ᐅ Floor Plan Optimization for a Single-Family House: Gable Entrance and Basement
Created on: 2 Jan 2025 19:27
F
Flowerstone
Dear housebuilding community,
We are just at the very beginning of our housebuilding journey. So far, we have gathered information, visited houses, and mainly thought about the requirements we have for our future home. We have tried to incorporate this in the attached floor plan. Not everything is perfect down to the last detail yet; it is mostly about the basic layout and such. We already own the plot (see photo, north is at the top). The house should be positioned as far northeast as possible.
In the next few weeks, we plan to schedule appointments with various general contractors to get initial assessments and offers, which will help us decide with which company we want to build. We are not under any time pressure since it is a private development area, but we would like to start building by the end of 2025 or early 2026.
I hope it is okay to ask for feedback and criticism at this early stage. We thought the earlier we identify mistakes or add new ideas, the better. If this is not the right place for such questions, I’m happy to accept that feedback and come back better prepared.
We appreciate any feedback!
Below is the questionnaire completed to the best of our knowledge and belief.
Development plan / restrictions
Plot size: 719 m2 (7735 sq ft)
Slope: approx. 60 cm (24 inches) gradient within the building area
Building coverage ratio: 0.3
Floor area ratio:
Building area, building line, and boundary: 3 m (10 feet) distance on all sides
Boundary construction: Open construction method; boundary garages up to 9 m (30 feet) allowed
Number of parking spaces: -
Number of storeys: Max. 1 full storey
Roof shape: -
Architectural style: -
Orientation: -
Owners’ requirements
Basement: Yes
Roof shape: Gable roof
Architectural style: Country house
Stories: 1 + attic. Preferably with a high knee wall.
Number of people, ages: 2 (28, 27), two children planned
Room needs on ground floor and upper floor: GF (kitchen, dining, living, office, guest bathroom, vestibule). UF: 3 bedrooms, bathroom, laundry room
Office: I work 80% from home
Guest sleepers per year: 2-3 times per year
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Open with double sliding door
Number of dining seats: 8
Fireplace: No
Music/sound system wall: No
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Carport
Additional wishes/special features: Access to garden from kitchen, vestibule, laundry room on upper floor, shower in guest bathroom, open kitchen with sliding door
House design
Source of the design:
What do you particularly like? Why?
What do you not like? Why?
Price estimate according to architect/planner: -
Personal price limit for the house including fixtures: 500k
Preferred heating technology: -
If you have to give up something, which details/extensions:
-can you give up:
-can you not give up:
Why has the design turned out this way?
Based on a standard design of a house with gable entrance as a starting point. Large office that could later also be used as a bedroom with a double bed, vestibule, and laundry room on upper floor planned.
We are just at the very beginning of our housebuilding journey. So far, we have gathered information, visited houses, and mainly thought about the requirements we have for our future home. We have tried to incorporate this in the attached floor plan. Not everything is perfect down to the last detail yet; it is mostly about the basic layout and such. We already own the plot (see photo, north is at the top). The house should be positioned as far northeast as possible.
In the next few weeks, we plan to schedule appointments with various general contractors to get initial assessments and offers, which will help us decide with which company we want to build. We are not under any time pressure since it is a private development area, but we would like to start building by the end of 2025 or early 2026.
I hope it is okay to ask for feedback and criticism at this early stage. We thought the earlier we identify mistakes or add new ideas, the better. If this is not the right place for such questions, I’m happy to accept that feedback and come back better prepared.
We appreciate any feedback!
Below is the questionnaire completed to the best of our knowledge and belief.
Development plan / restrictions
Plot size: 719 m2 (7735 sq ft)
Slope: approx. 60 cm (24 inches) gradient within the building area
Building coverage ratio: 0.3
Floor area ratio:
Building area, building line, and boundary: 3 m (10 feet) distance on all sides
Boundary construction: Open construction method; boundary garages up to 9 m (30 feet) allowed
Number of parking spaces: -
Number of storeys: Max. 1 full storey
Roof shape: -
Architectural style: -
Orientation: -
Owners’ requirements
Basement: Yes
Roof shape: Gable roof
Architectural style: Country house
Stories: 1 + attic. Preferably with a high knee wall.
Number of people, ages: 2 (28, 27), two children planned
Room needs on ground floor and upper floor: GF (kitchen, dining, living, office, guest bathroom, vestibule). UF: 3 bedrooms, bathroom, laundry room
Office: I work 80% from home
Guest sleepers per year: 2-3 times per year
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Open with double sliding door
Number of dining seats: 8
Fireplace: No
Music/sound system wall: No
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Carport
Additional wishes/special features: Access to garden from kitchen, vestibule, laundry room on upper floor, shower in guest bathroom, open kitchen with sliding door
House design
Source of the design:
- Do-it-yourself
What do you particularly like? Why?
- Staircase not in the dirty area
- Kitchen can be either open or closed
- Laundry room on upper floor
What do you not like? Why?
- Basement stairs unfortunately not in the vestibule
- Bathroom on upper floor not clearly divided into wet and dry areas
Price estimate according to architect/planner: -
Personal price limit for the house including fixtures: 500k
Preferred heating technology: -
If you have to give up something, which details/extensions:
-can you give up:
-can you not give up:
Why has the design turned out this way?
Based on a standard design of a house with gable entrance as a starting point. Large office that could later also be used as a bedroom with a double bed, vestibule, and laundry room on upper floor planned.
H
hanghaus20233 Jan 2025 09:10Thank you for the feedback.
Also, Happy New Year to everyone here.
I was actually thinking of the entire development plan with the text version. How else can the impact on the roof be properly assessed? Separate regulations for garages and parking spaces are often included as well.
Please do not post a link here. Just mention it.
The site does not require a basement. It is almost flat.
@ypg The state building code should be that of Lower Saxony.
Also, Happy New Year to everyone here.
I was actually thinking of the entire development plan with the text version. How else can the impact on the roof be properly assessed? Separate regulations for garages and parking spaces are often included as well.
Please do not post a link here. Just mention it.
The site does not require a basement. It is almost flat.
@ypg The state building code should be that of Lower Saxony.
H
hanghaus20233 Jan 2025 10:41Here is a post about a somewhat smaller house.
https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grundriss-fuer-11m-x-8-25m-ok.24781/page-8
Maybe it could be even narrower??
https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/grundriss-fuer-11m-x-8-25m-ok.24781/page-8
Maybe it could be even narrower??
hanghaus2023 schrieb:
@ypg the regional building regulations should be those of Lower Saxony Should be?
I am happy to discuss this with you, @hanghaus2023, and appreciate your help.
However, I assume from the original poster’s lack of response that they do not wish to continue the discussion.
H
hanghaus20233 Jan 2025 12:08ypg schrieb:
However, I infer from the original poster’s lack of response that they do not wish to continue the discussion.At least they are still reading what is being written here. It is probably not easy to respond to all the many posts right away.F
Flowerstone3 Jan 2025 13:11Hello everyone and thank you for the many helpful responses!
I would like to take some time to reflect and provide the most sensible answers possible. Please don’t be upset if it takes me a bit longer.
Here is an attempt to answer everything in a structured and transparent way:
1. Topic of sloped ceilings in the bathroom/laundry room not considered: True, thanks for the good tip. Depending on the final height of our knee wall, we will need to move this further inward.
2. 500k budget: We have actually planned 15k for exterior work and carport. Yes, it’s tight, but we want to do as much of the outdoor work ourselves as possible. If the exterior costs are too high, we might have some room to increase the budget slightly. Otherwise, we feel confident doing floors, walls, and underfloor heating ourselves.
3. The building code is that of Lower Saxony. If I have researched correctly, the upper floor must have a maximum ceiling height of 2.20m (7 ft 3 in) in less than two-thirds of the ground floor’s footprint. Is that correct?
4. Our reasons for having an entrance vestibule: A wet dog can’t run straight into the house. The house cat won’t always try to run onto the street. A clearly separated dirt zone. Large cloakroom area, separate from the living space.
5. Large wardrobe in the entrance vestibule: Yes, that’s true. Somehow it got lost during the back-and-forth planning. We could plan a 200x60cm (79x24 inches) niche towards the office without losing too much space in the office (potentially to accommodate a double bed). Or is that not a good idea?
6. Bathroom in the dirt zone: Good point, thank you. The entrance would definitely be better in the clean zone. We would need to see how that can be arranged in the floor plan. I’ll think about that.
7. Switching children’s room and bedroom: Thanks for the different perspective, I hadn’t thought of it that way. Probably the bedroom would really make more sense on the north side.
8. Kitchen open/closed/sliding door: Also a good argument. It really takes up a lot of space. Basically, we find an open kitchen most attractive. On the other hand, there are the “classic” concerns about clutter and noise that we can’t “lock away.” That’s why the sliding door solution came up. We probably need to meditate on this again. Thanks again for the input.
9. Our thoughts on the basement:
9.1 Organization: Horse gear, tires, sports equipment, musical instruments, paper recycling, deposit bottles, etc. don’t have to be stored or take up space in the living area.
9.2 Safety/Flexibility: I know several families that suddenly had three instead of two children. Without a basement, we would no longer have an office, which is absolutely necessary.
9.3 Party/Hobby room: We both grew up with basements and used them a lot for parties and hobbies.
9.4 We would also like a sauna/wellness room.
9.5 Our (probably too naive) calculation behind this: We save on the garage and raising the ground level and thus already effectively have half a basement (neighbors spent more than 50k on garage and ground work, which is why we used this figure). Maybe some of the excavation could be used to fill the garden (after first moving the topsoil aside) because we have a slope of over 1m (3 ft 3 in) in the back garden. Additionally, the technical systems don’t need to be in the ground floor, which saves space (though apparently I haven’t managed this in my floor plan yet).
10.
11. The zoning plan will come separately.
I hope I have managed to answer the questions somewhat adequately. I realize it was a good decision to post here. Now we need to engage with everything on a whole new level of intensity. Thanks!
I would like to take some time to reflect and provide the most sensible answers possible. Please don’t be upset if it takes me a bit longer.
Here is an attempt to answer everything in a structured and transparent way:
1. Topic of sloped ceilings in the bathroom/laundry room not considered: True, thanks for the good tip. Depending on the final height of our knee wall, we will need to move this further inward.
2. 500k budget: We have actually planned 15k for exterior work and carport. Yes, it’s tight, but we want to do as much of the outdoor work ourselves as possible. If the exterior costs are too high, we might have some room to increase the budget slightly. Otherwise, we feel confident doing floors, walls, and underfloor heating ourselves.
3. The building code is that of Lower Saxony. If I have researched correctly, the upper floor must have a maximum ceiling height of 2.20m (7 ft 3 in) in less than two-thirds of the ground floor’s footprint. Is that correct?
4. Our reasons for having an entrance vestibule: A wet dog can’t run straight into the house. The house cat won’t always try to run onto the street. A clearly separated dirt zone. Large cloakroom area, separate from the living space.
5. Large wardrobe in the entrance vestibule: Yes, that’s true. Somehow it got lost during the back-and-forth planning. We could plan a 200x60cm (79x24 inches) niche towards the office without losing too much space in the office (potentially to accommodate a double bed). Or is that not a good idea?
6. Bathroom in the dirt zone: Good point, thank you. The entrance would definitely be better in the clean zone. We would need to see how that can be arranged in the floor plan. I’ll think about that.
7. Switching children’s room and bedroom: Thanks for the different perspective, I hadn’t thought of it that way. Probably the bedroom would really make more sense on the north side.
8. Kitchen open/closed/sliding door: Also a good argument. It really takes up a lot of space. Basically, we find an open kitchen most attractive. On the other hand, there are the “classic” concerns about clutter and noise that we can’t “lock away.” That’s why the sliding door solution came up. We probably need to meditate on this again. Thanks again for the input.
9. Our thoughts on the basement:
9.1 Organization: Horse gear, tires, sports equipment, musical instruments, paper recycling, deposit bottles, etc. don’t have to be stored or take up space in the living area.
9.2 Safety/Flexibility: I know several families that suddenly had three instead of two children. Without a basement, we would no longer have an office, which is absolutely necessary.
9.3 Party/Hobby room: We both grew up with basements and used them a lot for parties and hobbies.
9.4 We would also like a sauna/wellness room.
9.5 Our (probably too naive) calculation behind this: We save on the garage and raising the ground level and thus already effectively have half a basement (neighbors spent more than 50k on garage and ground work, which is why we used this figure). Maybe some of the excavation could be used to fill the garden (after first moving the topsoil aside) because we have a slope of over 1m (3 ft 3 in) in the back garden. Additionally, the technical systems don’t need to be in the ground floor, which saves space (though apparently I haven’t managed this in my floor plan yet).
10.
hanghaus2023 schrieb:I will take a look at it this evening, thanks.
Here is a post with a slightly smaller house.
11. The zoning plan will come separately.
I hope I have managed to answer the questions somewhat adequately. I realize it was a good decision to post here. Now we need to engage with everything on a whole new level of intensity. Thanks!
F
Flowerstone3 Jan 2025 13:12hanghaus2023 schrieb:
I was actually referring to the entire development plan with the written text. How else can you assess the impact on roofs? Separate regulations are often included for garages and parking spaces as well.
Please do not post a link here. Just name it. I didn’t know how to provide it without a link. So here are some screenshots. I hope that’s okay.
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