Dear forum members,
We bought a plot of land last autumn and are currently deep into the floor plan design. We would like to share our current draft with you and welcome any comments and opinions.
[F]irst some preliminary information about the plot and its buildability:[/F]
Best regards
We bought a plot of land last autumn and are currently deep into the floor plan design. We would like to share our current draft with you and welcome any comments and opinions.
[F]irst some preliminary information about the plot and its buildability:[/F]
- 1000 m² (10,764 sq ft) rear plot, southwest facing (so southwest is on the left side of the site plan)
- Building boundary up to approx. 16 m (52 ft) behind the property line (up to the dashed line on the site plan)
- No zoning plan (construction according to § 34 of the Building Code)
- Groundwater at surface level and peaty soil (exact geotechnical report pending), so piled foundation required and no basement
- Affordable! (Our maximum budget for the house including foundation slab is €230,000)
- Country house style
- Bright, large windows facing south/garden
- Open living/dining/kitchen area
- Family of four, 1 bedroom and 2 children’s rooms
- Not oversized, max 150 m² (1,615 sq ft), preferably less
- Solid construction using Ytong blocks (for us the most cost-effective option, although we would have liked to build with wood as well).
- Developed ourselves after studying various floor plans (including from the book "Affordable Building with a Small Budget" by Achim Linhardt) with support from architect friends and our planner (an independent civil engineer).
- Dimensions 12.50 x 7.50 m (41 x 25 ft) (the measurements shown on the site plan are from an earlier draft).
- What we like: open living area, all main rooms have large windows facing the garden, efficient size, although the children’s and bedroom could be smaller, sewing/work nook behind the stairs upstairs, plenty of wall space for large wardrobes in the upstairs bedroom and hallway on the ground floor, light shaft in the stairwell, staircase (we originally wanted a straight run staircase but it would have taken too much space; the one with three quarter turns is also fine with us).
- What we don’t like 100% yet: the height of the house from the outside. It is currently planned as a two-story house with an eaves height of 6.2 m (20 ft), with the ground floor 2.84 m (9 ft 4 in) high and the upper floor 2.60 m (8 ft 6 in) high. The gable roof will be an uninsulated, unfinished cold roof, mainly because of the economical prefabricated truss construction method. This is a bit disappointing because I really like sloped ceilings and did not want the character of a townhouse. Lowering the roof with a knee wall of about 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) and an insulated roof with open sloped ceilings would probably be more expensive due to the rafter/beam construction. We would also lose the garden view through the floor-to-ceiling bedroom windows.
- Simple: What do you think about the floor plan?
- Can you still imagine the relatively tall two-story house having a country house character? Maybe it depends on the facade design and choice of materials? Do you think it looks too “blocky,” especially from the front entrance side? Or would a lower eaves height with an attic conversion including a knee wall be preferable?
- We are still unsure how to arrange the windows on the garden side. The drawing with the elevations shows two possible versions. We actually prefer it when the upper floor window is centered over the lower window front. However, this does not align the interior line of sight from the entrance door to the garden/patio door (see ground floor plan). This represents version two; for version one, the window front would have to be shifted about one window width to the right, so that the patio door is behind the dining table. With the window front shifted left, the interior looks better to us, but from the outside it looks strange if it is offset from the upper floor window, right? What do you think?
Best regards
kaho674 schrieb:
Honey, why don’t you get your list out? When I get home and my husband lets me use the computer, gladly
kaho674 schrieb:
Honey, why don’t you take out your list?
That doesn’t sound good. How is the access to the lot? Would it be possible to divide it for two single-family homes (SFHs)?
Even smaller – you really have to cut back drastically. I’d say the office corner will have to go. It’s already starting out tough at such an early stage; it will probably get even more expensive later on anyway. But it’s better to realize that now than later.
la.schnute5 Mar 2020 14:32ypg schrieb:
When it comes to a 19-liter (5-gallon) emergency supply of Corona water, that’s where it starts; when it comes to replacement filters, that’s where it ends. Well, you can really debate the sense or nonsense of that. But I understand your points. And you’re right: just because we don’t have guys’ nights yet and the kids’ friends from school or daycare usually visit us one at a time and only with their mom or dad doesn’t mean it has to stay that way… an open kitchen is definitely a must. And if the kids want to bake pizza, they either have to do it with mom nearby or somewhere else. Or go to the Italian restaurant around the corner. Or take their pizza to their room.
kaho674 schrieb:
That doesn’t sound good. How is the access to the lot? Would it be possible to split it for two single-family houses?
Even smaller – then you really have to cut back drastically. I’d say the office corner would have to go. Splitting the lot for two single-family homes is not possible; the buildable area is too narrow (due to setback requirements, also at the back where there needs to be about 35 m (115 ft) distance from the nature reserve). The lot is about 20 x 50 m (65 x 164 ft), with a possible building area of 14 x 13 m (46 x 43 ft). We have a right of way access through the front property on one side. I posted the site plan in the first post.
Smaller is actually the only thing that makes sense. But I think you have to rethink from scratch... phew, that will be hard. Maybe we should invest again in a good architect… does anyone know one who especially has experience with small, open, low-budget houses?
Vicky Pedia5 Mar 2020 14:37Altai schrieb:
Well, the fist-sized purple bruise has now disappeared, and on my hand, I ended up with a permanent reminder... not functional, just visible...Oh no! So it’s not childproof?Vicky Pedia schrieb:
Oh no! So it’s not childproof?Children with small feet actually manage better.
la.schnute schrieb:
Smaller is really the only thing that makes sense. But I think we need to completely rethink this... phew, that’s going to be difficult. Maybe we should still invest in a good architect... does anyone know one who especially has experience with small, open, low-budget houses? That would probably be putting the cart before the horse.
It’s better if you take a look at the countless small floor plans you can find online.
Since you want to contribute a lot of work yourselves, you also need to see where there is still potential to save. Moving from 140 to 130 square meters (1507 to 1399 square feet) doesn’t really help if you still have the same number of showers, doors, sockets, etc.
Honestly, I’d feel quite uneasy with such a tight budget. Have you already gone through this thread:
https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/liste-der-anfallenden-Baunebenkosten-bauseits-teurer.9737/
?