ᐅ Single-Family Home with a Secondary Suite – Tips for Beginners

We are still quite new to this topic, but we have plenty of time and will spend the coming months researching and planning thoroughly. We hope for constructive suggestions and feedback. Don’t be surprised that the bay window on the second floor was not included; this is just a quick sketch, as we have only just discovered the software.

Building Plan / Restrictions
Plot size 800 sqm (8611 sq ft)
Slope no
Building footprint 180 sqm (1938 sq ft)

Client Requirements
Style modern
Roof type gable 35°
Building type single-family house with granny flat
Basement fully basemented (storage room, laundry, etc. located here). Living basement with light wells.
Floors 2
Number of planned occupants 5 in the main house, 2 (parents) in the granny flat
Guest sleepers per year 0–1
Open kitchen with cooking island
Fireplace on the first floor (living room)
Large double garage with roof terrace on the west side, garage to the east
Terrace on the south side
Possibly a gallery from the living room to the dining room (first floor to ground floor) and a conservatory facing the south terrace

House Design
Designer:
- Do-it-Yourself
What do you particularly like? Why?
Sunny orientation, open living concept, master bedroom with walk-in closet/bathroom and possibly a sauna, roof terrace on the garage to the west
What do you dislike? Why?
Many hallways
Personal price limit for the house including fittings: approximately 650,000–800,000 € without land
Preferred heating system: still open

Looking forward to your replies.

Maxwell8 schrieb:

Looking forward to replies.

Me too.

What is written does not match the sketches for me.
The only concrete figures are 180 square meters (1937 square feet) of floor space, multiplied by 2 equals 320 square meters (3444 square feet) of living area.
160 square meters (1722 square feet) of basement, divided into 80 square meters (861 square feet) of cellar rooms and 80 square meters (861 square feet) of living basement.
400 square meters (4306 square feet) of living area plus 80 square meters (861 square feet) of basement totals roughly
1,000,000 euros for 2 housing units.
Double garage with roof terrace, fireplace, sauna, and another garage,
roughly 80,000 to 100,000 euros.
Then there are additional building-related costs, landscaping, etc.
I recommend a more organized and compact room layout that fits the budget.

Think it over again regarding what is really needed here. See above: room layout.

The size currently planned does not fit the budget. Then there are cost drivers like bay windows and, in my opinion, windows that are far too large. Why such big windows in the bedroom? Where is a shower supposed to go in the kids’ bathroom with so many windows?

Work through the house room by room, determine what is needed, and start planning from scratch. When you’re experimenting as non-professionals, take wall thicknesses into account (for exterior walls, assume about 40 cm (16 inches)…) and sketch in some furniture. This way, you can see whether, for example, anyone can actually use the toilet in the guest apartment or if it only fits in front of the urinal…

I wouldn’t want to be Child 1 🙂 Seriously, you’re enjoying the bedroom (!) in the west while your children sometimes have to play in the dark because of it. But as others have mentioned, you’ll need to reconsider anyway.

Well, you’re writing it yourself. Just played around with a program.
It’s nothing and definitely doesn’t fit the budget.
I would simply suggest googling floor plans to get a feel for it.
Once you have something you like, you can adjust it a bit.
In the end, the architect is there to work on the floor plan.