Hello all!

We are, almost certainly, buying our first house... Having the pre-sale home inspection done today so fingers crossed he doesn't find anything majorly wrong.

I'm here to get your feedback on which "bedroom" to use as my herp room. The house is a split level and has two "masters" one upstairs and the other downstairs on the lowest level of the house off of a "den". There are also two smaller bedrooms upstairs near the master. Each bedroom has 1 window, similar footprint (room downstairs is a wee bit bigger than the two spare bedrooms upstairs), a closet, and (unfortunately) carpet.

I'm considering either using the second master that is downstairs on the lowest level of the house (and has it's own bathroom and bigger closet) OR one of the slightly smaller bedrooms upstairs. The initial plan for all of the rooms is to use 1 as a guest, 1 if we have a kid (space will be used for artwork and sewing in the mean time), and the other as the herp room.

What I would like your thoughts on, is which location (on the top level of the house or the lowest level) would be preferable when it comes to maintaining proper temps in the herp room. The house uses a heat pump (gas and electric) and I am not sure what I will use as an auxiliary heat source for the room. The thermostat for the heat pump is halfway between the upstairs and main level of the house.

I am leaning towards the downstairs room, but am concerned that in the summer (which is quite hot here in GA) it would be more energy-efficient to put the room upstairs, however, that scenario could be flipped during the winter...where it may stay warmer downstairs.

I would appreciate your thoughts on this, because I want to pre-plan where everything will go prior to moving and don't relish the idea of moving cages / tanks up/down stairs if I change my mind. In particular, if anyone has feedback that is in a similar home (2 story or split level) that would be great.

Thanks everyone!