ᐅ Classic single-family house, 200 sqm (plus basement) – any tips?
Created on: 7 Feb 2021 08:37
M
MucBauherr
Hello forum,
After some time of quietly reading along, the time has finally come to post our first drafts for our house here. Overall, we are quite satisfied with the designs, especially the ground floor. But that’s exactly the problem: we no longer see any alternatives and would therefore really appreciate if the forum could critically review the drafts without holding back. I will also try to keep updating here as the house construction, which is just starting, progresses. Many thanks and best regards from Bavaria.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 727 sqm (7,823 sq ft)
Slope: no
Floor area ratio: 0.10–0.24
Plot ratio: 0.38
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 9 meters (30 ft) from the street (north side); does not apply to garages
Edge development: Outbuildings (garages)
Number of parking spaces:
Number of floors:
Roof shape:
Style:
Orientation: southwest
Maximum heights / limits: n/a
Other requirements: Buildability according to § 34 Building Code; according to the building authority, the designs can be realized without problems.
Owner Requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: Classic detached single-family house with gable roof.
Basement, floors: basement + ground floor + attic (2 full stories)
Number of occupants, ages: three persons: 32, 30, 2 (+0)
Space requirements on ground and upper floors: 200 sqm (2,150 sq ft) plus
Office: family use or home office?: possibility for home office for 2 people
Overnight guests per year: 20
Open or closed layout: open
Conservative or modern style: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen
Number of dining seats: at least 6
Fireplace: yes (currently missing in the plan; intended to be installed in the living room between the two large window panels)
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: yes (we don’t like the current balcony design; might plan a “shorter” upper floor and use the gained space for a balcony instead)
Garage, carport: double garage
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Other wishes / special features / daily routines, also reasons why something should or should not be included
House Design
Designed by: architect
What do you particularly like? Why?: We really like the ground floor with the large window areas facing south.
What do you not like? Why?: undecided on the upper floor; possibly too crowded?
Price estimate according to architect/planner: 800,000
Personal budget limit for the house including fittings: max. 1,000,000 (then including landscaping)
Preferred heating technology: not defined; personally, I am not a fan of air-to-water heat pumps.
If you have to give up certain details or fittings:
-can give up: basement atrium, finishing the basement bathroom now, wood/aluminum windows, the huge terrace, southern window sections made up of individual glass panels
-can’t give up: the overall size
Why has the design turned out as it is now? e.g.
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? Based on a room program we provided to the architect in advance.
A mix of many examples from various magazines…
What do you think is particularly good or bad about it? Possibly missing a certain “extra.”
What is the most important/fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters:
1. Is the architect’s price estimate roughly realistic?
2. Are there fundamental issues you think won’t work?
3. How could we loosen up the design a bit more?
PS: The furniture in the plans is still somewhat randomly placed. Nothing is final yet. Also, some windows are missing or are currently in the wrong places and are oversized.
Looking forward to your feedback. I will try to answer the questions in more detail especially over the weekend.
Best regards from Bavaria!
After some time of quietly reading along, the time has finally come to post our first drafts for our house here. Overall, we are quite satisfied with the designs, especially the ground floor. But that’s exactly the problem: we no longer see any alternatives and would therefore really appreciate if the forum could critically review the drafts without holding back. I will also try to keep updating here as the house construction, which is just starting, progresses. Many thanks and best regards from Bavaria.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 727 sqm (7,823 sq ft)
Slope: no
Floor area ratio: 0.10–0.24
Plot ratio: 0.38
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 9 meters (30 ft) from the street (north side); does not apply to garages
Edge development: Outbuildings (garages)
Number of parking spaces:
Number of floors:
Roof shape:
Style:
Orientation: southwest
Maximum heights / limits: n/a
Other requirements: Buildability according to § 34 Building Code; according to the building authority, the designs can be realized without problems.
Owner Requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: Classic detached single-family house with gable roof.
Basement, floors: basement + ground floor + attic (2 full stories)
Number of occupants, ages: three persons: 32, 30, 2 (+0)
Space requirements on ground and upper floors: 200 sqm (2,150 sq ft) plus
Office: family use or home office?: possibility for home office for 2 people
Overnight guests per year: 20
Open or closed layout: open
Conservative or modern style: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen
Number of dining seats: at least 6
Fireplace: yes (currently missing in the plan; intended to be installed in the living room between the two large window panels)
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: yes (we don’t like the current balcony design; might plan a “shorter” upper floor and use the gained space for a balcony instead)
Garage, carport: double garage
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Other wishes / special features / daily routines, also reasons why something should or should not be included
House Design
Designed by: architect
What do you particularly like? Why?: We really like the ground floor with the large window areas facing south.
What do you not like? Why?: undecided on the upper floor; possibly too crowded?
Price estimate according to architect/planner: 800,000
Personal budget limit for the house including fittings: max. 1,000,000 (then including landscaping)
Preferred heating technology: not defined; personally, I am not a fan of air-to-water heat pumps.
If you have to give up certain details or fittings:
-can give up: basement atrium, finishing the basement bathroom now, wood/aluminum windows, the huge terrace, southern window sections made up of individual glass panels
-can’t give up: the overall size
Why has the design turned out as it is now? e.g.
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? Based on a room program we provided to the architect in advance.
A mix of many examples from various magazines…
What do you think is particularly good or bad about it? Possibly missing a certain “extra.”
What is the most important/fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters:
1. Is the architect’s price estimate roughly realistic?
2. Are there fundamental issues you think won’t work?
3. How could we loosen up the design a bit more?
PS: The furniture in the plans is still somewhat randomly placed. Nothing is final yet. Also, some windows are missing or are currently in the wrong places and are oversized.
Looking forward to your feedback. I will try to answer the questions in more detail especially over the weekend.
Best regards from Bavaria!
MucBauherr schrieb:
Floor area ratio: 0.10–0.24
Plot ratio: 0.38If everything is included, then 11 x 13 meters (36 x 43 feet) fits.MucBauherr schrieb:
Of course, the children's rooms would be better facing south, but it is our house after all, and children move out.… and grandchildren move in. The rooms won’t disappear, right? Having the bedroom on the south side won’t do you any favors because the house heats up through the south-facing windows. And the drainage for the master bathroom, which people like to ignore as an issue, has already been mentioned. It either runs along the counter or in the corner of the dining area. You probably don’t want the downpipe in front of a window, do you? MucBauherr schrieb:
How could the open-plan area (living room) be better structured?A different floor plan, more of an L-shape or separated living zones.M
MucBauherr7 Feb 2021 18:4111ant schrieb:
The statement that a regionally typical “normal” two-story house with a gable roof is surprising, given the floor plans, which I – and probably not only me – would immediately associate with the "Bauhaus" style.Personally, I would only classify it as a single-family house with a gable roof. To me, Bauhaus implies something quite different. Well, this may vary from builder to builder.11ant schrieb:
A drainage system where you are left waiting for the architect’s response and a laundry chute that “will be installed somewhere” seem more fitting for a general contractor’s work, which is not in line with the house budget, rather than for an architect (and uncertainty about whether furniture will fit doesn’t suit a “generally oversized” house either).Well, the plan doesn’t come from me but from the architect, who in turn needs to explain whether certain arrangements are actually feasible. The size alone doesn’t necessarily make furnishing easier.11ant schrieb:
I don’t understand the reasoning behind how windows could be a counterargument to the house exceeding 800,000 Euros.I had taken it more as an indication supporting the accuracy of the calculation. Perhaps the wording was not clear enough.11ant schrieb:
In a 34 zoning area, it’s not unusual for there to be no fixed floor area ratio and plot ratio requirements (because that would already be a preliminary binding development plan). The given floor area ratio range most likely refers to an existing survey. However, the plot ratio is a closely related figure and seems very odd with such a wide range when only one value is given for the floor area ratio. You would expect a similarly variable value there – unless the building authority staff are unfamiliar with the correlation of these two numbers and you were given these values by someone covering a vacation. The lack of knowledge regarding the correlation between these two figures would have to be extensive for this to be the answer.I don’t fully grasp the purpose of the rather lengthy explanation. Personally, I wasn’t given these values by anyone but took them from the architect’s written assessment referring to the statements from the authority.Good luck
M
MucBauherr7 Feb 2021 18:47ypg schrieb:
If everything is included, then 11 x 13 should be about right.
... and grandchildren included. The rooms won’t be removed, right?
Having bedrooms facing south isn’t a good idea, as the house will heat up through the south-facing windows. The drainage for the master bathroom, an issue that tends to be overlooked, has already been mentioned. It either runs along the counter or in the corner of the dining area. You probably don’t want the downpipe in front of a window, do you?
Consider a different floor plan, more like an L-shape or rearranged living spaces. I certainly hope my grandchildren won’t want to live with their grandparents, but jokes aside. I see the problem the same way, even though the temperature issue is generally addressed through air conditioning in the house. Nevertheless, I would also favor orienting the rooms facing north.
The architect will have to take another look...
Thank you very much for the constructive criticism.
MucBauherr schrieb:
I personally would only categorize it as a detached house with a pitched roof. At least to me, Bauhaus means something different. Exactly. You read "detached house with pitched roof" but then see floor plans typical for a “flat roof with matte white finish,” which in trendy homeowner language is called “Bauhaus style.” That doesn’t really fit together, and to me this appears to be the result of too many mixed sources of inspiration. MucBauherr schrieb:
The sheer size alone doesn’t necessarily make furnishing easier. But an architect should at least manage to fit all the furniture within such a large number of square meters. MucBauherr schrieb:
I rather took it as an indication that the calculation was correct. Maybe the wording wasn’t very clear. Unfortunately, that’s where it ended. I don’t understand how "many/large windows" are supposed to indicate that the budget will be sufficient.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
M
MucBauherr7 Feb 2021 19:0711ant schrieb:
Exactly. You read “single-family house with a gable roof” and then you see floor plans typical for a “matte white flat roof,” which in trendy architectural jargon is called “Bauhaus style.” That doesn’t really match, and to me, this seems to be the result of too many mixed sources of inspiration. I’m not really into magazines. What the architect reads in their free time is unknown to me.
11ant schrieb:
But an architect should at least manage to fit all the furniture within the given square meters. Primarily, it was about coordinating the total area with the rooms, which in my opinion still needs some adjustment.
11ant schrieb:
Unfortunately, that’s where it stayed. How “many/large windows” are supposed to suggest the budget will be sufficient leaves me puzzled. I also wrote that I do not consider the number to be overestimated. Unfortunately, this is also the first house, so I don’t yet have a precise grasp of construction cost assessments. But I’m sure that will come in time.
MucBauherr schrieb:
I’m not really into magazines. What the architect reads in their free time is unknown to me. MucBauherr schrieb:
A mix of many examples from various magazines... You hadn’t mentioned that those were only the ones the architect reads. The result, in any case, shows floor plans typical of "bauhaus," where the gable roof isn’t visually apparent and wouldn’t be assumed at first glance ;-)
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
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