ᐅ Single-family house floor plan, slight hillside location, northwest orientation
Created on: 23 May 2025 18:30
K
kronos215
Hello everyone,
We have almost finalized our planning with the architect and would appreciate you taking a critical look at the floor plan. Afterwards, we plan to proceed with the tendering process.
We generally like the ground floor (GF) very much. However, we are considering flipping the house and making some changes to the upper floor (UF). The garage, utility room, and technical room would move to the right, and the entire house would be shifted closer to the neighbor’s hedge on the left side (3m (10 feet) distance). The living room would then be on the left. It’s unclear whether the view of the neighbor’s hedge at a 3m (10 feet) distance will be nicer. On the positive side, the house would be better oriented towards the south and would let in more sunlight. The kitchen would then be on the right, providing wind protection from the open field while still allowing sunlight to reach the terrace.
Corner plot, one neighbor on the left, fields to the back and right
Ground floor area: 99m2 (without terrace), garage 30m2
Upper floor area: 78m2 (from 1.5m (5 feet))
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size
approx. 750m2
Slope
Yes, uphill on the mountain side. There is a manhole cover on the street in front of the plot and one behind it. The elevation difference between the covers is about 3m. The plot initially rises about 1m (3 feet) above the sidewalk and
Edge development
Yes, it’s a corner plot. There is a neighbor on the left side. Behind the house and to the right is a field path and fields.
Number of parking spaces
The adjacent street should provide sufficient parking spaces. A garage is also planned.
Number of stories
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are permitted.
Roof type
According to the development plan, only gable roofs are allowed.
Orientation
Northwest
Maximum heights / limits
According to the development plan, the house must be built exactly in this alignment
Requirements of the homeowners
Style, roof shape, building type
Country house style, gable roof (eaves facing the street), single-family home
Basement, number of floors
A basement was initially planned but was dropped due to budget. 1.5 floors are allowed and planned as per the development plan.
Number of occupants, age
Two adults, early 30s, no children yet but a child’s room is planned
Space requirements on GF, UF
GF: Garage, entrance hall, office 1, kitchen, living room, dining room, pantry, technical room, utility room, guest bathroom with shower
UF: Bedroom, child’s room, office 2, bathroom, storage room (planned due to no basement)
Office: family use or home office?
Both offices are currently needed for work.
Overnight guests per year
Very rarely or none
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are allowed
Somewhat open
Conservative or modern construction
Modern (?)
Open kitchen, cooking island
Open kitchen planned, cooking island desired but dropped due to space constraints
Number of dining seats
6, preferably expandable to 10
Fireplace
Desired and planned as a partition between dining and living room
Music / stereo wall
Desired; a niche in the living room works well for this
Balcony, roof terrace
Desired but dropped for budget reasons
Garage, carport
Planned; it is questionable whether the garage should instead be located on the right to avoid blocking the south side.
House design
Who is responsible for the design?
Architect
What do you particularly like? Why?
The open living and dining area. The open view of the fields.
The dormer on the upper floor.
What do you dislike? Why?
The corridor on the upper floor feels dark. Many skylights are planned (knee wall 80cm (31 inches) per development plan, gable roof with eaves facing the street).
The ground floor might also be dark. The garage is located on the south side. The windows facing the fields are towards the northeast.
Skylights block the option for photovoltaic panels and the attic space.
The storage room feels out of place.
Since a basement was initially planned, a hobby room was also considered, but this has been dropped.
The master bed is directly adjacent to the child’s room, but the bedroom must remain there.
Price estimate according to architect:
€540,000 (we find this optimistic; we expect higher costs and would thus like to make the floor plan more compact)
Personal price limit for house including fixtures and fittings:
€550,000 (all-in)
Preferred heating technology:
Heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions
-you could give up: a two-story open space was planned but removed, storage room on the upper floor (is it really necessary?), the GF could generally be smaller to save costs
-you cannot give up: large windows on the GF, open living-dining area, access to the house via garage and utility room, fireplace, pantry
Why has the design turned out this way?E.g.
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? The architect implemented the room concept well and incorporated many of his own ideas that we mostly find coherent.
What do you consider particularly good or bad about it? We like the ground floor very much; there is still potential for changes on the upper floor. We would also like another dormer above the entrance door, but this does not seem possible due to the development plan (the upper floor would become a full story if too much area is covered by dormers). The study could then be where the storage room currently is. The storage room could become a combined storage and hobby room.
We are grateful for any input and suggestions. We are particularly concerned about the south orientation. We do not want the rooms to become too dark.
We have almost finalized our planning with the architect and would appreciate you taking a critical look at the floor plan. Afterwards, we plan to proceed with the tendering process.
We generally like the ground floor (GF) very much. However, we are considering flipping the house and making some changes to the upper floor (UF). The garage, utility room, and technical room would move to the right, and the entire house would be shifted closer to the neighbor’s hedge on the left side (3m (10 feet) distance). The living room would then be on the left. It’s unclear whether the view of the neighbor’s hedge at a 3m (10 feet) distance will be nicer. On the positive side, the house would be better oriented towards the south and would let in more sunlight. The kitchen would then be on the right, providing wind protection from the open field while still allowing sunlight to reach the terrace.
Corner plot, one neighbor on the left, fields to the back and right
Ground floor area: 99m2 (without terrace), garage 30m2
Upper floor area: 78m2 (from 1.5m (5 feet))
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size
approx. 750m2
Slope
Yes, uphill on the mountain side. There is a manhole cover on the street in front of the plot and one behind it. The elevation difference between the covers is about 3m. The plot initially rises about 1m (3 feet) above the sidewalk and
Edge development
Yes, it’s a corner plot. There is a neighbor on the left side. Behind the house and to the right is a field path and fields.
Number of parking spaces
The adjacent street should provide sufficient parking spaces. A garage is also planned.
Number of stories
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are permitted.
Roof type
According to the development plan, only gable roofs are allowed.
Orientation
Northwest
Maximum heights / limits
According to the development plan, the house must be built exactly in this alignment
Requirements of the homeowners
Style, roof shape, building type
Country house style, gable roof (eaves facing the street), single-family home
Basement, number of floors
A basement was initially planned but was dropped due to budget. 1.5 floors are allowed and planned as per the development plan.
Number of occupants, age
Two adults, early 30s, no children yet but a child’s room is planned
Space requirements on GF, UF
GF: Garage, entrance hall, office 1, kitchen, living room, dining room, pantry, technical room, utility room, guest bathroom with shower
UF: Bedroom, child’s room, office 2, bathroom, storage room (planned due to no basement)
Office: family use or home office?
Both offices are currently needed for work.
Overnight guests per year
Very rarely or none
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are allowed
Somewhat open
Conservative or modern construction
Modern (?)
Open kitchen, cooking island
Open kitchen planned, cooking island desired but dropped due to space constraints
Number of dining seats
6, preferably expandable to 10
Fireplace
Desired and planned as a partition between dining and living room
Music / stereo wall
Desired; a niche in the living room works well for this
Balcony, roof terrace
Desired but dropped for budget reasons
Garage, carport
Planned; it is questionable whether the garage should instead be located on the right to avoid blocking the south side.
House design
Who is responsible for the design?
Architect
What do you particularly like? Why?
The open living and dining area. The open view of the fields.
The dormer on the upper floor.
What do you dislike? Why?
The corridor on the upper floor feels dark. Many skylights are planned (knee wall 80cm (31 inches) per development plan, gable roof with eaves facing the street).
The ground floor might also be dark. The garage is located on the south side. The windows facing the fields are towards the northeast.
Skylights block the option for photovoltaic panels and the attic space.
The storage room feels out of place.
Since a basement was initially planned, a hobby room was also considered, but this has been dropped.
The master bed is directly adjacent to the child’s room, but the bedroom must remain there.
Price estimate according to architect:
€540,000 (we find this optimistic; we expect higher costs and would thus like to make the floor plan more compact)
Personal price limit for house including fixtures and fittings:
€550,000 (all-in)
Preferred heating technology:
Heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions
-you could give up: a two-story open space was planned but removed, storage room on the upper floor (is it really necessary?), the GF could generally be smaller to save costs
-you cannot give up: large windows on the GF, open living-dining area, access to the house via garage and utility room, fireplace, pantry
Why has the design turned out this way?E.g.
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? The architect implemented the room concept well and incorporated many of his own ideas that we mostly find coherent.
What do you consider particularly good or bad about it? We like the ground floor very much; there is still potential for changes on the upper floor. We would also like another dormer above the entrance door, but this does not seem possible due to the development plan (the upper floor would become a full story if too much area is covered by dormers). The study could then be where the storage room currently is. The storage room could become a combined storage and hobby room.
We are grateful for any input and suggestions. We are particularly concerned about the south orientation. We do not want the rooms to become too dark.
@kronos215 .. in post 15 you attached this ground floor plan, just without the bay window but with a different staircase position, among other changes.
Overlay your sun path diagram with the floor plan including the terrace from @ypg in post 22. The terrace there isn’t just facing the neighbor. By the way, the staircase is marked in the middle of the house by hatching and the label "Freiraum" (open space). @ypg .. I’m still not quite clear on how the layout on the ground floor is supposed to work there, could you please take another look?
Overlay your sun path diagram with the floor plan including the terrace from @ypg in post 22. The terrace there isn’t just facing the neighbor. By the way, the staircase is marked in the middle of the house by hatching and the label "Freiraum" (open space). @ypg .. I’m still not quite clear on how the layout on the ground floor is supposed to work there, could you please take another look?
K
kronos21525 May 2025 00:13kbt09 schrieb:
@kronos215 .. in post 15 you attached this ground floor plan, without the bay window, but with a different staircase position, etc.
Try overlaying your sun path diagram with the floor plan and terrace from @ypg in post 22. The terrace there is not only facing the neighbor. By the way, the staircase is marked in the middle of the house by hatching and the label "open space". @ypg .. I still don’t quite see how the layout is supposed to work on the ground floor; could you please take another look? Here is the related upper floor.
I hope the resolution is acceptable. The ridge direction wouldn’t match here either.
If Bien-Zenker quotes prices without extras like bay windows included in the floor plan, the house will probably end up being too expensive. About 150-160 sqm (1,615-1,722 sq ft) is feasible (about 3,000 €/sqm).
kronos215 schrieb:
The ridge direction wouldn’t fit here eitherThat’s not correct... it does fit. And the arrangement of the rooms fits as well.... and if you want to enter the house from the bottom of the plan, you could swap the home office and the entrance on the ground floor, so
as the ground floor
- include terrace access from the kitchen, so the terrace in the upper left corner can be planned around the corner)
- ideally swap the utility room and the home office, then the garage can be connected directly on the right side
together with
as the upper floor
as the ground floor
- include terrace access from the kitchen, so the terrace in the upper left corner can be planned around the corner)
- ideally swap the utility room and the home office, then the garage can be connected directly on the right side
together with
as the upper floor
K
kronos21525 May 2025 00:24kbt09 schrieb:
That’s not true... it fits. And the layout of the rooms fits as well.But the ground floor would need to be rotated 90 degrees, wouldn’t it? If it stays like this, you’ll only see the hedge but no garden, since the plot is much deeper. Also, no view to the right side of the plan. At least the view at the top of the plan shouldn’t be lost. I think letting in sunlight from the south/west while keeping the view at the top/right of the plan is impossible.
You can enjoy the view anytime from the kitchen, the home office, and the terrace.
By placing the living area on the left side of the plan, you take advantage of possible sunlight from morning to evening, which is especially pleasant during winter. And honestly, how often do you really sit on the sofa during daylight hours just to enjoy the view? Aren’t you more likely to be outside in the garden or on the terrace during the day?
Plus, you don’t constantly look out of the bedroom window either. With a knee wall height of 80 cm (31.5 inches), you can also enjoy a nice view from a suitable roof window.
By placing the living area on the left side of the plan, you take advantage of possible sunlight from morning to evening, which is especially pleasant during winter. And honestly, how often do you really sit on the sofa during daylight hours just to enjoy the view? Aren’t you more likely to be outside in the garden or on the terrace during the day?
Plus, you don’t constantly look out of the bedroom window either. With a knee wall height of 80 cm (31.5 inches), you can also enjoy a nice view from a suitable roof window.
Similar topics