ᐅ Small Bungalow Floor Plan – Potential for Improvement?

Hello,
unfortunately, my post simply disappeared again yesterday, so I’ll try my luck once more.
A brief introduction: I am 48, female, single, and based in northern Baden-Württemberg.

I’m still at the very beginning of my house-building planning but already own a plot of land, for which I will sign the purchase contract in the coming weeks.
I want a small, single-story house without a basement, with a small, low-maintenance garden and nothing fancy.
It is unclear whether another person might move in ever, so I don’t want to plan for that at this point.
Basically, it would depend on the cost what 10-15 m² (100-160 sq ft) more would mean, as my budget is naturally limited.

Room plan
Kitchen + Dining + Living + Work approx. 40 m² (430 sq ft)
Bedroom approx. 14 m² (150 sq ft)
Dressing room -
Work/Guest/Child room approx. 10 m² (110 sq ft) optional
Bathroom + WC approx. 7 m² (75 sq ft)
Hallway approx. 5 m² (55 sq ft)
Utility room approx. 8 m² (85 sq ft)
Guest WC -
Storage room -
Total approx. 75 - 85 m² (810 - 915 sq ft)

Questionnaire regarding the floor plan:

Development plan / restrictions
Plot size	392 m² (4,220 sq ft)
Slope	North-south gradient approx. 1.5 m on 21 m (5 ft on 69 ft)
Site coverage ratio	0.4
Floor area ratio	0.8
Building envelope, building line and boundary	see development plan
Edge development	Setbacks according to open construction style
Number of parking spaces	1.5 (rounded up) per dwelling unit, so 2
Number of stories	II (two stories)</TD]
Roof type	Pitch 38–43°, half-hip roof or double shed roof
Architectural style	?
Orientation	East-West
Maximum heights / limits	8.5 m (28 ft)
Further requirements	Cistern of 4.5 m³ (160 cu ft) recommended Garage: with gable roof or green flat roof, carports? Filling allowed up to 1.8 m (6 ft)
Builder’s requirements
Style, roof form, building type	Exemption from gable roof at 30°? Bungalow
Basement, number of floors	One story without basement
Number of people, age	see introduction
Space requirements on ground and upper floors	Ground floor 75-80 m² (810 - 860 sq ft)
Office: family use or home office?	Home office, integrated in living-dining area
Number of overnight guests per year	0–1
Open or closed architecture	?
Traditional or modern construction style	?
Open kitchen, kitchen island	Kitchen island with depth like regular kitchen cabinets, followed by dining table
Number of dining seats	max 4
Fireplace	Undecided
Music / stereo wall	No
Balcony, roof terrace	No
Garage, carport	1 carport, 1 parking space
Vegetable garden, greenhouse	No
Further wishes / special features / daily routine, including reasons why some things should be included or not	- No separate office for home office because I don’t want to spend most of the day in a smaller room but rather in the living room with a view of the garden - Retractable staircase to the attic (additional storage space) - Wall in bedroom for wardrobe at least 2.75 m (9 ft) long - Wall in living room at least 2.45 m (8 ft) long for lowboard with TV - Bathtub – uncertain if necessary - Larger shower 90 x 120 cm (36 x 47 inches) with tiled partition wall (avoid glass wall)
House design
Who designed the plan:	DIY, based on floor plans from Hanse Haus and various other small house providers
What do you like? Why?	Open living-dining-working area in the southern part of the house, utility room not directly next to the bedroom (noise from technical equipment)
What do you dislike? Why?	Possibly the hallway / entrance area is rather small
Cost estimate according to architect / planner:	?
Personal price limit for the house, incl. equipment:	250,000–270,000 Euros (approx. 270,000–290,000 USD) turnkey, excluding foundation slab, earthworks, secondary building costs, furnishings, and landscaping
Preferred heating system:	Not yet decided, possibly underfloor heating
Other considerations	Maximum house length 11.5 m (38 ft) because plot width approx. 18 m (59 ft) minus carport 3 m (10 ft) minus setback 2.5 m (8 ft) minus 1 m (3 ft) buffer in case plot is shorter than 18 m (measured on Boris BW) Carport position could also be on the west side To maximize green space and deal with the slope: house with long side parallel to the street No preference yet regarding solid construction or timber frame, KfW 55 or 40 or X standard
Outdoor facilities	- Patio approx. 15 m² (160 sq ft) level with the house - Lawn may have slope - Carport with parking space in front
Earthworks	Southern boundary: retaining wall needed to manage slope, neighbors (right and left) have done this with 1.4 m (4.5 ft) L-shaped concrete blocks or hollow blocks, rough offer from earthworks company is available (wall, grading, compacting and preparations for foundation slab, foundation slab, patio and carport [= crane location], graveling, drainage, grounding ring, multi-utility lines, site setup etc. all together approx. 60,000 Euros)

Attached are a section of the development plan and a rough drawing of the house (green), carport (blue) and patio (yellow) on the screenshot from Boris BW.
I have also attached my first attempts at floor plans (once with the entrance in the north and once in the east). I probably used the wrong tool for drafting, but I hope something can still be understood or used.
I look forward to constructive feedback.
Thank you in advance for your time.

@11ant You already commented on my post yesterday – thanks a lot for that. Unfortunately, I only managed to skim your reply before it disappeared. But your suggestion to stick to a 38-degree roof pitch and place the technical equipment in the attic really stuck with me. That way, there would be more space in the ground-floor utility room, or it could even be made smaller.

Would the ceiling then need to be reinforced or better insulated? (Noise level from the equipment) Or would this also affect the roof’s insulation?

Is something like this even feasible in a standard house model? Or would the builders be overwhelmed by this?

Regarding the KfW standard: In what way is KfW 40 not really worthwhile? Is the difference in heating cost savings compared to KfW 55 or the 2024 Building Energy Act house so small that it doesn’t make economic sense? Although you can already get the KNN subsidy for KfW 55...

Newbee-BW schrieb:

Is the difference in heating cost savings compared to a KfW 55 or the 2024 Building Energy Act house really that minimal?

Yes, different usage patterns can actually make a 40-standard house more expensive than a 55-standard one (in heating costs).

Newbee-BW schrieb:

However, you can already get the KNN subsidy for KfW 55.

Am I missing something? What exactly is the KNN subsidy?

Newbee-BW schrieb:

Regarding KfW standards: In what way is KfW 40 not "worth it"?

In my opinion, it is definitely worth it. The extra cost is minimal (if building without certification/subsidies), and in my professional experience, 40 is now the standard. Also, looking ahead and considering the future value of the house, especially for a small house, having a 40 standard or better can actually make the house cheaper than a 55 standard one, because the possible savings on heating (we discussed this in another thread) won’t even be offset by the costs of achieving the greater energy efficiency.

Thank you for your feedback; I share your view. What I find questionable is whether the combination of solid construction and KfW 40 (or even more airtight) is still cost-efficient. Or, what additional effort would be needed to bring, for example, a Ytong house up to KfW 40 standard? With wood construction, to put it simply, it means adding one more panel or the plastic vapor barrier.

We have a bungalow.
My first thought is, why not rotate the gable roof?
You’ll gain more headroom,
avoid the appearance of a shack,
and your south-facing wall becomes a highlight,
with an open space featuring skylights.
For materials, I would choose filled bricks for a solid build, or timber framing for a non-solid structure.
A third small room (10sqm (108 sq ft)) is always useful, or you could have the option to separate it with shelving or lightweight partitions.
View from outside and view from the open kitchen

@Nida35a thanks for your input – great house, I really like it.
How do you clean the triangular windows? For the orientation of the house, I was thinking of positioning the long side parallel to the street to maximize green space and to somewhat avoid the slope facing south. With a roof pitch of 38 degrees, the gable side doesn’t look that great, so that’s why I considered an east-west orientation towards the neighbors. But you’re right, from the street view it does look a bit like a barrack. Since my budget is limited, I’m not sure if deviating from the “square, practical, perfect” principle would be affordable. Also, you don’t often see the long side of the house as the gable end. I also thought it would be better to have a large roof surface facing south because I need to install a photovoltaic system (Baden-Württemberg).