Hello dear forum members,
We are very fortunate to be able to purchase a plot of land in a newly developed residential area in our hometown and are currently planning our future single-family home. We are working with an independent architect and intend to obtain 3-4 comparable offers based on the final design. Due to the requirements of the zoning plan (passive house, details below), we have already been able to narrow down some providers and identify two favorites.
We have now received the second draft from our planner, which we would like to share with you. We look forward to honest, constructive feedback as well as ideas and suggestions.
Zoning Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 528 m² (new development area, no construction projects completed yet)
Slope: none
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: no specifications
Building envelope / distances: 2.5 m (8 feet) setback from boundary, orientation see image, garage may be built on boundary
Edge development: see images
Number of parking spaces: no specifications
Number of floors: max. 2 full stories
Roof type: for gable and hip roofs, roof pitches from 30° to 48°, for pyramid roofs up to 35°, for shed roofs up to 15° permitted
Architectural style: classic-modern
Orientation: see images
Maximum heights / limits: ridge height max. 12.5 m (41 feet); eave height max. 6.5 m (21 feet)
Additional requirements:
Passive house standard with two criteria: maximum heating demand
15 kWh/(m²a) and total “Renewable Primary Energy” demand max. 60 kWh/(m²a)
Owners’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: classic, gable roof, no bay windows or other special features
Basement, floors: no basement, 1.5 floors
Number of people, age: 2 adults and 2 cats (future 1-2 children)
Space requirements ground floor, upper floor: 150 - 160 m² (1615 - 1720 sq ft)
Office: home office and guest room
Overnight guests per year: 4-5
Open or closed design: rather open
Conservative or modern construction: mixed
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen, kitchen island (optional)
Number of dining seats: frequently up to 12
Fireplace: no
Music / stereo wall: home cinema (planned are floor speakers on the wall and surround speakers in the ceiling behind the couch)
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double garage (currently planned as carport)
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Additional Wishes / Special Features / Daily Routine
House Design
Designer: independent architect
What do you particularly like? Why?
What do you not like? Why?
Price estimate according to architect/planner: approx. 500 - 550k
Personal budget limit for house including features: approx. 600k
Preferred heating technology: geothermal heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions would you waive?
Why does the design look like it does now?
This is the second draft. The first draft (see image) had a large kitchen island, which felt space-consuming and too central. Also, the office/guest room was on the ground floor, which we have now dropped to gain more space there. The first draft also lacked a pantry.
In the first draft, the house was rotated 90°. The orientation of the house on the plot remains crucial for us and may still not be final. We welcome suggestions and new ideas. Our wish is definitely that most of the terrace faces the retention area.
[ATTACH type="full" width="500px" alt="Zwei Grundrisspläne zeigen Hausbau-Entwurf: Erdgeschoss und Obergeschoss mit Räumen und Treppen">
From here, images of the current second draft follow:
Ground floor
Upper floor
That’s enough from me for now. I look forward to your input and thank you in advance for reading my post.
Best regards,
Mathias
We are very fortunate to be able to purchase a plot of land in a newly developed residential area in our hometown and are currently planning our future single-family home. We are working with an independent architect and intend to obtain 3-4 comparable offers based on the final design. Due to the requirements of the zoning plan (passive house, details below), we have already been able to narrow down some providers and identify two favorites.
We have now received the second draft from our planner, which we would like to share with you. We look forward to honest, constructive feedback as well as ideas and suggestions.
Zoning Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 528 m² (new development area, no construction projects completed yet)
Slope: none
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: no specifications
Building envelope / distances: 2.5 m (8 feet) setback from boundary, orientation see image, garage may be built on boundary
Edge development: see images
Number of parking spaces: no specifications
Number of floors: max. 2 full stories
Roof type: for gable and hip roofs, roof pitches from 30° to 48°, for pyramid roofs up to 35°, for shed roofs up to 15° permitted
Architectural style: classic-modern
Orientation: see images
Maximum heights / limits: ridge height max. 12.5 m (41 feet); eave height max. 6.5 m (21 feet)
Additional requirements:
Passive house standard with two criteria: maximum heating demand
15 kWh/(m²a) and total “Renewable Primary Energy” demand max. 60 kWh/(m²a)
Owners’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: classic, gable roof, no bay windows or other special features
Basement, floors: no basement, 1.5 floors
Number of people, age: 2 adults and 2 cats (future 1-2 children)
Space requirements ground floor, upper floor: 150 - 160 m² (1615 - 1720 sq ft)
Office: home office and guest room
Overnight guests per year: 4-5
Open or closed design: rather open
Conservative or modern construction: mixed
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen, kitchen island (optional)
Number of dining seats: frequently up to 12
Fireplace: no
Music / stereo wall: home cinema (planned are floor speakers on the wall and surround speakers in the ceiling behind the couch)
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double garage (currently planned as carport)
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Additional Wishes / Special Features / Daily Routine
- Focus on a large kitchen with a walk-in pantry and generally spacious living and dining area,
- cost-efficient planning has been communicated,
- expandable attic space on one half of the upper floor, children’s room with high ceilings on the other half (not yet planned but communicated and feasible).
House Design
Designer: independent architect
What do you particularly like? Why?
- Efficient layout, e.g. utility/technical room that can be located under the stairway,
- pantry behind the kitchen,
- size of the children’s rooms and the walk-in closet,
- bay window seat in the dining area as potential seating extension,
- laundry chute in the utility room.
What do you not like? Why?
- uncertain about window planning, e.g. only one skylight in the office and the skylight in the upper floor hallway (difficult to clean),
- relatively large area on the ground floor in front of the stairs that is not clearly usable,
- bathtub placement not optimal,
- roof pitch needs to be adjusted to at least 30° as required.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: approx. 500 - 550k
Personal budget limit for house including features: approx. 600k
Preferred heating technology: geothermal heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions would you waive?
- Can give up: in the second plan we already gave up the office/guest room on the ground floor, passage from garage to utility/technical room, kitchen island
- Cannot give up: spacious kitchen and living-dining area
Why does the design look like it does now?
This is the second draft. The first draft (see image) had a large kitchen island, which felt space-consuming and too central. Also, the office/guest room was on the ground floor, which we have now dropped to gain more space there. The first draft also lacked a pantry.
In the first draft, the house was rotated 90°. The orientation of the house on the plot remains crucial for us and may still not be final. We welcome suggestions and new ideas. Our wish is definitely that most of the terrace faces the retention area.
[ATTACH type="full" width="500px" alt="Zwei Grundrisspläne zeigen Hausbau-Entwurf: Erdgeschoss und Obergeschoss mit Räumen und Treppen">
From here, images of the current second draft follow:
Ground floor
Upper floor
That’s enough from me for now. I look forward to your input and thank you in advance for reading my post.
Best regards,
Mathias
M
Mathis.aenni19 Oct 2025 20:11MachsSelbst schrieb:
Well, an island kitchen is possible with a 60m² (646 sq ft) living room, just not a very large one.
A pantry and backup kitchen? You don’t really need that, even if 12 people regularly eat there. Large cooktop, 2 ovens. A layperson probably can’t handle more than that anyway. To clarify the topic of the backup kitchen, it is currently planned a bit too large but still has its purpose and makes sense. As a combination of workspace and storage area, food storage (since there is no basement), possibly a second sink, plus accommodating numerous appliances (and here I would want to differentiate from a layperson), such an area behind the main kitchen seems to me a genuinely useful addition.
M
Mathis.aenni19 Oct 2025 20:17derdietmar schrieb:
Hello,
I don’t think the planner is the problem. Rather, it seems to be trendy wishes that conflict with the budget and the size of the house.
- The house is too small for a walk-in closet
- The bathroom is too small for a freestanding bathtub
- The house is too small for a backup kitchen
- The house is too small for a kitchen island
- The house is too small for a spacious open-plan living and dining area (by this I mean 80 m² (860 sq ft) or more for kitchen, dining, and living)
All these extras come at the expense of the children and the functionality. I recommend checking out various prefab house floor plans. These are usually very efficient in terms of space utilization.
Best regards Thank you very much for the honest and constructive feedback; however, I cannot agree with this comment and find it almost rude to imply indirectly that it is “at the expense of our children.” After all, it is our dream home, and we are very much considering that any potential children will also have a lovely place to live.
M
MachsSelbst19 Oct 2025 20:24Mathis.aenni schrieb:
To clarify the topic of the back kitchen, it is currently planned a bit too large, but it still serves its purpose and function. As a combination of work surface/storage space, food storage (since there is no basement), and possibly a second sink plus the storage of various appliances (and here I would like to differentiate myself from a layperson), such an area behind the kitchen seems to me a really useful addition. It’s your house. You are paying for the space with disadvantages in the main living area.
And I don’t want to offend you, but I’m a hobby cook, a close relative is a master chef... who prepares 10 courses for 12 people in a 12m² (130 sq ft) kitchen with just one oven and a 24-inch cooktop...
Are you a trained chef? If not, you’re an amateur, like me 😉
M
MachsSelbst19 Oct 2025 20:32Mathis.aenni schrieb:
(...)
After all, it’s our dream home, and we are very mindful of ensuring that any potential children will have a lovely place to grow up. Yes... potentially... you don’t have children yet, and with all due respect and understanding… that means you have no real experience of what life with children is like and what priorities change… no criticism intended, I didn’t realize either… to be honest, I had overlooked that you don’t have children yet…
That basically changes everything. You won’t have time to constantly cook for 12 people when 1 or 2 kids are running around.
derdietmar schrieb:
I don’t think the planner is the problem. Instead, it seems to be trendy desires,derdietmar schrieb:
- The house is too small for a walk-in closet
- The bathroom is too small for a freestanding bathtub
- The house is too small for a backup kitchen
- The house is too small for a kitchen island
Well, if you don’t want a walk-in closet or an island, 140 sqm (1507 sq ft) could be enough. As a builder, you talk about 150–160 sqm (1615–1722 sq ft), but you end up with 175 sqm (1884 sq ft) including a “wing” extension. It may be that such an extension is desired. However, it is the architect’s job to provide some clarification. Instead, he gets this:[ATTACH alt="IMG_1839.jpeg"]93199[/ATTACH]
Look how out of place the sofa is. The original poster talks about a home theater, but what does he get? A view towards the utility room door and the staircase entrance. You wouldn’t want to give that up, right?!
Wardrobe? Nope! Not even a little? Nope again. Refrigerator and oven? Here, it’s a choice, either one or the other.
And the orientations don’t match his plans either.
Instead, there is a seating window facing the street. And flowers as well as a kitchen cutting board are drawn in. That comes from someone who has rediscovered their playful side.
Mathis.aenni schrieb:
and I would like to distinguish myself from an amateur here Dear Anni (or Ännie), that sounds suspicious.
Someone who can cook is able to do so even at a distance of 2 meters (6.5 feet) using only a pot and a pan. Amateurs are recognizable by their excessive use of electrical appliances, which are mostly interchangeable. They just don’t realize this because it’s about the desire to have them. The same applies to storage rooms or backup kitchens: anyone who knows what they’re doing doesn’t need such extras. By the way, there are plenty of people here who have raised a family while cooking, without delivery services, professional chefs, Instagram, and the like. Often in a rather small kitchen without a Thermomix, second sink, or grill function in the oven. And you want to claim that you want to distinguish yourself from an amateur. So this design comes from you?
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