Good planning of exterior is as important as the Interior of the house. To build a house according to Vastu Shastra is becoming very popular in modern days. Vastu teaches one to make the best use of 5 elements of world i.e., Earth, Water, Air, Fire and Space. It balances the effect of these elements in our life. It uses these scientifically to bring health, prosperity and wealth to Mankind.

3 main things to be taken care while building a house are:

•An auspicious plot according to Vastu
•A well planned interior according to Vastu
•A well planned exterior according to Vastu

To have a clear understanding one should be familiar with the 8 different directions which are North, South, East, West, North-East(NE),North-West(NW), South-East(SE) and South-West(SW).

Vastu expounds some basic rules that must be followed during the making of different section in the exterior of house. Some tips for exterior sections and about their proper placement are as follows:

Main Entrance: It is best to have main entrance in North or East. South and West are considered inauspicious for main entrance. The door should open inwards. It is good if it is a two shuttered door. The door should not make noise while opening or closing. Auspicious sign such as "Swastika", "Om" or picture of "Ganesh and Lakshmi" should be made or placed above the entrance. Number of total doors in the house should be even like 2,4,6,8 etc.

Windows: The number of windows should be even such as 2,4,6,8 etc. It is auspicious to have windows on West, East and North. It is good to build windows exactly opposite the doors.

Garden: Garden should be located in the West or North of the plot. Garden should never be made in South-East or South-West. Trees which have very deep roots can be harmful for the house. If trees need to be grown, fruity trees should be preferred.

Over Head Water Tank: Overhead water tank should be built in South-West or West of the building. It should never be built in the North-East or South-East or the middle of the roof. The tank should be elevated above the roof, on a platform on a height of minimum 2 ft. It should never touch the roof of the main building. Different tanks are advisable for kitchen and bathroom.

Septic Tank: The most appropriate place for septic tank is the North- West of the plot.

Roof: The roof of the house should have a slope towards North-East making sure that the rainwater should flow to the North, East or North-East.

Garage or Parking: According to Vastu, Garage should be located in either South-East or North- West. Cars should be parked facing North or East.

Staircase: Staircase should always run from left to right no matter how many rotations it has to take. It means that the staircase should always run in clockwise direction. The number of stairs should be odd such as 1, 3, 5, 23, 29 etc.

Tube Well: Tube well, hand pump, etc. should be located in North-East. No other direction is considered auspicious for these.

Balcony: North and East facing balconies are good. If there is a balcony on the South-West, it should be covered. The roof of the balcony should be lower than the roof of the building. Arch should not be built above balcony.