ᐅ New single-family house construction, approximately 170 m², townhouse-style villa
Created on: 24 Nov 2019 13:19
F
fskscorp
Hello everyone,
We are planning to make our dream of owning a home come true next year. So far, we have visited five general contractors and received fairly comparable initial offers from them. At this point, only two remain in consideration based on quality, reputation, price, and overall feeling.
The basic floor plan has been set from the very beginning, but we have continuously modified and optimized it and have not yet finalized a version, as we also want to keep an eye on construction costs. The attached floor plans include one initial design from the architect and one optimized version by me regarding the window placements and staircase location.
I would appreciate your feedback. Are there any critical issues we might be missing? What could be solved more intelligently? Perhaps something “unusual” that could be added quickly and without significant expense.
I am looking forward to your input!
Thank you very much!
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 1086 m2 (11,685 sq ft); approximately 31m (102 ft) wide on the street side, 29m (95 ft) deep. Located at the end of a dead-end street, with an unobstructed view of fields and forest.
Slope: The terrain currently drops about 2.80m (9 ft 2 in) from south to north but will be leveled during self-performed earthworks to about 1m (3 ft 3 in) above street level.
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: 0.8
Building setback: 3 meters (10 ft) from the street
Adjacent buildings: none
Parking spaces required: 2 per housing unit
Number of floors allowed: Max. 2
Roof pitch: Between 25° and 45°
Architectural style: Classic-modern?
Orientation: Open
Maximum heights/limitations:
Additional requirements: Roof color (although no one has really stuck to this)
Owners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: Classic modern, urban villa with tent or hipped roof accordingly
Basement, floors: 2 full stories plus a large double garage with flat roof
Number of residents, age: 2 adults in their early 30s
Room requirements on the ground floor: Cloakroom, guest toilet, utility room, kitchen, living and dining room
Room requirements on the upper floor: 2 children’s rooms, master bedroom, walk-in closets, bathroom, office
Office: Family use + minimal home office
Guests per year: Rarely
Open or closed architecture: Open, but living-dining area separated from the hallway
Conservative or modern construction: We see ourselves as modern but not over the top.
Open kitchen, island: Open kitchen with island and ideally a side-by-side refrigerator
Number of dining seats: Usually 4-6
Fireplace: None
Media/wall unit: Media wall for TV
Balcony, roof terrace: The adjacent double garage should be accessible from the parents’ bedroom (planned for the future, probably never realized but option should exist).
Garage, carport: Double garage with space to serve as a cellar substitute room
Utility garden, greenhouse: Possibly later
Further wishes/special features/daily routine, also reasons for or against certain choices:
- Utility room next to kitchen on the ground floor, accessible from the garage
- Spacious open living and dining area
- Smart Home is a topic everywhere, but we have decided that KNX will only be feasible as self-installation
- No external thermal insulation composite system (ETICS)
House design
Who created the plan:
- Architect, self-drawn
What do you like most?
Open and spacious, all our wishes were considered. We wanted to keep the building’s shape as simple as possible and avoid dormers, bay windows, and indentations. Lots of large windows facing the back, as the view is really great and unobstructed.
What don’t you like? Why?
Price estimate according to general contractor/general planner: about €395,000 (approx. $440,000) including additional building costs.
Preferred heating system: air-to-water heat pump with photovoltaic. However, the photovoltaic system is not included in the price.
Only the point that you don’t really get anything special for this fairly high amount. I would like to have one or two ‘gimmicks.’
If you had to give up anything, which details/features?
From our perspective, it is already minimalistic. We reduced from 190 down to these 175 m² (1882 sq ft).
Why does the design look the way it does now? For example:
We put a lot of thought into the floor plans, looked at many houses online and from friends/family. We wrote down everything we liked as well as what we didn’t want. Budget-wise, it quickly became clear that in this price range, you have to forego visual and technical highlights. We want to optimize the window work; reportedly, we are about €10,000 (approx. $11,200) above average for a house of this type.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan in 130 characters?
Are there optimizations in the floor plan we have overlooked? All existing furniture except the kitchen is drawn to scale. Enough windows/light overall?
We are planning to make our dream of owning a home come true next year. So far, we have visited five general contractors and received fairly comparable initial offers from them. At this point, only two remain in consideration based on quality, reputation, price, and overall feeling.
The basic floor plan has been set from the very beginning, but we have continuously modified and optimized it and have not yet finalized a version, as we also want to keep an eye on construction costs. The attached floor plans include one initial design from the architect and one optimized version by me regarding the window placements and staircase location.
I would appreciate your feedback. Are there any critical issues we might be missing? What could be solved more intelligently? Perhaps something “unusual” that could be added quickly and without significant expense.
I am looking forward to your input!
Thank you very much!
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 1086 m2 (11,685 sq ft); approximately 31m (102 ft) wide on the street side, 29m (95 ft) deep. Located at the end of a dead-end street, with an unobstructed view of fields and forest.
Slope: The terrain currently drops about 2.80m (9 ft 2 in) from south to north but will be leveled during self-performed earthworks to about 1m (3 ft 3 in) above street level.
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: 0.8
Building setback: 3 meters (10 ft) from the street
Adjacent buildings: none
Parking spaces required: 2 per housing unit
Number of floors allowed: Max. 2
Roof pitch: Between 25° and 45°
Architectural style: Classic-modern?
Orientation: Open
Maximum heights/limitations:
Additional requirements: Roof color (although no one has really stuck to this)
Owners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: Classic modern, urban villa with tent or hipped roof accordingly
Basement, floors: 2 full stories plus a large double garage with flat roof
Number of residents, age: 2 adults in their early 30s
Room requirements on the ground floor: Cloakroom, guest toilet, utility room, kitchen, living and dining room
Room requirements on the upper floor: 2 children’s rooms, master bedroom, walk-in closets, bathroom, office
Office: Family use + minimal home office
Guests per year: Rarely
Open or closed architecture: Open, but living-dining area separated from the hallway
Conservative or modern construction: We see ourselves as modern but not over the top.
Open kitchen, island: Open kitchen with island and ideally a side-by-side refrigerator
Number of dining seats: Usually 4-6
Fireplace: None
Media/wall unit: Media wall for TV
Balcony, roof terrace: The adjacent double garage should be accessible from the parents’ bedroom (planned for the future, probably never realized but option should exist).
Garage, carport: Double garage with space to serve as a cellar substitute room
Utility garden, greenhouse: Possibly later
Further wishes/special features/daily routine, also reasons for or against certain choices:
- Utility room next to kitchen on the ground floor, accessible from the garage
- Spacious open living and dining area
- Smart Home is a topic everywhere, but we have decided that KNX will only be feasible as self-installation
- No external thermal insulation composite system (ETICS)
House design
Who created the plan:
- Architect, self-drawn
What do you like most?
Open and spacious, all our wishes were considered. We wanted to keep the building’s shape as simple as possible and avoid dormers, bay windows, and indentations. Lots of large windows facing the back, as the view is really great and unobstructed.
What don’t you like? Why?
Price estimate according to general contractor/general planner: about €395,000 (approx. $440,000) including additional building costs.
Preferred heating system: air-to-water heat pump with photovoltaic. However, the photovoltaic system is not included in the price.
Only the point that you don’t really get anything special for this fairly high amount. I would like to have one or two ‘gimmicks.’
If you had to give up anything, which details/features?
From our perspective, it is already minimalistic. We reduced from 190 down to these 175 m² (1882 sq ft).
Why does the design look the way it does now? For example:
We put a lot of thought into the floor plans, looked at many houses online and from friends/family. We wrote down everything we liked as well as what we didn’t want. Budget-wise, it quickly became clear that in this price range, you have to forego visual and technical highlights. We want to optimize the window work; reportedly, we are about €10,000 (approx. $11,200) above average for a house of this type.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan in 130 characters?
Are there optimizations in the floor plan we have overlooked? All existing furniture except the kitchen is drawn to scale. Enough windows/light overall?
Hello,
It has been quiet here for a while because I have been working on the design planning and the corresponding building permit / planning permission application. Both are now finished, so I wanted to check in again, especially since input from here was taken into account.
The entire house including the garage has been moved further north to gain about 2m (6.5 feet) more garden space on the "garden side."
We have also changed the exterior dimensions, widening the house by 25cm (10 inches) towards the west, resulting in a wider kitchen of 4.01m (13 feet). This also allows for a better layout on the upper floor from our perspective. A small utility room was added there for the washer and dryer. The bathroom layout will be somewhat different from the current plan based on today’s bathroom design.
On the ground floor, not much has changed. We considered the connection between the garage, utility room, and kitchen several times and decided to keep it as is. The garage was intended for this side anyway because of the boundary and privacy screening toward the neighbor. The kitchen should face the back terrace, and the utility room is located closest to the supply and waste lines. In the kitchen, there is still a niche for a side-by-side refrigerator, and the kitchen layout roughly corresponds to what is shown here in the plan. The island will be placed against the wall and will be slightly larger.
The driveway is already planned and works with the slope conditions as intended.
In the meantime, we have reconsidered the heating system and switched from an air-to-water heat pump to a ground-source heat pump with a trench collector. I am currently clarifying the details with the heating engineer.
In terms of budgeting, we are still within the range we set for ourselves. (I hope I can repeat that sentence exactly in 12 months)
Now we are hoping that the building permit / planning permission under the simplified procedure will be issued quickly and that I can start earthworks at the end of February / beginning of March.
It has been quiet here for a while because I have been working on the design planning and the corresponding building permit / planning permission application. Both are now finished, so I wanted to check in again, especially since input from here was taken into account.
The entire house including the garage has been moved further north to gain about 2m (6.5 feet) more garden space on the "garden side."
We have also changed the exterior dimensions, widening the house by 25cm (10 inches) towards the west, resulting in a wider kitchen of 4.01m (13 feet). This also allows for a better layout on the upper floor from our perspective. A small utility room was added there for the washer and dryer. The bathroom layout will be somewhat different from the current plan based on today’s bathroom design.
On the ground floor, not much has changed. We considered the connection between the garage, utility room, and kitchen several times and decided to keep it as is. The garage was intended for this side anyway because of the boundary and privacy screening toward the neighbor. The kitchen should face the back terrace, and the utility room is located closest to the supply and waste lines. In the kitchen, there is still a niche for a side-by-side refrigerator, and the kitchen layout roughly corresponds to what is shown here in the plan. The island will be placed against the wall and will be slightly larger.
The driveway is already planned and works with the slope conditions as intended.
In the meantime, we have reconsidered the heating system and switched from an air-to-water heat pump to a ground-source heat pump with a trench collector. I am currently clarifying the details with the heating engineer.
In terms of budgeting, we are still within the range we set for ourselves. (I hope I can repeat that sentence exactly in 12 months)
Now we are hoping that the building permit / planning permission under the simplified procedure will be issued quickly and that I can start earthworks at the end of February / beginning of March.
Well, that already looks quite well planned. I don’t think it’s bad, although I wouldn’t do everything exactly that way. However, I have to criticize one thing: the window in Child 1’s room is really small. It is floor-to-ceiling, but to me, it’s too tiny. Don’t you want to let in a bit more light there?
Hmm ... just a few things I noticed. Unfortunately, the drawings are missing a north arrow again.
Ground Floor
Upper Floor
Ground Floor
- Sofa and window with a sill height of 125 cm (49 inches)... it always gives me a basement feeling, especially since this seems to be the south side, if I have checked correctly and the drawing in the original post was oriented north.
Upper Floor
- The hallway will be quite bright compared to Child 1’s room. For Child 1, I would choose a much wider window with a lower sill height instead. The narrow, tall window doesn’t let light spread broadly across the room.
- You have about 20 sqm (215 sq ft) for the parents’ area but space for only a 3 m (10 ft) wardrobe.
- The master bed, including nightstands, fits well within 300 cm (10 ft) next to the window. With just 30 cm (12 inches) nightstands and a mattress width of 200 cm (79 inches) (assuming a box spring bed), there are barely 70 cm (28 inches) left between the bed edge and the wall on the plan top side. Actually, it will be closer to 60 cm (24 inches), since the nightstand can’t be placed immediately next to the window opening.
- The bathroom is 11 sqm (118 sq ft) for a washbasin, toilet, and shower? Still, the walkway between the basin and toilet will be relatively narrow.
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