ᐅ Floor Plan Design for a Bungalow with Basement – 140 sqm – Gentle Slope

Hello everyone,

I have been a silent reader here for some time, but now our building project is becoming more concrete. That’s why I would like to share our floor plan here to get feedback from others. After days of drawing, discussing, etc. within a small group, you tend to become somewhat “blind” and might miss “the essentials” sometimes. Just a note: the furniture, kitchen, shower, toilet, etc., shown on the plan are only symbolic placeholders and do not reflect our actual planning.

Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 644 sqm (6,930 sq ft) – 23 m x 28 m (75 ft x 92 ft)
Slope: yes, descending from south to north. Approximately 2 m (6.5 ft) height difference.
Floor area ratio (FAR): 0.4
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 5 m (16 ft) to the north, 3 m (10 ft) to the south
Edge development: -
Number of parking spaces: -
Number of floors: single-story
Roof type: gable roof, hip roof, flat roof
Architectural style: -
Orientation: ridge line east-west – parallel to the street
Maximum height / limits: 5.5 m (18 ft)
Other requirements:

Owners’ Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: bungalow with hip roof
Basement, floors: ground floor with basement
Number of occupants, ages: 3 people (45 / 40 / 5)
Space requirement for ground floor, upper floor: approx. 140 sqm (1,507 sq ft)
Office: family use or home office? Home office
Guest bedrooms per year: 4-6 times/year
Kitchen type, cooking island: closed kitchen, no island
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: no
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double garage
Utility garden, greenhouse: no

House Design
Who created the design: We made the initial draft, and the builder performed numerous changes according to our wishes.
What do you like most? All our wishes have been implemented so far.
What do you dislike? Actually, we like everything so far.
Price estimate according to the architect/planner: €560,000 (approx.) – including special requests (sanitary, electrical, sunshades, etc.)
Personal price limit for the house including fittings: €600,000 (approx.), excluding ancillary building costs, garden, etc.
Preferred heating technology: ground-source heat pump / air-to-water heat pump

If you had to forego something, which details/extras would they be?
- Could give up: actually nothing
- Could not give up: closed kitchen

Why did the design turn out like it is now?
Our requirements regarding room sizes and layout have been implemented as we wished.

What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
- We want to use the forum discussion to identify any “weaknesses” in the floor plan in advance.
- Has anything important been forgotten?
- What concerns do you have?
- What can still be improved?
- Suggestions/criticism are very welcome.

Thanks in advance.

I find the long, dark corridor leading to the living area (living room) really, really unpleasant. Combined with having to turn three times around corners, it’s somewhat questionable why you don’t see this discrepancy yourselves. The house doesn’t feel welcoming. I wouldn’t want to buy the house like this, unless the partition wall can be removed.

I would make better use of the basement than just storage space... are the rooms just placeholders? I don’t see any indication that a workshop is needed... the lower ground floor has much more potential. The site plan is missing. Try sketching in the furniture yourself — that often reveals the shortcomings.

It’s clear that the designer simply finalized a DIY floor plan. The professional finesse is missing. The highlight of the house is a... basement staircase... 😕

I’m also having serious issues with the corridors. Would it be possible to simply extend the recess as a long wall? That way, you’d get a more spacious hallway and more room upstairs.

By the way, I would recommend placing the utility room upstairs and putting the office downstairs instead. Since you already have a bungalow, it would be convenient to be able to do the laundry on the ground floor.

Oh, and I would skip the door for the cloakroom. It just takes up space.

After 2 years of experience with a bungalow and entrance vestibule,
the vestibule door, closet door, and short wall can be removed,
with underfloor heating the house does not cool down quickly, and the space feels generous,
the kitchen wall to the living room and to the dark hallway can also be removed

Thanks for the initial feedback.

ypg schrieb:

I find the long, dark hallway to the living area (living room) really, really bad.

We are aware of the hallway leading to the living room, but we don’t find it "really, really bad" 😉. The house is meant primarily to be functional for us and not just look "nice". Everything we have received so far in terms of drafts from general contractors, architects, etc., was not where we felt comfortable or where our wishes regarding room sizes/layout, etc., were implemented. (Maybe we have just been with the "wrong" people so far).

ypg schrieb:

I wouldn’t want to buy the house like that, maybe only if the partition wall can be removed.

That could be done... 😉

ypg schrieb:

I would make more of the basement than just storage... are the rooms just placeholders? I don’t see anything about needing a workshop... the basement has much more potential. The site plan is missing. And drawing in the furniture yourself often helps to see the shortcomings.

I don’t have the site plan electronically available right now. The street runs along the south side. To the east and west, there are undeveloped plots of similar size. To the north, there is a 5m (16 feet) space to the adjacent property line (building line). Behind that, about 20m (65 feet) into the neighbor’s garden, there is also a bungalow.

I forgot to mention the workshop in the questionnaire above. It is meant to be a room where small tasks can be done (painting, crafting, photography, occasional PC work, etc.).

Just to clarify: the three basement rooms on the north side have regular windows because of the slope, so they get more natural light. The two basement rooms on the southwest side are currently planned only as storage rooms (possibly combined into one large storage space).

Evolith schrieb:

Would it be possible to simply extend the projection as a long wall? That way you get a more rounded hallway and more space upstairs.

What exactly do you mean by that?

Evolith schrieb:

By the way, I would recommend placing the utility room upstairs and move the office downstairs. Since it’s a bungalow, it would be nice to be able to do laundry on the ground floor.

That’s not an option for us. We want the office on the ground floor. The office is used daily and the daily trips up and down from the office to the living area are already a bit annoying today. Even after the "Corona period," the office will still be used frequently.

Evolith schrieb:

Oh, and I would skip the door on the cloakroom. It just takes up space.

That’s something to consider....

Nida35a schrieb:

The windbreak door, the cloakroom door, and the short wall can be removed,

The idea behind this was to keep jackets, coats, shoes, etc. out of the immediate entrance area, but a somewhat more open design in this area is worth considering.

Nida35a schrieb:


The kitchen wall to the living room and to the dark hallway can also be removed

We do not want an open kitchen.