ᐅ Single-family house, 2,370 sq ft, with a basement on a 7,530 sq ft plot of land
Created on: 8 Jul 2020 21:17
E
EFH2020
Hello everyone,
We have a 750 m² (8,073 sq ft) plot where we plan to build approximately 220 m² (2,368 sq ft) plus a basement and garages.
After initial discussions with builders, we find the following floor plan quite good, as it reflects our desired room sizes on both the ground floor and upper floor.
Ground Floor:
Two main questions still concern us:
1) Should the kitchen/dining area be on the left, or should the living room be located there instead?
The recessed kitchen on the left works well for natural light and especially because otherwise, we can't properly fit the staircase. Having the living room on the left would be nice since there is sun there until about 9:30 pm in summer, while the right side is in the shade by 6:30 pm. It’s a matter of preference when and where you want sunlight, but we’d be interested in your opinions.
2) Where should the staircase be placed, and how can we avoid losing much space on the upper floor?
So far, we have only found one solution. We prefer a 180-degree staircase; a 90-degree staircase would also work, ideally with a landing, as we want to avoid angled stair treads.
Other notes:
The plan lacks a pantry. We initially considered placing it in the passageway from the garage to the hallway, but there isn’t enough space for that. So the pantry will now go into the basement. Additionally, the hallway doesn’t have a particularly large cloakroom, so we are considering taking some space from the kitchen/guest room. The guest bathroom on the ground floor could be a bit larger.
Upper Floor:
We need the space upstairs for two children’s bedrooms, a study, two bathrooms, a master suite, and a utility room. With the current staircase placement and some restrictions regarding the master dressing room and bathroom, everything fits well, and we like the room sizes and their layouts.
Basement:
Yes, we need a “white tank” (watertight concrete basement). We want it for storage and technical equipment, which cannot be accommodated upstairs. Other rooms like a home gym are nice to have but not essential. Nevertheless, we want the basement for possible resale value and flexibility. Due to costs, we plan to only partially finish the basement. So the basement layout is less important for now.
We would very much appreciate hearing your thoughts on our ideas, what you like, and especially what you find problematic in the floor plan.
Many thanks in advance!
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 750 m² (8,073 sq ft)
Flat terrain
Floor area ratio - no development plan
Plot ratio - no development plan
Building envelope: 12 x 15 m (39 x 49 ft), we plan to build about 12 x 12 m (39 x 39 ft)
Setbacks: 3 meters (10 ft) on all sides
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 1-2 full stories
Roof type: Pitched roof preferred, flat gable roof also acceptable (preliminary building approval planned)
Style:
Orientation: Garden faces southwest
Maximum height/restrictions: approx. 8 meters (26 ft) (survey pending)
Other requirements
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type - no bay windows or balconies, pitched roof
Basement: yes
Number of occupants, age - 2 adults and 2 small children
Space requirements on ground/upper floors: like the rooms shown in the plan
Office use: family use or home office? Both work about 50% from home
Annual overnight guests: regularly guest stays with children
Open or closed layout: closed upstairs, open downstairs
Conservative or modern style: undecided
Open kitchen, kitchen island - kitchen island with 2 seats
Dining seats: 6
Fireplace: yes (no coal)
House Design
Who created the design:
- Planner from a construction company, modified by us
What do we like? Room sizes
What do we dislike? Master area – dressing room and bathroom are cramped. Is the hallway with the staircase practical? Kitchen on the left side is practical regarding light, but the living room won’t have sun after 7 pm in summer? Possibly rearrange the sofa in the living room for the TV
Estimated price according to architect/planner: €700,000 including basement, garages, and additional construction costs (excluding land)
Personal budget limit for house including fittings: €750,000 (€50,000 for kitchen, landscaping)
Preferred heating system: Ground-source heat pump with cooling option
Why is the design as it is?
Upstairs we need the space for 2 children’s bedrooms, a study, two bathrooms, and a utility room.
We have a 750 m² (8,073 sq ft) plot where we plan to build approximately 220 m² (2,368 sq ft) plus a basement and garages.
After initial discussions with builders, we find the following floor plan quite good, as it reflects our desired room sizes on both the ground floor and upper floor.
Ground Floor:
Two main questions still concern us:
1) Should the kitchen/dining area be on the left, or should the living room be located there instead?
The recessed kitchen on the left works well for natural light and especially because otherwise, we can't properly fit the staircase. Having the living room on the left would be nice since there is sun there until about 9:30 pm in summer, while the right side is in the shade by 6:30 pm. It’s a matter of preference when and where you want sunlight, but we’d be interested in your opinions.
2) Where should the staircase be placed, and how can we avoid losing much space on the upper floor?
So far, we have only found one solution. We prefer a 180-degree staircase; a 90-degree staircase would also work, ideally with a landing, as we want to avoid angled stair treads.
Other notes:
The plan lacks a pantry. We initially considered placing it in the passageway from the garage to the hallway, but there isn’t enough space for that. So the pantry will now go into the basement. Additionally, the hallway doesn’t have a particularly large cloakroom, so we are considering taking some space from the kitchen/guest room. The guest bathroom on the ground floor could be a bit larger.
Upper Floor:
We need the space upstairs for two children’s bedrooms, a study, two bathrooms, a master suite, and a utility room. With the current staircase placement and some restrictions regarding the master dressing room and bathroom, everything fits well, and we like the room sizes and their layouts.
Basement:
Yes, we need a “white tank” (watertight concrete basement). We want it for storage and technical equipment, which cannot be accommodated upstairs. Other rooms like a home gym are nice to have but not essential. Nevertheless, we want the basement for possible resale value and flexibility. Due to costs, we plan to only partially finish the basement. So the basement layout is less important for now.
We would very much appreciate hearing your thoughts on our ideas, what you like, and especially what you find problematic in the floor plan.
Many thanks in advance!
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 750 m² (8,073 sq ft)
Flat terrain
Floor area ratio - no development plan
Plot ratio - no development plan
Building envelope: 12 x 15 m (39 x 49 ft), we plan to build about 12 x 12 m (39 x 39 ft)
Setbacks: 3 meters (10 ft) on all sides
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 1-2 full stories
Roof type: Pitched roof preferred, flat gable roof also acceptable (preliminary building approval planned)
Style:
Orientation: Garden faces southwest
Maximum height/restrictions: approx. 8 meters (26 ft) (survey pending)
Other requirements
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type - no bay windows or balconies, pitched roof
Basement: yes
Number of occupants, age - 2 adults and 2 small children
Space requirements on ground/upper floors: like the rooms shown in the plan
Office use: family use or home office? Both work about 50% from home
Annual overnight guests: regularly guest stays with children
Open or closed layout: closed upstairs, open downstairs
Conservative or modern style: undecided
Open kitchen, kitchen island - kitchen island with 2 seats
Dining seats: 6
Fireplace: yes (no coal)
House Design
Who created the design:
- Planner from a construction company, modified by us
What do we like? Room sizes
What do we dislike? Master area – dressing room and bathroom are cramped. Is the hallway with the staircase practical? Kitchen on the left side is practical regarding light, but the living room won’t have sun after 7 pm in summer? Possibly rearrange the sofa in the living room for the TV
Estimated price according to architect/planner: €700,000 including basement, garages, and additional construction costs (excluding land)
Personal budget limit for house including fittings: €750,000 (€50,000 for kitchen, landscaping)
Preferred heating system: Ground-source heat pump with cooling option
Why is the design as it is?
Upstairs we need the space for 2 children’s bedrooms, a study, two bathrooms, and a utility room.
FloHB123 schrieb:
Honestly, I don’t really know anyone who actually needs two garages. Basically, a car is allowed to get wet and even be exposed to frost.
If a double garage doesn’t fit, wouldn’t one garage be enough and the second car just park on the street?
Or a double carport rotated 90° in front of the house? You don’t even need a garage for that reason.
Joking aside, we both have to/want to commute by car and a garage has several advantages. a) Security – car theft is quite common here, plus with a second garage the rear of the property cannot be accessed from the street anymore, and b) the car isn’t too hot or cold, and you can store other items inside as well.
11ant schrieb:
I find that charming. And without an obsession for symmetry—there’s definitely potential there.Absolutely, we just need to see how it fits into the overall concept, but it can work well even with two garages.EFH2020 schrieb:
In addition, access to the rear part of the property from the street with the second garage is no longer possible.That could also be seen negatively, for example if you ever want to use a small excavator in the garden because you want to make some changes or something similar.Yosan schrieb:
That could also be seen as a disadvantage, for example, if you ever want to have a small excavator in the garden to make some changes or something like that.True, that would be inconvenient. We have planned a sliding door at the back of the left garage, which should allow a mini excavator to pass through.P
pagoni20209 Jul 2020 17:46EFH2020 schrieb:
We want a deliberate separation between the kitchen and living room area, so the partition is there and not towards the living space. I understand. Still, in my opinion, the door to the otherwise open kitchen is pointless, and there could simply be an open entrance to the kitchen. Because if you close this kitchen door, the space is still completely open. A door is supposed to be able to close off a room, but an open room with a door in that spot???
EFH2020 schrieb:
Security, there are quite a few cars being stolen around here, I would doubt that… reliable statistics show that nowadays this is almost impossible unless you have a very high level of expertise and technology. This risk generally does not apply to us homebuilders. You can’t just twist two wires together anymore. Of course, you can build a garage.
I once had a lot with 17m (55 feet) frontage and ended up missing the option to get a trailer or similar vehicle around to the back of the house. That often meant more cost and a lot of work with the wheelbarrow. Today I would definitely keep such access!
I don’t know the exterior view or the regulations, but maybe a double garage in front of the house or offset in front could be an option, maybe also to visually balance the building somewhat?
pagoni2020 schrieb:
I understand. However, in my opinion, the door to the already open kitchen is unnecessary, and there could simply be an open access to the kitchen. Because if you close this kitchen door, the space is still completely open. A door should also be able to close off a room, but an open space with a door in this spot???
I would know better... honest statistics show you that these days it is almost no longer possible unless you have the highest level of qualification and technology. This danger usually does not apply to us home builders. You can no longer just twist two cables together. Still, of course, you can build a garage.
I used to have a plot with 17m (17 meters) frontage and had blocked myself from being able to get a trailer or similar vehicle behind the house. That often meant more costs and a lot of work with a wheelbarrow. Today, I would definitely keep such access!
I don’t know the exterior view or the regulations, but perhaps a double garage in front of the house or slightly offset in front could be an option, maybe also to visually break up the building a bit? In my opinion, the door to the kitchen makes sense because otherwise all the cooking smells would spread through the house and also to the upper floor. Perhaps a sliding door is a good option — it looks better and can still be closed when needed.
Well, statistics can be misleading. Around here, you can read almost every week about break-ins or stolen cars, especially new, high-value vehicles. Maybe there are significant regional differences; a good transport connection might even be counterproductive in this regard.
Hmm, maybe at least at the beginning we should leave the left side open. You can always build it later if needed. A double garage would be ideal, but that will be difficult due to space constraints and positioning, plus visually challenging and possibly difficult in terms of building permits / planning permission.
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