ᐅ Self-Designed Floor Plan – Looking for Opinions and Feedback

Hello everyone!

Since I’m new here and this is my first post, I’d like to introduce myself briefly.
My name is Anni, I’m 25 years old, and I live with my partner in his parents’ house in the beautiful Rhön region.

We have long decided to demolish this house and rebuild on the property.
I’ve been working on the floor plan for a while now, even though the exact timing of the project isn’t clear yet. In any case, I really enjoy it and hope to get some helpful tips here.

I want to apologize in advance because I can’t yet answer questions about the zoning plan (building permit/planning permission).
I created the floor plan using a great 3D browser program. I added all the dimensions myself with an image editing program. I even designed the roof as well as I could using the same image editor.
Sorry that it’s not a professional floor plan (like one from an architect), but I hope you can still understand everything.

Our plot is in a small village with about 300 residents, very rural and beautiful.
It’s around 3000 m² (0.74 acres), but about 70% is steep hillside.
Only a small part of the land is shown in the pictures—it extends much further to the right, but as I said, it’s all steep hillside and therefore not very usable. Maybe we’ll put some goats up there!

The slope is our biggest problem. We definitely don’t want to build another house on a hillside.
We plan to level a large area completely (marked in dark green), and we’re already dreading the work and the associated costs.
Our advantage is that we have many helpers and my father-in-law can provide an excavator and other equipment. However, disposal will be expensive (we’ll reuse some of the soil to fill in the slope next to the driveway). Does anyone have experience with this? Is it really as straightforward as it sounds?
Of course, we have considered looking for a new property if the costs get out of hand. We also have to factor in rent costs for the meantime.

The floor plan shows a town villa with about 166 m² (1786 sq ft). We haven’t decided yet whether to go with prefab or solid construction—I’d prefer solid construction, but my partner is convinced by prefab. We’ll see. Does that make a big difference in price?

Since, as mentioned, we don’t yet know the zoning plan, we could also build a regular single-family house with sloped ceilings if that’s all that’s allowed. But then the bathroom door on the upper floor would be tricky.
(Does such a small village even have plans you have to follow, like in a new development area?)

Now to the main question, aside from all the problems with the slope, etc.: What do you think of the floor plan? I designed it myself—I’ve been working with the program for months, considering different options, planning and replanning. I’ve probably made 10 other versions before arriving at this one—and I think it’s perfect now. Surely there are similar floor plans out there; it’s nothing extraordinary.
Do you have any suggestions for improvement? Have I included any major mistakes that I don’t see? Anything that’s technically not possible?



Client Requirements
Style, Roof Type, Building Type Town villa, hip/tent roof
Basement, Floors No basement, 2 full stories
Number of People, Age 2 people, 24 and 24, 2 children planned
Office: Dedicated computer room
Conservative or Modern Style Modern
Open Kitchen, Kitchen Island Open kitchen
Number of Dining Seats 4-8
Fireplace No fireplace
Balcony, Roof Terrace Balcony
Garage, Carport Double garage, possibly self-built?

House Design
Planning by: Me
Personal budget limit for house, including fittings: 300,000€ - Feasible?
Preferred heating technology: Heat pump

If you have to give up something, what details/features
-can you do without: Single garage instead of double garage
-can’t do without: Equal-sized and equally shaped children’s rooms, walk-in closet, direct access from master bedroom to bathroom, urinals in WC and bathroom, symmetrical front elevation (Wow... that shows how important some things really are...)


Phew, that was a long text... sorry!

Thank you very much in advance for your kind responses.
Best regards, Anni

Let’s start with the demolition decision: where does the idea come from that the current house is fundamentally unusable? That might be justified, but it is not clear from the description.

Development plan: not everywhere has one. Then the integration requirement of §34 applies, meaning, roughly speaking, the house should be somewhat of a blend of those around it.

I’m actually rather grateful for floor plans made by non-professionals. In this case, unfortunately, I must say you couldn’t have planned a more average substitute villa. It really looks very much like a typical “Müllermeier-Schulze” design. That’s not bad, but it’s also not original.

ZafiraAnni schrieb:
I came up with it myself

That is probably only half true, you must have already absorbed a lot of “inspiration.” To ask a bit harshly: which Horst von Hümpel house type was the basis for this?

ZafiraAnni schrieb:
I’ve probably planned 10 other variants before I came to this one – now I find it perfect.

Show us some of those other variants. At least I find this design “perfectly similar to the usual.”

ZafiraAnni schrieb:
Did I make any major mistakes,

I haven’t noticed any yet – but what are the blue dots?

Symmetry is not a value in itself – rather, it can be a hindrance to originality – and equally sized children’s rooms, in my opinion, only make sense for twins.

ZafiraAnni schrieb:
I would like to build with solid construction, my partner is convinced by the prefabricated construction method.

Both are probably based on emotional considerations that should be questioned for their validity. I see both construction methods as ultimately equivalent. The only real advantage of prefabrication (whether timber frame or, for example, brick walls, as those can also be prefabricated) is the shorter erection time for the shell.

For the plot, probably only photos will help us get an idea.

ZafiraAnni schrieb:
2 children planned

And yet you’re already driving a Zafira?

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https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/

Sometimes you talk so much nonsense, but by now we already know that.

300,000 euros depends on how much work you plan to do yourselves and what exactly is included.

Move-in ready plus additional construction costs plus demolition plus leveling and retaining the plot does not work.

Why don’t you want a house on a slope? What’s wrong with that?
If you want a city villa on flat land, you should look for a different plot.

A site plan with a north arrow would be helpful.

You’re from a rural area, so take your plans and ask the mayor if you are allowed to build or if he has any concerns.

Near you, there is a prefab house manufacturer who regularly holds factory tours on weekends, has two or three show homes for viewing, and consultants for initial meetings.

Take a look around and try to have talks with construction companies.

tomtom79 schrieb:
11ant, sometimes you talk so much nonsense,

A bit more detail would be nice.

haydee schrieb:
€300,000 depends on how much work you want to do yourselves and what is ultimately included.
Move-in ready plus additional construction costs plus demolition plus leveling and securing the plot does not work.

That rough estimate assumes a lot of self-built work, excluding the garage and especially earthworks.

haydee schrieb:
Why don't you want a house on a slope? What is wrong with that?
If you want a city villa on a flat plot, you should look for a different plot.

An alternative villa doesn’t necessarily have to fit on a tiny plot.

tomtom79 schrieb:
If they want to demolish the house, let them.

There are many people here who see more potential in an existing building (including for turning it into the desired house) than the original poster. Trying is wise; at least considering it doesn’t hurt.

tomtom79 schrieb:

If they want a city villa, let them.

Also, there is more than just the two standard versions of alternative villas like "basic white with or without gray." For example, a bold rejection of symmetry in some places can work wonders.

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https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/

If they want to demolish the house, let them.

If they want a townhouse, let them.

And so on.