ᐅ Hillside House in the Southwest Palatinate – Our Home Construction 2.0

Created on: 9 Sep 2022 18:13

Good evening everyone

I’m starting a small collection thread here for photos and progress updates on our second building project.
We’ve already moved to the Palatinate region to be closer to the construction site. Now we’re watching eagerly and happily as our (hopefully final) dream home takes shape near family.

One big challenge still ahead of us is the facade design. I really love the Nordic style with brickwork and mullioned windows. That won’t be possible here for two reasons: firstly, no one here can do bricklaying, and secondly, it would stand out too much. We will be going with a rendered facade. How to design the colors of the facade and windows to still create some country house / cottage charm is currently still a work in progress mentally.

Otherwise, I’m sharing our plans here and how it will eventually be built.
The support pillar marked near the kitchen island could be removed for a small extra cost, so that will be gone.

The room for “garden equipment” under the garage will get a partition wall for structural reasons.
It won’t be fully finished living space like in the house, but underfloor heating will be installed, along with a lockable door and a window. It’s meant to store garden tools but also some of the building services equipment, since the utility room (HAR) is quite small, and maybe be used as a party room.

We had three construction companies in the final selection. In the end, we chose the “doer” – a builder recommended to us here by friends and family. No website, no smartphone, but he is on site every day himself working in overalls. He has a very good reputation in this area and now rarely builds single-family homes. We were a bit lucky through personal connections and a very friendly initial phone call to get our foot in the door. So far we are very satisfied with this choice.

Two-story house with garage, window fronts and trees; northeast and southwest views.

Site plan of a house with roof areas, measurements and property boundary (1020.25 m² (11,000 sq ft)).

Floor plan of a single-family home: garage, hallway, entrance area, bathroom, utility room, bedroom, kids 1/2, guest room.

Southeast view of a house on a hillside with terrace steps, windows and human figures.

Floor plan of a house with kitchen, living/dining area, hallway, bathroom, utility room, fitness room, office and garden.

Marvinius10 Apr 2023 18:22

#403

kati1337 schrieb:

I’m not sure when this started getting ridiculous, maybe somewhere between a six-figure project budget and an infinity pool.
But maybe we just don’t do anything at all, that would cost exactly 0 euros. 😀

By the way, the rough estimates from our contractor ranged between 2,000 and 16,000 euros. :p

However, they had nothing to do with the slope. I probably won’t invest much in the slope since it actually slopes away from our terrace, so it doesn’t really add much visually. We just want to plant a few edible plants there. But that’s not a game changer in the first step.
It would be different if our garden below the slope had another level, but it doesn’t. Where the slope ends, the property boundary also ends. The idea with the wooden border shown in the picture further up only comes from the wish to have a terraced vegetable garden.

If you don’t do anything at all, it will cost 0 euros, but it will quickly become overgrown and due to the slope, it will be difficult to work the area…

kati133710 Apr 2023 19:25

#404

11ant schrieb:

Nice idea, but unfortunately the slope here goes in the wrong direction for that (away from the activity).

I also considered having a slide like that, it would be fun, but as you said, it would lead directly to the edge of the property, which feels a bit odd. I think we’ll set up a sandbox outside, a mud kitchen, and a paddling pool in the summer. We don’t plan to install many play equipment pieces. We have a community playground just 30 meters (about 100 feet) away.

Marvinius10 Apr 2023 21:07

#405

kati1337 schrieb:

I also considered having a slide like that; it would be fun, but as you said, it points directly toward the edge of the property, which feels a bit odd. I think we’ll build a sandbox outside, a mud kitchen, and a paddling pool for the summer. We won’t install many play structures. We have a public playground just 30 meters (about 100 feet) away.

If the paddling pool might one day be upgraded to a proper hot tub, please remember to install a dedicated power line and a drainage line for water changes.

Benutzer 100110 Apr 2023 21:26

#406

kati1337 schrieb:

I’d find that funny too, but as you said it would be right at the edge of the plot, which somehow feels a bit odd

And if it’s at the edge of the plot, what’s the problem with creating a two-seat corner there? From down there you then look upwards. Maybe add a grill or something like that.

And playgrounds nearby are nice, but there was a time not long ago when we were glad to have something like that in our own garden...

kati133710 Apr 2023 22:25

#407

Offtopic schrieb:

And if it comes to the edge of the plot, where’s the problem in creating a second seating area? From down there, you then look upwards.
Maybe add a grill or something.

And playgrounds nearby are nice, but there was a recent time when we were glad to have something like that in our own garden...

The problem is that we would have to do a lot of ground leveling for that, which we currently cannot afford. And I don’t think I would want to invest in it medium-term either.
Because of the excavation soil from the house, which was spread across the plot, a flat area has formed a few meters behind the building, and behind that the excavation was piled up and sloped down almost across the entire width of the plot. If I wanted to create a second seating area at the lower edge of the property, I would have to create a level surface there. That means we would need to move the excavation soil somewhere and move very large amounts of earth—just for a slide, when a play tower with a climbing frame and so on is directly just a few meters away.

Marvinius10 Apr 2023 22:59

#408

kati1337 schrieb:

The problem is that we would need to do a lot of land modeling for this, which we currently cannot afford. And I also think that, in the medium term, I would not want to invest in it.
Because of the excavation from the house spread across the property, a flat level was created a few meters behind the building, and behind that, the excavation was piled up and sloped over almost the entire width of the lot. If I wanted to create a second seating area at the lower edge of the property, I would have to prepare a level base there. That means we would need to move the excavation material somewhere and handle very large amounts of soil. All that for a slide, while a play tower with climbing frame and so on is just a few meters away.

Please make sure your terrace is at least 5-6 m deep (16-20 feet), otherwise it can become too cramped over time.
It’s really a pity when a large part of the expensive plot ends up under a poorly usable slope.

ᐅ Hillside House in the Southwest Palatinate – Our Home Construction 2.0

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