ᐅ Floor plan of a new country house in a large garden under Section 34 (including demolition)
Created on: 19 Jan 2025 18:39
M
marcoblu
Hello dear community,
Last year, we purchased a house in Brandenburg. Initially, we planned to renovate and remodel the existing building. After receiving initial quotes exceeding 500,000€ (approximately 500,000 USD), we decided to change course and are now planning a new build.
We first contacted a few prefabricated house providers, but were not satisfied with the proposed plans. So, we downloaded the app Home Design 3D and kept designing until we achieved a result we were really happy with.
We would appreciate any feedback, ideas, and criticism. Our next step is to find a suitable contractor based on the floor plan. Attached are the questionnaire and some additional thoughts behind the planning.
Zoning plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 3000 sqm (approximately 32,000 sq ft)
Further requirements: §34, details not yet known
Client requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: rather country house style, gable roof
Basement, floors: No basement, 1.5 floors
Number of people, ages: 2 adults, 1 child, possibly +1 child
Space needs on ground and upper floors: –
Office: family use or home office? Home office
Guests per year: occasional
Open or closed layout: rather closed
Conservative or modern design: rather conservative
Open kitchen, kitchen island: closed kitchen
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: yes
Music/sound wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: balcony
Garage, carport: existing garage stays, carport for camper
Vegetable garden, greenhouse: large garden
House design
Who created the plan: Self-designed using iPad app
- Planner from a construction company
- Architect
- Do-it-yourself
What do you like most? Why? Orientation of all main rooms to the south
What don’t you like? Why? Bedroom entrance from hallway
Estimated cost according to architect/planner: in progress
Personal price limit for the house including fixtures: 500,000€ (approximately 500,000 USD)
Preferred heating technology: heat pump
If you have to give up something, which details/features could you do without? Balcony
Which are essential? Terrace, easy access to the garden
Why is the design the way it is now?
For example, standard design from planner? We refined it until we really liked it.
Which of your wishes were realized by the architect?
A mixture of many examples from various magazines...
What makes this design particularly good or bad in your opinion?
Maximum space optimization
Additional notes from us:
General
Ground Floor
General
Hallway
Utility Room
Bathroom
Kitchen
Living Room
Guest Room
Upper Floor:
General
Bathroom
Bedroom
Study
Guest Room
Last year, we purchased a house in Brandenburg. Initially, we planned to renovate and remodel the existing building. After receiving initial quotes exceeding 500,000€ (approximately 500,000 USD), we decided to change course and are now planning a new build.
We first contacted a few prefabricated house providers, but were not satisfied with the proposed plans. So, we downloaded the app Home Design 3D and kept designing until we achieved a result we were really happy with.
We would appreciate any feedback, ideas, and criticism. Our next step is to find a suitable contractor based on the floor plan. Attached are the questionnaire and some additional thoughts behind the planning.
Zoning plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 3000 sqm (approximately 32,000 sq ft)
Further requirements: §34, details not yet known
Client requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: rather country house style, gable roof
Basement, floors: No basement, 1.5 floors
Number of people, ages: 2 adults, 1 child, possibly +1 child
Space needs on ground and upper floors: –
Office: family use or home office? Home office
Guests per year: occasional
Open or closed layout: rather closed
Conservative or modern design: rather conservative
Open kitchen, kitchen island: closed kitchen
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: yes
Music/sound wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: balcony
Garage, carport: existing garage stays, carport for camper
Vegetable garden, greenhouse: large garden
House design
Who created the plan: Self-designed using iPad app
- Planner from a construction company
- Architect
- Do-it-yourself
What do you like most? Why? Orientation of all main rooms to the south
What don’t you like? Why? Bedroom entrance from hallway
Estimated cost according to architect/planner: in progress
Personal price limit for the house including fixtures: 500,000€ (approximately 500,000 USD)
Preferred heating technology: heat pump
If you have to give up something, which details/features could you do without? Balcony
Which are essential? Terrace, easy access to the garden
Why is the design the way it is now?
For example, standard design from planner? We refined it until we really liked it.
Which of your wishes were realized by the architect?
A mixture of many examples from various magazines...
What makes this design particularly good or bad in your opinion?
Maximum space optimization
Additional notes from us:
General
- Gable roof with east-west solar panels
- Similar to neighboring buildings
Ground Floor
General
- Wide doors on the ground floor, at least 1 m (3.3 ft) wide
- The ground floor is wheelchair accessible
- Patio roof in front of kitchen and half of the living room
Hallway
- Entrance area offers a niche for coats and shoes
- Space under the stairs usable as storage
- Stairwell and hallway on the first floor receive natural light
Utility Room
- Large utility room planned with at least 12 m² (130 sq ft)
- Northeast orientation, so the heat pump can be placed behind the carport
Bathroom
- Adjacent to the utility room
- Outdoor water tap
Kitchen
- Short walking distances:
- Kitchen accessible from entrance and dining room
- Pantry accessible through a cupboard in the kitchen
- Patio door leading from kitchen to garden
- Sliding door to separate kitchen acoustically and for odors from living room
- Small seating area in kitchen with enough space for quick meals (possible with a window seat?)
- Outdoor water tap
Living Room
- Floor-to-ceiling windows in living and dining area
- Fireplace planned
- Space for TV in a niche
- Area for cabinets
- One lift-and-slide door
Guest Room
- Option to use as bedroom
- At least 12 m² (130 sq ft)
Upper Floor:
General
- Balcony on the first floor facing south
- Accessible from two rooms
Bathroom
- Separate toilet and bathroom
- Bathroom has a bathtub
- Built-in cabinet behind the sink
Bedroom
- Floor-to-ceiling windows in living and sleeping areas, i.e., all south-facing rooms
- Does not border directly on the toilet or bathroom
Study
- Two almost equally sized rooms on the first floor serve as studies
Guest Room
- Another room on the upper floor can be used as a guest or hobby room
kbt09 schrieb:
.. and a site plan with dimensions and roughly accurate building outlines is required tomarcoblu schrieb:
- we would like to keep the outbuildings. These limit the building area to 10x14m (33x46 feet).
- The carport next to the house is intended for a camper and will be "built sometime in the future." However, we would like to maintain the distance to the neighbor to make this possible. The barn already stands 6 meters (20 feet) on the property boundary.
take into account."P.S." on the post11ant schrieb:
The aerial photo in the opening post may serve as an indication [...]Therefore, the outbuildings must definitely be included in design phases 1 and 2. The garage, shed, and others will have legal protection as long as they are not significantly more than just renovated or refurbished, but this needs to be clarified in detail. If confirmed, they should also serve a purpose and be seriously useful. This means the specifications for the main building are basically relieved of storage rooms, except for a pantry and a broom closet. If I remember correctly, we already discussed the topic of parking an RV with @WilderSueden. "Sometime" is the second worst time for planning, right after planning that happened in the past.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
wiltshire schrieb:
For overnight guests from the local area, that might be an option. When we have overnight guests, they usually come from too far away to use a taxi. To be honest, I am referring to the fact that the questionnaire uses "occasionally," meaning more "event-based" (not required, optional, would be nice).
If you have close friends or relatives who live far away and need to stay over regularly once a year, then it would likely say something different. At least, that’s how I interpret such a term.
11ant schrieb:
If I remember correctly, we already discussed parking a motorhome with @WilderSueden. No, WilderSueden had a small utility trailer that he wanted to keep parked on the driveway.
W
wiltshire21 Jan 2025 19:26ypg schrieb:
then it would probably say something different, at least that’s how I interpret such a word.Funny – I interpreted "occasionally" as "now and then" and didn’t associate it with physical proximity. People can read things so differently.wiltshire schrieb:
Funny – I interpreted "occasionally" as "now and then" and didn’t associate it with spatial proximity. People can interpret things very differently. Exactly, I also do not relate the term occasionally to spatial closeness, but rather to a "not essential, but possible" meaning, as shown in
ypg schrieb:
not required, possible, would be nice The question is: overnight guests per year.
If there was a requirement from the original poster (OP), I believe it would have been explicitly stated. Basically, either the topic is off or the question is framed incorrectly, though it must be said that this point is usually well explained by others.
On the other hand, the OP’s detailed listing of many other aspects suggests that this topic is actually of secondary importance to them. I see the guest room here merely as a means to an end, eventually to become a bedroom. But of course, I could be mistaken.
So, here comes a brief update from us.
First of all, many thanks again for the engaging discussion and the wide-ranging feedback.
We have read everything, taken some comments to heart, and ignored others.
Please don’t feel unheard.
Our main focus was to significantly simplify the floor plan in order to get closer to a realistic price for us.
We continue to work directly with the floor plan rather than a vague description of our circumstances since we already have a very clear idea of how large parts of the layout should be designed.
In the meantime, various providers have also reviewed the floor plan and, at least, have not dismissed it as completely unreasonable.
Attached is the new version. If anyone has the time to take a closer look again, we would of course be very happy to receive more feedback. The new external dimensions are approximately 10 x 11 meters (33 x 36 feet), which fits comfortably within the building permit / planning permission area and the outbuildings.
PS: We live in a rural area, and friends and family are between 80 and 800 kilometers (50 and 500 miles) away. Overnight guests are actually a very important issue for us, but we believe this can be well combined with home office needs and the two possible children’s rooms (one is definitely necessary).
First of all, many thanks again for the engaging discussion and the wide-ranging feedback.
We have read everything, taken some comments to heart, and ignored others.
Please don’t feel unheard.
Our main focus was to significantly simplify the floor plan in order to get closer to a realistic price for us.
We continue to work directly with the floor plan rather than a vague description of our circumstances since we already have a very clear idea of how large parts of the layout should be designed.
In the meantime, various providers have also reviewed the floor plan and, at least, have not dismissed it as completely unreasonable.
Attached is the new version. If anyone has the time to take a closer look again, we would of course be very happy to receive more feedback. The new external dimensions are approximately 10 x 11 meters (33 x 36 feet), which fits comfortably within the building permit / planning permission area and the outbuildings.
PS: We live in a rural area, and friends and family are between 80 and 800 kilometers (50 and 500 miles) away. Overnight guests are actually a very important issue for us, but we believe this can be well combined with home office needs and the two possible children’s rooms (one is definitely necessary).
W
wiltshire10 Feb 2025 10:38I know several houses in England with a similar ratio of floor area to number of rooms, and the people living in them are very comfortable. I appreciate the confidence to step away from "this is how it’s usually done nowadays" and to bring your own ideas more to the forefront. Your goal of having freedom and frequently accommodating overnight guests without making the house significantly more expensive or larger—or having to start a renovation each time you need a sleeping space—is achieved with this design. I like the exterior proportions, the visual division of the facade, and the tasteful break in symmetry created by the windows and the covered terrace/pergola.
I question whether the separate walk-in closet on the upper floor is practical, but if a dressing room is on the wish list, then so be it. Once mobility decreases a bit, getting dressed can become tight in a small space.
Some might criticize the size of the children's rooms. Anyone thinking that way should take a step back and consider how privileged children with their own rooms in a single-family house objectively are. Children’s happiness is not measured in square meters of floor space. And if there is only one child, they could have the luxury of claiming two rooms for themselves, occasionally offering one as a guest room.
The drawn-in furniture pieces partly seem not to be to scale but somewhat smaller. When buying furniture, paying attention to compactness will be a challenge, especially in the living area and the children’s rooms, to avoid overwhelming the space.
It might be useful to lay out the “technical” and “utility” areas, as well as storage locations for bulky items (washing machine, dryer, laundry basket and drying rack, vacuum cleaner, ironing board, cleaning supplies, brooms, and also (beverage) stocks).
I question whether the separate walk-in closet on the upper floor is practical, but if a dressing room is on the wish list, then so be it. Once mobility decreases a bit, getting dressed can become tight in a small space.
Some might criticize the size of the children's rooms. Anyone thinking that way should take a step back and consider how privileged children with their own rooms in a single-family house objectively are. Children’s happiness is not measured in square meters of floor space. And if there is only one child, they could have the luxury of claiming two rooms for themselves, occasionally offering one as a guest room.
The drawn-in furniture pieces partly seem not to be to scale but somewhat smaller. When buying furniture, paying attention to compactness will be a challenge, especially in the living area and the children’s rooms, to avoid overwhelming the space.
It might be useful to lay out the “technical” and “utility” areas, as well as storage locations for bulky items (washing machine, dryer, laundry basket and drying rack, vacuum cleaner, ironing board, cleaning supplies, brooms, and also (beverage) stocks).
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