Hello everyone,
We would like to build a house but have not yet found a suitable plot of land. Therefore, my parents suggested building a house on their property, as they would prefer a somewhat smaller garden anyway. Before we submit an inquiry to the building authority to see if the local development plan allows this, we would like to know if the idea is feasible at all.
My parents own a 1950s house in a 1930s residential zone with a relatively large south-facing garden. An extension is rather unlikely since we don’t know if the old building will remain standing for the next 50 years.
I have attached a drawing made with the help of Google Maps (Image 1), where the property is marked with a red outline. There is a garage and a garden shed on the property (yellow outlines). The front door faces the street side (north) in the center. I added a scale (10 meters (33 feet)) in red to give a sense of the size of the plot.
Do you have any inspiring ideas on how we could theoretically implement this project in the best way?
Our initial thought was to build a house in the lower-right (southeast) part of the plot and leave a continuous strip along the right property boundary as an access driveway to a carport. That way, the existing garage and garden shed of my parents could remain, and there would be separate entrances, as well as a nice south-west orientation of our garden. The front door could then face east, and the living room would face south towards the garden, so my parents and we would each have some privacy. I tried to sketch this once (Image 2).
What about the setback regulations (in North Rhine-Westphalia)? Is it true that we must keep a 3-meter (10 feet) distance from the neighboring property? Probably only a single-story house with a converted attic would be possible, right? A basement would then be necessary to have enough living space. We are planning for two children, and there is also the possibility that the second time we might have twins 🙂
What do you think of the plan, and do you have any suggestions or ideas? Thank you very much in advance! 🙂
Best regards,
Frank
We would like to build a house but have not yet found a suitable plot of land. Therefore, my parents suggested building a house on their property, as they would prefer a somewhat smaller garden anyway. Before we submit an inquiry to the building authority to see if the local development plan allows this, we would like to know if the idea is feasible at all.
My parents own a 1950s house in a 1930s residential zone with a relatively large south-facing garden. An extension is rather unlikely since we don’t know if the old building will remain standing for the next 50 years.
I have attached a drawing made with the help of Google Maps (Image 1), where the property is marked with a red outline. There is a garage and a garden shed on the property (yellow outlines). The front door faces the street side (north) in the center. I added a scale (10 meters (33 feet)) in red to give a sense of the size of the plot.
Do you have any inspiring ideas on how we could theoretically implement this project in the best way?
Our initial thought was to build a house in the lower-right (southeast) part of the plot and leave a continuous strip along the right property boundary as an access driveway to a carport. That way, the existing garage and garden shed of my parents could remain, and there would be separate entrances, as well as a nice south-west orientation of our garden. The front door could then face east, and the living room would face south towards the garden, so my parents and we would each have some privacy. I tried to sketch this once (Image 2).
What about the setback regulations (in North Rhine-Westphalia)? Is it true that we must keep a 3-meter (10 feet) distance from the neighboring property? Probably only a single-story house with a converted attic would be possible, right? A basement would then be necessary to have enough living space. We are planning for two children, and there is also the possibility that the second time we might have twins 🙂
What do you think of the plan, and do you have any suggestions or ideas? Thank you very much in advance! 🙂
Best regards,
Frank
F
Frank_Schuster14 Feb 2021 22:2511ant schrieb:
You notice it yourself, right?Thanks for asking 😉 Yes, I am fully aware that we can’t build a mansion there.
A house only 1.6 m (5 ft 3 in) wide is currently for sale in London. So it can definitely be even smaller. 😉 Otherwise, though, such a property is really quite impractical, apart from the limited usability of the building itself. So it’s better to look for a "proper" plot of land.
Is more than 5.7 m (18.7 ft) possible? If another 2 m (6.6 ft) can be added, it works; anything less will probably be too tight.
Our single-family house has exterior dimensions of 9.6 m x 7.6 m (31.5 ft x 24.9 ft). Interior dimensions are 9 m x 7 m (29.5 ft x 23 ft). In the open-plan living area, there is a bay window that extends the 7 m (23 ft) dimension by another 1.5 m (4.9 ft). That’s where the dining table is located. Without this bay window, it would probably feel too cramped.
On the ground floor, we only have the entrance area, a guest toilet, an open-plan living space with kitchen, dining, and living areas arranged in an L-shape, and next to the kitchen a utility room that also houses the gas boiler. On the upper floor there is a bedroom, another large room (which could be divided into two rooms), and the bathroom. In the basement there is a small bathroom with a shower, a small and a larger cellar room, and a large room used as living space (here too, it could be divided into two rooms). However, the house is built into a hillside, so from the lower living room, you step directly out onto a terrace and into the garden.
Just to give you an idea. It’s hard for me to imagine going smaller in terms of dimensions.
Our single-family house has exterior dimensions of 9.6 m x 7.6 m (31.5 ft x 24.9 ft). Interior dimensions are 9 m x 7 m (29.5 ft x 23 ft). In the open-plan living area, there is a bay window that extends the 7 m (23 ft) dimension by another 1.5 m (4.9 ft). That’s where the dining table is located. Without this bay window, it would probably feel too cramped.
On the ground floor, we only have the entrance area, a guest toilet, an open-plan living space with kitchen, dining, and living areas arranged in an L-shape, and next to the kitchen a utility room that also houses the gas boiler. On the upper floor there is a bedroom, another large room (which could be divided into two rooms), and the bathroom. In the basement there is a small bathroom with a shower, a small and a larger cellar room, and a large room used as living space (here too, it could be divided into two rooms). However, the house is built into a hillside, so from the lower living room, you step directly out onto a terrace and into the garden.
Just to give you an idea. It’s hard for me to imagine going smaller in terms of dimensions.
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