fabrics - select paint, stain and fabric options from leading national brands.
Countertops - choose from granite, marble, slate, ceramic tile, and more.
Cabinets - pick from 200+ different styles and apply the finish of your choice.
Appliances - explore an extensive library of new kitchen appliances and home electronics.
Flooring - replace your floors with slate, hardwood, ceramic tile and more.

Photo-realistic 3D Views - Virtual Architect's powerful design software lets you take a virtual tour and experience your newly designed kitchen in brilliant 3D!

Bathroom Builder Wizard Back to the top

Tired of your outdated bathroom? Looking for new ideas and ways to modernize old counters, floors, cabinets and more? Let this powerful software help you create and design the beautiful, functional bath you’ve always wanted. Be it a complete remodel or a quick makeover, Virtual Architect's bathroom design software gives you everything you need to get started today!

No Design Experience Necessary – Facing a remodel can be a daunting but Virtual Architect's bathroom design software makes it easy using a wizard-driven interface.

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Photorealistic 3D Views – Virtual Architect’s powerful bathroom design software lets you take a virtual tour and experience your newly created bathroom in brilliant 3D!

Get Started Fast – Easily upload photos of your current bathroom or use the bathroom design wizard to outline and create the room you've always imagined. Virtual Architect's bathroom design software allows you to see what the finished project will look like beforeyou start construction.

Select Materials Easily - Choose from extensive bathroom brands.
Wall Color - select paint options from leading national brands.
Countertops & Cabinets - choose from marble, slate, ceramic tile, limestone, quartz, granite, and more, plus 200+ different cabinet styles and finishes.
Wall Color - Select paint options from leading national brands.
Sinks - pick from a wide variety of styles.
Flooring - Replace your floors with ceramic tile, travertine, slate and more.
Bathtubs - visualize a new deck-mounted, integrated or free-standing bathtub.

Bathroom Ideas – Need ideas for matching favorite materials? No problem. From traditional to contemporary, Virtual Architect software is fully loaded with great design ideas for an impressive new space.
Photorealistic 3D View

Cabinets
Select from 200 + different styes. Then apply the finish of your choice.

Sinks
Choose from a wide variety of styles.

Countertops
Choose from marble, slate, ceramic tile, limestone, quartz, granite, and more.

Bathtubs
Visualize your new deckmounted, integrated or free-standing bathtub.

Interior Decorating Back to the top

Redecorate rooms using your digital photos. Just point and click to choose paint colors, stains, fabrics and more from our complete library of nationally-known name brand materials.

Upload your photos and see Design in photorealistic 3D

With Virtual Architect’s interior design software you can:

Upload photos of your existing room or use the design wizard to sketch out a new space.
Visualize interior design projects before investing time and money on the real thing.
Design in photo-realistic 3D and even generate a "Virtual Walkthrough."

No Design Experience Necessary – Virtual Architect’s interior design software uses a wizard-driven interface making interior decorating a breeze!

Get Started Fast – Scan in current photos of your room or use the interior design wizard to sketch your space. Using drag and drop technology you can effortlessly discover a new design style!

Select Materials Easily – Explore our extensive materials library:

Choose paint, stains, and fabrics from leading national brands.
Select from a wide variety of furniture, appliances, electronics and fixtures.
Pick your favorite flooring and cabinets for kitchens and baths.
Even upload photos of existing furniture and see how it looks rearranged.

Landscaping, Decks & Patios Back to the top

*The 2D Plant Library is being deprecated and will not be supported in future releases. The phase-out includes the plant encyclopedia, plant growth over time, and seasonal change features. In its place, a comprehensive library of 3D plants is included in the release. Please note the 2D Plant Library will no longer work with earlier versions of the software.

There’s never been an easier way to plan and visualize beautiful, new outdoor surroundings than with Virtual Architect’s landscape design software. From lighting, pathways and plants to decks, gazebos and more, this powerful, easy-to-use software lets you transform an outdated yard and garden into a flourishing, fresh and functional landscape – right before your eyes!

Decks & Patios
Creating your new deck or patio is easy with the Deck Builder Wizard - just select materials and dimensions to create your space, then add plants, fences and accessories for that finished look!

Hardware & Accessories
Make your property’s outdoor living space totally unique with custom features that work for every season.

Lighting and Irrigation
Add lighting to flowerbeds, shrubbery and pathways, plus pop-up sprinklers with different spray ranges.

See Your Landscape Design Seasonally

Fences, Gates & Walls
Build fences and gates with complete control over the number of posts, post size and rotation.

Add Landscaping to Digital Photo
Visualizing your new Landscaping is easy - just import your digital photos, add plants, fences and accessories and within minutes, you’ll have created a new, distinctive outdoor space!

Design in 2D or 3D
Simply drag and drop trees, plants, and flowers from our massive plant library. Even see the size of plats as they grow from year to year, making planning easy. Then view your space in 3D to fine-tune your design.

Plant Encyclopedia
Our Plant Encyclopedia has more than 7,500 trees, plants, flowers, shrubs and groundcover options with important information about light, watering and soil requirements.

Garden Design Back to the top

There's never been an easier way to plan and visualize a beautiful, functional landscape than with Virtual Architect Home & Landscape software! From lighting to pathways, decks to gazebos and more, you can transform your outdoor living space in no time at all!

Plant Encyclopedia

Sidewalks, Pathways and Driveways
Easily add sidewalks and driveways, plus wood, sand, gravel, concrete, brick or asphalt walkways. Even accent your garden with a forest path!

With an extensive Plant Encyclopedia and Irrigation Planning tool, you’ll save time and money using this garden design software before breaking ground.

Plant Encyclopedia: With over 7,500 plants, trees, flowers, shrubs and groundcover options to choose from, you can customize your garden any way you like. Want to know what thrives best in different areas of your garden? Virtual Architect garden design software also includes important information about your chosen plants’ climate, water, light and soil requirements!

Irrigation and Lighting: Add an irrigation system with pop-up sprinklers and even customize the spray range to ensure your plants receive necessary water. Place lighting along custom-designed garden pathways to highlight different plantings within your beautiful new garden.

Visualize: With the click of a mouse you can scan in digital photos of your yard to easily add garden design elements. Take a 3D tour of your new yard and even see how plant sizes grow and change from year to year!

Lighting and Irrigation

Preview Seasonal Changes

Visualize Plant Growth Over Time

Watch how your landscape will mature over time. From your first year’s planting to 50 years down the line, you can preview your plants’ growth and see how well they will complete your ultimate outdoor living space.

Home Design Back to the top

Creating the look of your dream home just got easier with Virtual Architect’s powerful easy-to-use home design software!

Whether you want to build a new home or just want to remodel your current one , with a simple click of the mouse, Virtual Architect home design software gives you all the tools you need – and there’s no design skills required!

Giving your home a new look is easier than ever - just point & click to add walls, doors and windows!

Home Design

Easy Materials
Easily add brick, stone,
or other materials with complete control.

Creative Stair Options
Easily specify your railings, steps and balusters’ paint and stain colors.

With Virtual Architect home design software you can:

Build a model of your ideal home from the ground up.
Upload photos of your current home’s interior and do a virtual room makeover.
Visualize design projects before investing time and money on labor, supplies and equipment.
Select from an extensive library of 3D furniture, appliances and materials for your home’s interior and exterior.
Design in photorealistic 3D and even do a virtual walkthrough of your finished space.

Build a Home from Scratch – Utilize the extensive Home Plan Library and customize your design. Select the home style, number of floors, rooms, materials, doors & windows, electrical & plumbing and even landscaping. Then, handle all the interior decorating yourself!

Remodeling – Import existing plans directly into the software or use the Home Builder wizard to help design your new dream room! Plus, you can even generate blueprint-style plans to give to contractors.

Room Makeovers – Whether you’re remodeling a room or redecorating an outdated one, Virtual Architect home design software is like having your own interior decorator in a box!

Choose paint, stains, and fabrics from leading national brands.
Select furniture, appliances, electronics and fixtures from our extensive 3D graphics library.
Pick your favorite flooring and cabinets for kitchens and baths.
And much more!

Roofs

Roofs in any shape or style
Specify your roof’s dimensions and style while experiencing your home in 3D.

Remodeling Back to the top

Easily plan room additions, remodeling and other projects. Then see the results in photo-realistic 3D!
Even take a virtual "walkaround" your new space.

1. SKETCH
Drawing new rooms and walls is as easy as clicking and dragging your mouse. Or get started even faster with wizards for virtually any project. Plus, you can even import existing plans straight onto the software.

Sketch

Walls: Easily draw interior and exterior walls that automatically connect.
Doors: The door wizard easily adds a variety of door types – sliding, French, bi-fold, even garage doors.
Windows: Add any type of window at any size, such as hung, sliding, bay, or louvered.

2. CUSTOMIZE
Specify doors and windows. Then add cabinets, lighting, window coverings, flooring, paint and more. It’s easy to design your entire project in 3D!

Customize

Choose paint, stains, and fabrics from leading national brands.
Select furniture, appliances, electronics and fixtures from an extensive library.
Pick your favorite flooring and cabinets for kitchens and baths.
And much more!

3. FURNISH
With just a few clicks of your mouse, add furnishings with complete control over size, style and fabric. Before you know it, you’ll have a brand new room or addition to explore!

Automatically generate blueprint-style plans to give contractors a precise idea of how you want your remodel to take shape

Photo-realistic 3D Views: Using this comprehensive remodeling software you will be able to view your new design in 3D.
3D Walkthrough: Create and take virtual tours throughout your finished room. Plus, easy zoom and navigation let you see your space from all angles!

Extra Features Back to the top

3D Real View^TM, plus Powerful Animation
3D Real View rendering adds light, shadows and reflections to a textured 3D view, making it possible to even record an actual tour through your living space that you can play back at any time.

Design Your Home in Any Terrain
Easily create hills and valleys, slopes and plateaus, berms and trenches. Do it all with powerful terrain modeling tools.

Visualize your home's exterior in multiple lighting conditions.

Includes A Complete Library of Paints & Materials

Image Gallery Back to the top

With Virtual Architect Home Design & Remodeling Suite's photo-realistic 3D visualization capabilities, you can design your dreams then watch them come to life!

Flooring, Fabrics, Carpeting, Plants, Windows

System Requirements

Platform

Windows 8, Windows 10, Windows 11

RECOMMENDED SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Here's what you need to run Virtual Architect V12:

Windows 11 / 10 / 8
64 bit operating system
2.0 GHz or faster Processor**
8 GB RAM (4 GB minimum)*
30 GB available hard disk space minimum
USB drive or Internet connection for install***
1024 x 768 display
2 GB Dedicated video card (1 GB minimum)*
Windows-compatible mouse
Internet connection for online features***
Internet browser to view online help***

VR System Requirements:

HTC Vive

Graphics Card: NVIDIA ® GeForce ® GTX 1060 or AMD Radeon RX 480 equivalent or greater
CPU: Intel Core i5 4590 or AMD FX 8350 or greater
RAM: 4 GB or more
Video Port: 1x HDMI 1.4 port, or DisplayPort 1.2 or newer
USB Port: 1x USB 2.0 or faster port
Windows® 10, Windows® 8 or later

Oculus Rift

Graphics Card: NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti / AMD Radeon RX 470 or greater
CPU: Intel i3-6100 / AMD Ryzen 3 1200, FX4350 or greater
RAM: 8 GB or more
Video Port: Compatible HDMI 1.3 video output
USB Port: 1x USB 3.0 port, plus 2x USB 2.0 ports
Windows 10 or later

To test your current computer for VR compatibility you can select from one of these two links.

Click here for HTC Compatibilty Test

Click here for Oculus Rift Compatibility Tool

*Additional system and video memory will improve speed and 3D Real View™ rendering capabilities.

**System Configuration: May require minor adjustments to the configuration of your operating system and /or updates to the hardware component drivers.

***User is responsible for all Internet access fees and phone charges.

Virtual Architect Professional Home Design 12

Complete Software to Transform Your Home and Landscape

Preview Seasonal Changes

Visualize Plant Growth Over Time