ᐅ Floor Plan for a Single-Family Home, 175 m² – Suggestions for Improvement?
Created on: 28 Jun 2022 23:26
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Dizzy05
Hello,
We are currently working on the floor plan design. Attached is the architect’s proposal. Overall, we like the layout very much, but I feel there is unnecessarily large living space lost to the hallway/entrance area/staircase. Does anyone have suggestions for improvement?
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 2,200 m2 (0.54 acres)
No slope
Location: Saxony-Anhalt
Number of stories: 2 floors
There is no formal development plan; the building should just fit the character of the street (residential area only)
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: simple design, mono-pitched roof
No basement
Number of occupants, ages: four people, including two children of preschool age
Space needs on ground floor: living room, large kitchen, pantry, WC with shower, guest room, utility room
Space needs on upper floor: master bedroom, walk-in closet, three children’s rooms, bathroom, additional toilet
Overnight guests per year: once per month
Closed architecture
Conservative construction style
Kitchen: preferably with an island
Number of dining seats: 6
No balcony or roof terrace
No garage or carport
House Design
Planner: architect
What do you particularly like and why? Flexible and adaptable floor plan; it could be converted into two separate units later on
What do you dislike and why? Too much living space wasted on the hallway/entrance/staircase
Preferred heating system: heat pump, underfloor heating
If you had to give up something, which details or extras?
Can be omitted: open gallery on the upper floor, additional toilet on the upper floor
Cannot be omitted: floor plan must remain adaptable
Why was the design made the way it is now?
It is important to us that the single-family house can be divided into two separate living units
What is the most important/fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
Can the hallway/entrance/staircase be made smaller?
We are currently working on the floor plan design. Attached is the architect’s proposal. Overall, we like the layout very much, but I feel there is unnecessarily large living space lost to the hallway/entrance area/staircase. Does anyone have suggestions for improvement?
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 2,200 m2 (0.54 acres)
No slope
Location: Saxony-Anhalt
Number of stories: 2 floors
There is no formal development plan; the building should just fit the character of the street (residential area only)
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: simple design, mono-pitched roof
No basement
Number of occupants, ages: four people, including two children of preschool age
Space needs on ground floor: living room, large kitchen, pantry, WC with shower, guest room, utility room
Space needs on upper floor: master bedroom, walk-in closet, three children’s rooms, bathroom, additional toilet
Overnight guests per year: once per month
Closed architecture
Conservative construction style
Kitchen: preferably with an island
Number of dining seats: 6
No balcony or roof terrace
No garage or carport
House Design
Planner: architect
What do you particularly like and why? Flexible and adaptable floor plan; it could be converted into two separate units later on
What do you dislike and why? Too much living space wasted on the hallway/entrance/staircase
Preferred heating system: heat pump, underfloor heating
If you had to give up something, which details or extras?
Can be omitted: open gallery on the upper floor, additional toilet on the upper floor
Cannot be omitted: floor plan must remain adaptable
Why was the design made the way it is now?
It is important to us that the single-family house can be divided into two separate living units
What is the most important/fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
Can the hallway/entrance/staircase be made smaller?
Myrna_Loy schrieb:
As often as the original poster emphasized that divisibility is important, it is pointless to criticize this point. Unfortunately, that is not true! It is divisible with a caveat, but it is not convertible!
Dizzy05 schrieb:
What do you particularly like? Why? Flexible and convertible floor plan, it could later be divided into two units. Dizzy05 schrieb:
You can’t do without: the floor plan should remain convertible. It is now split into two residential units. That is not convertibility.
Dizzy05 schrieb:
It is important to us that the single-family home can be divided into two residential units. Dizzy05 schrieb:
What do you dislike? Why? Too much living space is wasted on hallway/foyer/stairs. Because divisibility is the top priority, resulting in three hallways.
Dizzy05 schrieb:
Can the hallway/foyer/stairs be reduced in size? Yes, for example with a more open and spacious single-family house design.
The caveat is something like this:
Who wants—or can use this kind of main bathroom “in old age” or after division, having had over 10 sqm (over 100 sq ft) before?
Or this: who can reasonably furnish the bedroom with a wardrobe and double bed (“age-appropriate”) or at all, with a width of 2.85 m (9.35 ft), when they previously had a dressing room?
-> The bedroom width is generally a problem here for both bedrooms.
Of course, one could stay on the upper floor and offer renters the ground floor including garden. … but is that desirable?
I can only speak for myself: I don’t want that, neither today nor in 20 years. I wouldn’t spend money on that. Not even rent.
And from reading a lot in this forum, the first mistake in house planning is to prioritize only what is needed later.
I recommend planning for your first 20 years. What happens after that is unknown.
By the way, I find the reasoning for “convertibility” missing. With two small children already in the household, it’s reasonable to expect to use the house as a single-family home for about 20 years anyway.
I strongly recommend drawing the furniture to scale and considering the clearance space.
The table by the seating window – aside from the fact that benches are impractical – extends the dining area into the path between dining and living.
A wardrobe for 4-5 people is missing.
The utility room for technical equipment, laundry, and storage is far too small.
The ground floor feels cramped due to the desired division and the conservative layout.
Upstairs, room 2.3 is presumably the master bedroom.
The bed is placed in front of a window – making cleaning difficult.
The room is very narrow. Depending on the bed frame, you might only have about 50cm (20 inches) between the bed and the wall.
The dressing room door, as it stands, can only open toward one wall-mounted wardrobe, and you desperately need the storage room.
I would integrate the dressing room into the bedroom to create a functional and spacious area.
I would convert the WC into a storage room or add it to the bathroom.
The bathroom lacks space for a second washbasin—which is not a luxury with 4-5 people—as well as room for cabinets.
The room layout is ambitious given the size. I would avoid dividing the space to visually create a more open feel throughout the house. Also, consider whether you want to keep two separate rooms for one guest per month and possibly an additional child.
The table by the seating window – aside from the fact that benches are impractical – extends the dining area into the path between dining and living.
A wardrobe for 4-5 people is missing.
The utility room for technical equipment, laundry, and storage is far too small.
The ground floor feels cramped due to the desired division and the conservative layout.
Upstairs, room 2.3 is presumably the master bedroom.
The bed is placed in front of a window – making cleaning difficult.
The room is very narrow. Depending on the bed frame, you might only have about 50cm (20 inches) between the bed and the wall.
The dressing room door, as it stands, can only open toward one wall-mounted wardrobe, and you desperately need the storage room.
I would integrate the dressing room into the bedroom to create a functional and spacious area.
I would convert the WC into a storage room or add it to the bathroom.
The bathroom lacks space for a second washbasin—which is not a luxury with 4-5 people—as well as room for cabinets.
The room layout is ambitious given the size. I would avoid dividing the space to visually create a more open feel throughout the house. Also, consider whether you want to keep two separate rooms for one guest per month and possibly an additional child.
M
Myrna_Loy29 Jun 2022 11:53@ypg I completely agree with you. Most people who plan like this hope that one of their children will move in later. They want to have space here and now but don’t want to face empty rooms when they’re older. I would rather plan for the present and give the children smaller rooms as well. 😀
M
Myrna_Loy29 Jun 2022 12:20haydee schrieb:
The children can still move in later. The separation doesn't need to be as strict with your own children as with unrelated tenants. And then four people living in 80 sqm (860 sq ft)? Or one child stays single and takes care of them? These are the kinds of scenarios that rarely work out. An apartment for a caregiver? It won’t get any cheaper to have care at home in the future either. So, a traditional tenant after all? Changing every few years and having to respond as a landlord to every dripping faucet? Or being annoyed by this and that the tenant does to the nice house?
😉
Well, rental apartments are scarce here. Often, a child with their partner stays in the parents’ house. Usually, a small apartment is set up under the roof. As long as the rooms serve their purpose, that would be sufficient here. For a third generation, an extension and renovation are necessary. At that point, almost everything has to be redone anyway. The ground floor is also not suitable for physical impairments requiring specific aids.
Why not build now and adapt accordingly later? Everything that is new and modern now will be outdated by then.
Why not build now and adapt accordingly later? Everything that is new and modern now will be outdated by then.
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