Hello everyone,
My girlfriend and I are currently deep in planning our new build (urban villa, about 185 sqm (2000 sq ft), without a basement). We already have the plot (521 sqm (5600 sq ft)) and a builder (Heinz von Heiden) selected.
The actual architectural consultation for the detailed planning will take place next year. At the moment, we only have a draft that we created together with the sales representative.
We would appreciate any feedback from you regarding whether there are any major mistakes in our planning or if there might be smaller suggestions for improvement.
Our main considerations are as follows:
- Living/dining/kitchen area should be open and not too cramped (~53 sqm (570 sq ft))
- A gallery in the entrance area as a small visual highlight is important to us
- Master bedroom with a relatively large walk-in closet on the upper floor
- 2 children’s bedrooms
- Smaller office on the ground floor, which can also be used as a 3rd children’s room if needed
- Large bathroom for parents and children on the upper floor, as well as a shower/WC on the ground floor for guests and as an alternative when the children grow older
- Attic will not be developed (25° roof pitch) but used only as storage space (folding attic stairs are installed)
- Utility room with 11 sqm (120 sq ft) should be large enough to accommodate the air source heat pump, water tank, ventilation system, as well as washing machine, dryer, and water crates
However, we still have some open questions:
- Should we build a reinforced concrete staircase with storage space underneath?
- Should we place a pantry next to the kitchen (and thereby sacrifice part of the hallway)?
- Is the ground floor hallway too large at nearly 21 sqm (225 sq ft)? Where could space reasonably be gained?
Many thanks and best regards
Julian
My girlfriend and I are currently deep in planning our new build (urban villa, about 185 sqm (2000 sq ft), without a basement). We already have the plot (521 sqm (5600 sq ft)) and a builder (Heinz von Heiden) selected.
The actual architectural consultation for the detailed planning will take place next year. At the moment, we only have a draft that we created together with the sales representative.
We would appreciate any feedback from you regarding whether there are any major mistakes in our planning or if there might be smaller suggestions for improvement.
Our main considerations are as follows:
- Living/dining/kitchen area should be open and not too cramped (~53 sqm (570 sq ft))
- A gallery in the entrance area as a small visual highlight is important to us
- Master bedroom with a relatively large walk-in closet on the upper floor
- 2 children’s bedrooms
- Smaller office on the ground floor, which can also be used as a 3rd children’s room if needed
- Large bathroom for parents and children on the upper floor, as well as a shower/WC on the ground floor for guests and as an alternative when the children grow older
- Attic will not be developed (25° roof pitch) but used only as storage space (folding attic stairs are installed)
- Utility room with 11 sqm (120 sq ft) should be large enough to accommodate the air source heat pump, water tank, ventilation system, as well as washing machine, dryer, and water crates
However, we still have some open questions:
- Should we build a reinforced concrete staircase with storage space underneath?
- Should we place a pantry next to the kitchen (and thereby sacrifice part of the hallway)?
- Is the ground floor hallway too large at nearly 21 sqm (225 sq ft)? Where could space reasonably be gained?
Many thanks and best regards
Julian
Here is an additional note, as I had overlooked the post about the structure:
Development Plan/Restrictions
Plot size: 521 sqm (5607 sq ft)
Slope: none
Floor area ratio: 0.4
Building envelope, building line, and boundary: present but irrelevant for the floor plan here
Edge development: no
Number of parking spaces: none
Number of floors: 2
Roof type: none
Architectural style: none
Maximum height/limits: 2 full stories
Clients’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: urban villa
Basement, floors: 2 full stories, no basement
Number of occupants, age: 2 (27 & 32)
Room requirements on ground floor (GF) and upper floor (UF): 5 rooms
Office: not intended as permanent home office, but should have sleeping option
Guest bedrooms per year: 5
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern design: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: kitchen not planned yet
Number of dining seats: 6–8
Fireplace: yes, location not fixed
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: yes, garage
Kitchen garden, greenhouse: no
House Design
Designer: planner from a construction company
Favorite features: gallery, large bathroom on upper floor, large walk-in closet
Estimated cost according to architect/planner: 370,000 EUR (approx. 400,000 USD) for construction only
Personal budget limit for house, including fittings: 400,000 EUR (approx. 432,000 USD)
Preferred heating system: air-to-water heat pump
If you have to omit something, which details or extensions?
- Hallway on ground floor could be smaller
Why did the design end up like this?
- Standard design with minor adaptations by us
Development Plan/Restrictions
Plot size: 521 sqm (5607 sq ft)
Slope: none
Floor area ratio: 0.4
Building envelope, building line, and boundary: present but irrelevant for the floor plan here
Edge development: no
Number of parking spaces: none
Number of floors: 2
Roof type: none
Architectural style: none
Maximum height/limits: 2 full stories
Clients’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: urban villa
Basement, floors: 2 full stories, no basement
Number of occupants, age: 2 (27 & 32)
Room requirements on ground floor (GF) and upper floor (UF): 5 rooms
Office: not intended as permanent home office, but should have sleeping option
Guest bedrooms per year: 5
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern design: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: kitchen not planned yet
Number of dining seats: 6–8
Fireplace: yes, location not fixed
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: yes, garage
Kitchen garden, greenhouse: no
House Design
Designer: planner from a construction company
Favorite features: gallery, large bathroom on upper floor, large walk-in closet
Estimated cost according to architect/planner: 370,000 EUR (approx. 400,000 USD) for construction only
Personal budget limit for house, including fittings: 400,000 EUR (approx. 432,000 USD)
Preferred heating system: air-to-water heat pump
If you have to omit something, which details or extensions?
- Hallway on ground floor could be smaller
Why did the design end up like this?
- Standard design with minor adaptations by us
haydee schrieb:
The house is too large for your budget.
On top of the offer, there are upgrades,
all costs on the client’s side,
all costs not mentioned,
additional construction-related costs. We have allocated 135,000 EUR for everything beyond the construction costs.
55,000 EUR for the building permit / planning permission, earthworks, connection fees, surveying, temporary site electricity and water
15,000 EUR for the garage
22,500 EUR for painting and flooring
15,000 EUR for upgrades
20,000 EUR for landscaping / exterior work
7,500 EUR for interior furnishings
The kitchen is kindly gifted to us by our parents. The KfW subsidy of 26,000 EUR is also not yet included. With that, we actually feel quite comfortable.
B
Bauenaberwie23 Dec 2021 08:18BKB1989 schrieb:
We have allocated 135,000 EUR for everything beyond the construction costs.
55,000 for the building permit/planning permission, groundworks, connection fees, surveying, temporary power/water supply
15,000 for the garage
22,500 for painting and flooring
15,000 for structural upgrades
20,000 for landscaping
7,500 for furnishings
We are kindly receiving the kitchen as a gift from our parents. The KfW grant of 26,000 EUR has not yet been included either. Overall, we feel quite comfortable with this budget. Sounds reasonable 🙂 Unless the soil is a nightmare, those numbers are well estimated 🙂 But I find the house price hard to believe. With a 12x10 meter (39x33 feet) footprint, that’s about 200 m² (2,150 sq ft) of living space. Even at an extremely “low” 2,000 EUR/m² (186 USD/sq ft), you’re already at 400,000 EUR. And for a house of that size, 15,000 EUR for structural upgrades is usually not enough. You can almost spend that amount on electrical work alone :/
vonBYnachSH23 Dec 2021 08:21It seems to me that you are still at a very early stage and haven’t explored the floor plan topic in enough detail. A few obvious points that stand out right away (does Heinz von Heiden really offer such a floor plan?):
+ If the guest room on the ground floor is intended to become a children’s room, it is far too small. At 8 sq. meters (86 sq. feet), it’s hardly usable as a guest room either.
+ The utility room is only accessible through the kitchen – do you really want to carry laundry through the kitchen every time? Also, the door obstructs the kitchen space significantly.
+ Staircase right at the entrance: consider whether you really want this, especially regarding carrying mud upstairs (this becomes more relevant with kids and their friends).
+ The same applies to the toilet on the ground floor: dirty shoes are left in the cloakroom, but you still have to walk through there every time to get to the toilet.
+ The bathroom upstairs is very large, but there is no storage space.
+ If you need to use the toilet at night, it’s quite a long way.
This is just a quick overview for now. My advice: look at many more floor plans again, there’s a lot possible with a house of this size!
+ If the guest room on the ground floor is intended to become a children’s room, it is far too small. At 8 sq. meters (86 sq. feet), it’s hardly usable as a guest room either.
+ The utility room is only accessible through the kitchen – do you really want to carry laundry through the kitchen every time? Also, the door obstructs the kitchen space significantly.
+ Staircase right at the entrance: consider whether you really want this, especially regarding carrying mud upstairs (this becomes more relevant with kids and their friends).
+ The same applies to the toilet on the ground floor: dirty shoes are left in the cloakroom, but you still have to walk through there every time to get to the toilet.
+ The bathroom upstairs is very large, but there is no storage space.
+ If you need to use the toilet at night, it’s quite a long way.
This is just a quick overview for now. My advice: look at many more floor plans again, there’s a lot possible with a house of this size!
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