ᐅ Single-family house – 130 m² – hillside location – 2 floors – partly basement

Hello housebuilding enthusiasts,

We are currently in the early planning stages of our single-family home. Budget and financing are settled, and we have a preferred general contractor (GC) in sight. We have created a first draft of the floor plan with a friend who is an architect. As laypeople, we are quite satisfied with it at first glance, after making a few minor adjustments.

However, we remain open and grateful for further tips and advice.

Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: approx. 650 - 700m² (7000 - 7500 sq ft)
Slope: Yes. Sloping downhill towards the southwest – about 1.8m (6 feet) within the building envelope. Street access and utilities from the northeast.
Floor area ratio (FAR): unknown
Site coverage ratio (SCR): unknown
Building envelope, building line, and boundaries: No formal development plan. Orientation based on neighboring buildings.
Number of parking spaces: 2 parking spaces (in front / beside the house)
Orientation: Southwest

Homeowners’ Requirements
Basement, floors: 2 full stories - basement partially under the house.
Number of occupants: 2 adults – mid to late 30s
Space requirements for ground floor and basement: Total approx. 130m² (1400 sq ft) including basement rooms
Basement: Storage room, utility room (HAR), bedroom, walk-in closet, full bathroom, additional room
Ground floor: Living area, kitchen, guest room, guest WC, storage room, office (home office)
Open or closed layout: Open living-dining area; the rest mostly separated
Conservative or modern design: Rather modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: Open kitchen; island optional
Number of dining seats: 6-8
Balcony, roof terrace: Attached balcony on the ground floor, small terrace in the basement
Garage, carport: Carport (to be added later)

House Design
Origin of the design: Friend who is an architect and also works with GCs.
Personal price limit for the house including fittings: approx. €400,000 (pure construction costs; additional costs like auxiliary costs, landscaping, kitchen, and balcony are not included)
Preferred heating technology: Heat pump including photovoltaics and possibly battery storage

Why is the design as it is now?
The architect developed the design based on the following key points:

• Sloping site
• Desire not to build a full basement
• Budget constraints
• Required rooms (see above)

Attached are the created floor plan, an overview of the plot, as well as a self-made side profile to illustrate the slope. Please don’t rely too precisely on the side profile – it’s only a rough estimate for me. The exact building envelope is not yet determined.
The plot has not been fully surveyed yet, hence the approximate size of 650-700m² (7000-7500 sq ft).

We want to build two full stories. Due to the slope, the basement will be partially below ground at the downhill side, partly to provide a “basement area.” The basement will contain sleeping/office rooms facing the valley, making good use of the valley side and allowing access to the terrace from the office. However, the "main terrace" will be the balcony on the ground floor.
The ground floor will be accessed at street level and will feature a large balcony on the valley side adjacent to the living area. It is still undecided whether the balcony will span the full or just half of the house frontage.

There is a path along the west side of the plot, but it only leads to an unused meadow behind the property.

The roof will likely be a 20-degree (7°) gable roof with an attic used as storage space. Currently, we are unsure if the floor plan provides enough windows and thus sufficient natural light in the living and dining area.
We would also like to use the walk-in closet more effectively since the room has three doors and one window, resulting in significant loss of usable space. One possibility could be to combine the utility room and the basement storage and create access to the bathroom through the current utility room. Since the budget also restricts the total size, we would appreciate design tips.

Kaichunga schrieb:

To the side (west) of the property, there is a path that leads only to an unused meadow behind the plot.

And where in the house is the opportunity for a panoramic view towards the sunset, facing the meadow?

I'll keep it short and honest: if someone offered me this house for purchase, the first thing I would do is remove the storage room between the entrance and the kitchen to create a direct path to the kitchen. The planned route as it is now doesn’t make sense to me.
However, I wouldn’t buy the house because it lacks connection to the plot and garden, except from the office. I don’t want a house just to hang out on the balcony.

I still have time, so here’s more:
The bathroom is poorly laid out, with the bathtub under the window and a windowless toilet area. The washbasin is planned opposite the window.
Bedroom: having the headboard next to a door is also not ideal.
On the ground floor, you end up facing the side of the wardrobe cabinet. The toilet area gets dirty from street shoes because the wardrobe is too far away.
The access to the office on the ground floor is not ideal, even though the designer had full freedom.
Kitchen layout is not ergonomic and splitting it into two parts is pointless. I already mentioned my thoughts on the location of the electrical panel.
And yes, the west… the beautiful west side is completely excluded from the house. Unfortunately, the staircase landing is not suitable as a place to linger.
I don’t think the €400,000 will be enough. Even the light wells, balcony, stair landing, and larger window areas will increase the costs.

ypg schrieb:

because it has no connection to the plot and garden except from the office.

I would also focus on this aspect more. Either add an extra staircase from the balcony to the garden, or use the stair landing to install a secondary entrance door, which would provide access to the carport and garden.

Zubi123 schrieb:

Either an additional staircase from the balcony to the garden

Not an option for me. During the summer, I go about 20 times a day from the garden lounger across the beds towards the kitchen. In the evenings, both weekdays and weekends. There are plenty of well-designed houses where the open-plan living area is located in the basement, and that makes a lot of sense. After all, living in a house also means living outdoors, intentionally leaving the apartment-like atmosphere behind.

Thank you for your time and input. This is exactly the kind of feedback I was hoping for.

ypg schrieb:

And where in the house is the panoramic view towards the sunset over the meadow?

For clarification: The wide panoramic view is entirely to the south; the meadow is plot 675. To the west (next to the small path) there is a neighboring plot, so the view there is limited anyway. You can still fully enjoy the sunset from the south side (balcony-terrace) until it sets behind the hill in the evening.

ypg schrieb:

I would first remove this storage room between the entrance and the kitchen to create a direct path into the kitchen. The currently planned route doesn’t make sense.

Good point, we will reconsider that. However, having a small storage room is important to us.

ypg schrieb:

But I wouldn’t buy the house because it has no connection to the plot and garden except from the office. I don’t want a house just to hang out on the balcony.

That is also a bit of a concern.
The fact is, the living area will definitely be on the ground floor (bedrooms in the basement) to make the most of the plot and its associated panoramic view for everyday use. That is what makes the plot special. The balcony will probably be about 30m² (320 ft²) and will have more of a terrace character, with a staircase planned down to the garden.

ypg schrieb:

I still have time, so more thoughts:
Bathroom is poorly furnished, with the bathtub under the window and a toilet area without a window. The washbasin is planned facing the window.
Bedroom: Having the headboard next to a door is not ideal either.

We actually like having the bathtub under the window a lot. The point about the toilet is valid, but we prefer the T-shaped layout.
Why shouldn’t a washbasin be planned facing the window? The bed can also be rotated if needed 🙂

ypg schrieb:

On the ground floor, you walk directly into the side of the wardrobe cupboard. The toilet area gets dirty from street shoes because the wardrobe is too far away.

Good point, we’ll take that into consideration again. The issue with the dirty area is indeed important to me, which is why the stairs are not located in the entrance area.

ypg schrieb:

And yes, the west… the beautiful west is completely excluded from the house. Unfortunately, the landing of the stairs is not suitable for lingering.

There isn’t much to see to the west anyway: just the neighboring house and a hedge.
I don’t quite understand your comment about lingering. Could you please explain? We do not intend to spend much time on the stairs 😕

In my opinion, the building plot is closer to the street.

There is a 3 m (10 feet) setback specified. I also think that makes more sense.

The upper floor should be slightly higher than the street level.

Is there a height plan?