ᐅ Floor plan for a bungalow of 160–170 sqm with a basement

Hello everyone,

finally, we have reached an important step… the plot is signed for.
We want to build with an architect and already have some ideas about what we like and what we don’t.
We definitely want to give the architect the opportunity to apply their expertise regarding the floor plan… maybe they can convince us.

But if not, we are currently (almost) quite happy with this self-drawn floor plan.

A few key facts…
Plot size: 660 sqm (about 7100 sq ft), floor area ratio 0.4, no slope, approximately 26m x 25m (85 ft x 82 ft)
Longest building side allowed: max. 15m (about 49 ft)
L-shaped bungalow with covered terrace (southwest side)
We want to build with a basement. This should have windows with natural daylight behind the garage on the east side. There will be 2–3 living rooms down there (playroom, hobby room, later for the kids or grandparents if necessary).
The roof will not be converted into a living space — 20-22° (degrees) pitch, hip roof, for aesthetic reasons.
We know that a basement is more expensive than a second floor, etc. The budget is roughly 650,000–700,000 (currency).
Utility room, laundry room, sauna, etc. will all be located in the basement since there is enough space. 🙂

Now to the floor plan:
We like an open design with a large entrance area.

What we like about this floor plan:
Children’s area separated from parents
Connection from the garage with access to the storage room and basement
Access from kitchen and living room to the terrace possible
Master bedroom with direct view of the garden on the southeast side (in summer the shutters are closed anyway)
Children’s rooms with windows facing west, slightly southwest.

Open questions…
Are the children’s rooms too narrow at almost 3m (about 10 ft)?
Is the living room too narrow at almost 4.5m (about 15 ft)?
The L-shape at the terrace is about 3m (10 ft) deep — here we could possibly adjust a bit to enlarge the children’s rooms.
My wife doesn’t like that the kitchen is visible directly from the entrance area.
(I prefer the kitchen visibility over the living room couch). What do you think is better or worse?

The kitchen window is on the south side, possibly too much sun… maybe we should add an awning if needed.
I can’t fit a second toilet elsewhere without making the children’s rooms even smaller… so it will remain a guest toilet for the parents.

Is a door between the entrance area and the living area for a windbreak useful, or unnecessary? (We have underfloor heating.)
(Maybe a hidden interior door, but I’m unsure what happens if it gets damaged.)

The floor area ratio will be tight… 15m x 15m = 225 sqm (about 11,200 sq ft) + garage + driveway… we might need to reduce the width a bit.
660 sqm x 0.4 = 264 sqm (about 2,840 sq ft).

I have seen many floor plans here… wishes and practicality have to match somewhere.
I’m really curious about the experts’ opinions…
Is it rubbish or usable?

Thanks

I'll put it diplomatically: working with an architect seems like a good idea to me 🙂

Okay, explanations as well?

First of all, I would consider the plot of land: what is nice and what isn’t? Which direction do I want to look toward? Are there nice views? Is it shaded or not — how, when, and where does the light fall? These questions can only be answered on-site. Only then should the building volume be determined.

On a relatively small plot, sealing off a rather large area (bungalow, double garage, driveway), especially with a basement, doesn’t seem optimal to me. If the goal is barrier-free living for old age, there are other solutions, and not all rooms (160+ sq m (1722 sq ft)!!) need to be on the ground floor. With the budget you have, this can be done more cleverly.

You can already tell from your questions where the problems lie. The root cause is large traffic areas (dark hallway, entrance hall, awkward spiral staircase) and dead space between living and dining areas (and your wife is right — uncomfortable due to the adjacent entrance hall). If all of this is eliminated, you will instantly have significantly more usable space. And if you move away from the bungalow-with-basement dogma, there are many, many more possibilities.

That way, we don’t even need to ask questions like "where exactly is the wardrobe and the pantry."

Hangman schrieb:

First of all, I would consider the plot: what is nice, what isn’t? Where do I want to look, are there nice views? Is it shaded or not – how, when, and where does the light fall? These questions can only really be answered on site. Only then would I decide on the building mass.

On a relatively small plot, sealing such a large area (bungalow, double garage, driveway), especially with a basement, doesn’t seem optimal to me. If it’s about barrier-free living in old age, there are other ways to solve this, and not all rooms (160+ sqm (1,722+ sq ft)!!!) need to be on the ground floor. You can manage the budget more wisely.

You can already tell from your questions where the issues lie. The main causes are huge circulation areas (dark hallway, entrance hall, odd spiral staircase) and dead space between living and dining (plus – as your wife said – uncomfortable because of the adjacent entrance hall). If you eliminate all that, you suddenly have much more usable space. And if you give up the bungalow-with-basement dogma, there are many, many more options.

Then we don’t even need to ask questions like “where is the wardrobe and pantry.”

Thanks for your opinion.

Of course, we have already given a lot of thought to the local conditions on site. In current new development areas with about 450 sqm (4,843 sq ft) plots, house to house, the issue of views hardly plays a role anymore... We got lucky though... Behind our terrace and garden is a small meadow with trees... so there is no directly adjoining neighbor.

I think everyone agrees that building upwards makes more sense than a large bungalow... Driving a golf instead of a Porsche too... But you only live once...

Regarding the points you mentioned:
There is only a small hallway, which leads through a glass door to the stairwell/storage. The stairwell has a window, so I’m hoping for some daylight there. Besides that, no dark corridors. The software we used had no other stairs available... but a spiral staircase is not planned.

The entrance hall gets a lot of light from the living area and the wide front door with side windows. A large entrance area is ideal, especially with small children... with a bench for putting on clothes, etc.

I will have to think about the dead space issue... Thanks for that...
We still need to fit the pantry into the kitchen wall as well... 🙂

Thanks again

Why choose a bungalow with a basement instead of rooms with natural daylight, which are more cost-effective?
That doesn’t make any sense at all.

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