ᐅ Floor Plan for a 150 m² Corner Bungalow with Expansion Options
Created on: 5 Feb 2022 01:31
R
Ramona13
Hello 🙂
After what felt like hundreds of crumpled drafts in the recycle bin, we finally have a floor plan that we like and that fits our size requirements. Initially, we planned way too large, sometimes over 250m² (2700 sq ft) of living space... oops... Now we have settled on a nice 150m² (1600 sq ft) 🙂
We mainly reduced the number of rooms. Originally, we planned 2 offices and 2 future children’s rooms, but now only 2 offices remain, with at least one definitely convertible into a children’s room. This makes more sense since we don’t want to seriously consider having children before at least 5 years from now. We also initially planned a small wellness area with a sauna, loungers, and a hot tub inside the house, but this will now be a separate building in the garden.
More generally, I have already written here https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/vereinigung-zweier-Grundstücke-baufenster-neu-legen.42280/ about our plots. The request for merging them is still in progress, so we don’t have a definitive location for the house yet. Ideally, we’d like it centered on the current boundary line or, alternatively, on the rear building plot with border development facing the neighboring property.
Fortunately, regarding the development plan/planning restrictions, we will have quite a bit of flexibility. We can submit a preliminary building inquiry to check if everything is acceptable. The last house built here in the village about 4 years ago had 2 full floors, a different roof pitch, and presumably got some exceptions approved without problems. The community is generally happy that we want to fill a building gap 😉
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: approx. 1500m² (0.37 acres)
Slope: no
Floor area ratio & plot ratio... very confusing 🤨
Building window, building line and boundary
Edge development
Number of parking spaces
Number of floors: 1
Roof shape: gable roof, half-hip roof
Style
Ridge orientation parallel to street
Maximum heights/limits
Additional requirements: knee wall 0-50cm (0-20 inches)
Homeowner Requirements
Style, roof type, building type
Corner bungalow with gable roof, modern with Japanese elements
Timber construction by local carpentry with the possibility of contributing a lot of own work.
Basement, floors
No basement, 1 floor
Number of people, age
25 (female) and 28 (male) + 2 cats
Children not planned initially, earliest in 5 years
Space needs ground floor / upper floor
Office: family use or home office?
Separate offices for home office
Guest bedrooms per year
Very few
Open or closed layout
Open living area
Conservative or modern design
Modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island
Kitchen island facing the garden, pantry as a separate room behind the kitchen
Number of dining seats
4-6
Fireplace
No
Music / stereo wall
No
Balcony, roof terrace
No
Garage, carport
Probably carport, but not decided yet
Utility garden, greenhouse
Vegetable garden with large greenhouse definitely planned on the property
Other wishes / special features / daily routine, including reasons why some things are or are not desired
- A gallery in the roof, open to the living area, would be a big dream of mine, but only if financially feasible. Otherwise, this part of the roof will be storage space or intended for later expansion.
- Smart home with KNX installed by ourselves (all electrical work will be DIY in cooperation with a certified electrician who will inspect and approve)
- Controlled mechanical ventilation and a separate split air conditioning system
- Photovoltaic system on the roof facing south and east
- Garden must be cat-proof fenced since our cats are not outdoor cats (currently strictly indoor cats)
- Exposed beam ceiling in the open living area
House Design
Designer:
- Do-it-Yourself
What do you particularly like? Why?
The open living area with the possibility to use both the south and north terraces.
Small “reading nook” at the end of the hallway with a large seat window (-> if there is a gallery, the staircase will lead upstairs here and the reading nook will be located there)
What don’t you like? Why?
Maybe the hallway is too long...
Estimated cost according to architect/planner: none yet, appointment with architect next week.
Personal price limit for the house including equipment: we hope to stay under €500,000 (approx. $540,000)
Preferred heating technology: air-water heat pump with underfloor heating
If you had to give up, which details / expansions
- could you do without:
- Gallery would be nice but is not essential
- Wellness area in the garden can be built later
- Reading nook
- could you not do without:
- Air conditioning
- KNX system
- Separate offices
- Cat-proof garden
Why did the design turn out this way? e.g.
Standard draft from planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What do you think makes it particularly good or bad?
Our design developed step by step from many sketches, floor plans, and photos found online.
The interior furnishing in the 3D images is only a placeholder; the detailed interior design is still being planned.
Finally, this design gives us a satisfied feeling in terms of size and room layout 🙂
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan in 130 characters?
In your opinion, is our project achievable for a maximum of €500,000 (approx. $540,000), and is it sensible to plan smaller first and then expand by adding a loft conversion?
I am very grateful for your opinions, ideas, and suggestions for improvement! 🙂
After what felt like hundreds of crumpled drafts in the recycle bin, we finally have a floor plan that we like and that fits our size requirements. Initially, we planned way too large, sometimes over 250m² (2700 sq ft) of living space... oops... Now we have settled on a nice 150m² (1600 sq ft) 🙂
We mainly reduced the number of rooms. Originally, we planned 2 offices and 2 future children’s rooms, but now only 2 offices remain, with at least one definitely convertible into a children’s room. This makes more sense since we don’t want to seriously consider having children before at least 5 years from now. We also initially planned a small wellness area with a sauna, loungers, and a hot tub inside the house, but this will now be a separate building in the garden.
More generally, I have already written here https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/vereinigung-zweier-Grundstücke-baufenster-neu-legen.42280/ about our plots. The request for merging them is still in progress, so we don’t have a definitive location for the house yet. Ideally, we’d like it centered on the current boundary line or, alternatively, on the rear building plot with border development facing the neighboring property.
Fortunately, regarding the development plan/planning restrictions, we will have quite a bit of flexibility. We can submit a preliminary building inquiry to check if everything is acceptable. The last house built here in the village about 4 years ago had 2 full floors, a different roof pitch, and presumably got some exceptions approved without problems. The community is generally happy that we want to fill a building gap 😉
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: approx. 1500m² (0.37 acres)
Slope: no
Floor area ratio & plot ratio... very confusing 🤨
Building window, building line and boundary
Edge development
Number of parking spaces
Number of floors: 1
Roof shape: gable roof, half-hip roof
Style
Ridge orientation parallel to street
Maximum heights/limits
Additional requirements: knee wall 0-50cm (0-20 inches)
Homeowner Requirements
Style, roof type, building type
Corner bungalow with gable roof, modern with Japanese elements
Timber construction by local carpentry with the possibility of contributing a lot of own work.
Basement, floors
No basement, 1 floor
Number of people, age
25 (female) and 28 (male) + 2 cats
Children not planned initially, earliest in 5 years
Space needs ground floor / upper floor
Office: family use or home office?
Separate offices for home office
Guest bedrooms per year
Very few
Open or closed layout
Open living area
Conservative or modern design
Modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island
Kitchen island facing the garden, pantry as a separate room behind the kitchen
Number of dining seats
4-6
Fireplace
No
Music / stereo wall
No
Balcony, roof terrace
No
Garage, carport
Probably carport, but not decided yet
Utility garden, greenhouse
Vegetable garden with large greenhouse definitely planned on the property
Other wishes / special features / daily routine, including reasons why some things are or are not desired
- A gallery in the roof, open to the living area, would be a big dream of mine, but only if financially feasible. Otherwise, this part of the roof will be storage space or intended for later expansion.
- Smart home with KNX installed by ourselves (all electrical work will be DIY in cooperation with a certified electrician who will inspect and approve)
- Controlled mechanical ventilation and a separate split air conditioning system
- Photovoltaic system on the roof facing south and east
- Garden must be cat-proof fenced since our cats are not outdoor cats (currently strictly indoor cats)
- Exposed beam ceiling in the open living area
House Design
Designer:
- Do-it-Yourself
What do you particularly like? Why?
The open living area with the possibility to use both the south and north terraces.
Small “reading nook” at the end of the hallway with a large seat window (-> if there is a gallery, the staircase will lead upstairs here and the reading nook will be located there)
What don’t you like? Why?
Maybe the hallway is too long...
Estimated cost according to architect/planner: none yet, appointment with architect next week.
Personal price limit for the house including equipment: we hope to stay under €500,000 (approx. $540,000)
Preferred heating technology: air-water heat pump with underfloor heating
If you had to give up, which details / expansions
- could you do without:
- Gallery would be nice but is not essential
- Wellness area in the garden can be built later
- Reading nook
- could you not do without:
- Air conditioning
- KNX system
- Separate offices
- Cat-proof garden
Why did the design turn out this way? e.g.
Standard draft from planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What do you think makes it particularly good or bad?
Our design developed step by step from many sketches, floor plans, and photos found online.
The interior furnishing in the 3D images is only a placeholder; the detailed interior design is still being planned.
Finally, this design gives us a satisfied feeling in terms of size and room layout 🙂
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan in 130 characters?
In your opinion, is our project achievable for a maximum of €500,000 (approx. $540,000), and is it sensible to plan smaller first and then expand by adding a loft conversion?
I am very grateful for your opinions, ideas, and suggestions for improvement! 🙂
K a t j a schrieb:
Sorry, Ramona, but I’m afraid this isn’t the dream house most people would hope for. It’s best if you write down your wishes in text form and then bring that list along with your site plan to a trusted architect. We’ll be happy to review the results with you then. We have scheduled an appointment with an architect for next week. It will be a general introductory meeting to get a first impression and also to get an idea of the costs. We actually don’t want to spend more than €500,000 (about $540,000) on the construction (a €400,000 loan and €100,000 savings). If I now budget another €50,000 (about $54,000) for the architect, that would limit the house even more than I already feel it does 😳
When building a house, you absolutely need a licensed professional to submit the plans to the authorities on your behalf. This is often an architect. General contractors (GCs) also usually work with architects who create the plans. So, to put it simply, you will have to pay for this service anyway.
However, in my experience, the level of effort is not always as it should be. If you provide a sketch, the planner often just copies it instead of thinking independently. Therefore, it’s best not to bring anything other than your list. That way, they have to think for themselves, which is what they are trained for.
Be careful when commissioning an architect. Verbal agreements are also considered binding! Look at what they have planned so far, their website, references, and possibly the companies they work with. The personal fit must also be right. If you’re not 100% convinced, keep looking.
However, in my experience, the level of effort is not always as it should be. If you provide a sketch, the planner often just copies it instead of thinking independently. Therefore, it’s best not to bring anything other than your list. That way, they have to think for themselves, which is what they are trained for.
Be careful when commissioning an architect. Verbal agreements are also considered binding! Look at what they have planned so far, their website, references, and possibly the companies they work with. The personal fit must also be right. If you’re not 100% convinced, keep looking.
K a t j a schrieb:
If you are building a house, you definitely need a licensed professional who submits the plans to the authorities for you. This is often the architect. General contractors usually work with architects who create the plans. So, to put it simply, you have to pay for this anyway.
However, based on my experience, their enthusiasm is not always as it should be. If you submit just a sketch, the planner often doesn’t think for themselves but merely copies it. That’s why it’s best not to bring anything except a list. This way, they have to think on their own, which is what they studied for.
Be careful when commissioning an architect. Verbal agreements are also considered binding! Check what they have planned so far, their website, references, and possibly the companies they work with. You also need to feel comfortable with them personally. If you’re not 100% convinced, keep looking. So can I assume that the price quoted by a carpentry company for the house as a “shell home” already includes the costs for their own planner, and if I only go there with my own sketch, it will be a higher amount than if I present the finished plan from the architect?
Ramona13 schrieb:
So I can probably assume that the price quoted to me by a carpentry company for the house as a “shell construction” already includes the costs for their own planner, and if I only bring my sketch, the price will be higher than if I submit the finished plans from the architect?I can’t tell you exactly how the companies break down their prices. If the carpentry company always works with the same architect, they might be surprised if you bring your own. Likewise, the architect might have their own trusted carpentry company. The only solution is to ask and compare. Always be clear and direct about these matters. There’s not much room for negotiation in construction. For everything to run smoothly, the process needs to be well-oiled, if you know what I mean. What it costs, it costs.Similar topics