ᐅ Floor plan for a 160 sqm urban villa – Requesting advice!
Created on: 28 Jan 2019 09:23
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Bauherrin92
Hello everyone,
we are planning to build an urban villa with 160 sqm (1720 sq ft) plus a basement in rural Bavaria. Since we are now in the crucial phase of floor plan design, we would really appreciate your opinions and suggestions for improvements.
The following issues concern us the most:
1. Arrangement of the house and garage on the plot: The garage has been deliberately placed on the west side to create distance from the neighbor. To catch the evening sun, the house has been set back. However, I wonder if this looks "good," as I have never seen such an arrangement before. We are also undecided whether the garage should be detached or attached to the house (possibly with access through the pantry?). On the plans, the garage is at the neighbor’s boundary. There is currently no house there.
2. The cloakroom and dressing room seem too small to comfortably place proper wardrobes and move around freely.
3. In general, I feel the overall design could still be improved, including the arrangement of windows.
Here is the questionnaire:
Development plan / restrictions
Plot size: 800 sqm (8,600 sq ft)
Slope: no
Floor area ratio: 0.35
Floor space index: 0.7
Building window, building line and boundary: 3 m (10 ft) to the street
Edge development: garage yes
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of storeys: 2
Roof style: open construction
Homeowners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: urban villa, 2 full storeys, hipped roof
Basement, storeys: basement, ground floor, first floor
Number of people, age: two adults, schoolchild, expecting a baby
Space requirements ground floor, upper floor: three bedrooms, spacious living-dining area, separate cloakroom, shower toilet on the ground floor
Office: none
Guest bedrooms per year: none
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern construction: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: 4–10 (when guests visit)
Fireplace: yes
Garage, carport: prefabricated double garage
Other wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons why this or that should or should not be included:
- Cloakroom in a niche
- Shower toilet on the ground floor, later for the teenage daughter
- Large children’s rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the garden
- Dressing room in the master bedroom
- Pantry for yellow bags (recycling waste bags), vacuum cleaner, cleaning supplies, pasta stock, etc.
House design
Who made the plan: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
- Basement: fine as is
- Ground floor: large pantry, L-shaped kitchen/living/dining area
- Upper floor: large children’s rooms
What don’t you like? Why?
- Ground floor: layout of toilet and cloakroom
- Upper floor: dressing room and bathroom possibly too small
- detached garage
Preferred heating technology: undecided so far
If you had to give up something, which details/upgrades would you skip?
- Could give up: access from garage into the house
- Could not do without: pantry, dressing room, cloakroom
Why has the design turned out as it is now? Our wishes were implemented by the planner
We look forward to your advice!!!
P.S.: The red circle is supposed to indicate north, sorry, it couldn’t be done otherwise!
we are planning to build an urban villa with 160 sqm (1720 sq ft) plus a basement in rural Bavaria. Since we are now in the crucial phase of floor plan design, we would really appreciate your opinions and suggestions for improvements.
The following issues concern us the most:
1. Arrangement of the house and garage on the plot: The garage has been deliberately placed on the west side to create distance from the neighbor. To catch the evening sun, the house has been set back. However, I wonder if this looks "good," as I have never seen such an arrangement before. We are also undecided whether the garage should be detached or attached to the house (possibly with access through the pantry?). On the plans, the garage is at the neighbor’s boundary. There is currently no house there.
2. The cloakroom and dressing room seem too small to comfortably place proper wardrobes and move around freely.
3. In general, I feel the overall design could still be improved, including the arrangement of windows.
Here is the questionnaire:
Development plan / restrictions
Plot size: 800 sqm (8,600 sq ft)
Slope: no
Floor area ratio: 0.35
Floor space index: 0.7
Building window, building line and boundary: 3 m (10 ft) to the street
Edge development: garage yes
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of storeys: 2
Roof style: open construction
Homeowners’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type: urban villa, 2 full storeys, hipped roof
Basement, storeys: basement, ground floor, first floor
Number of people, age: two adults, schoolchild, expecting a baby
Space requirements ground floor, upper floor: three bedrooms, spacious living-dining area, separate cloakroom, shower toilet on the ground floor
Office: none
Guest bedrooms per year: none
Open or closed architecture: open
Conservative or modern construction: modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: 4–10 (when guests visit)
Fireplace: yes
Garage, carport: prefabricated double garage
Other wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons why this or that should or should not be included:
- Cloakroom in a niche
- Shower toilet on the ground floor, later for the teenage daughter
- Large children’s rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the garden
- Dressing room in the master bedroom
- Pantry for yellow bags (recycling waste bags), vacuum cleaner, cleaning supplies, pasta stock, etc.
House design
Who made the plan: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
- Basement: fine as is
- Ground floor: large pantry, L-shaped kitchen/living/dining area
- Upper floor: large children’s rooms
What don’t you like? Why?
- Ground floor: layout of toilet and cloakroom
- Upper floor: dressing room and bathroom possibly too small
- detached garage
Preferred heating technology: undecided so far
If you had to give up something, which details/upgrades would you skip?
- Could give up: access from garage into the house
- Could not do without: pantry, dressing room, cloakroom
Why has the design turned out as it is now? Our wishes were implemented by the planner
We look forward to your advice!!!
P.S.: The red circle is supposed to indicate north, sorry, it couldn’t be done otherwise!
What do you think we understood from this?
If you didn’t stop following the thread after #25, you would have seen that the original poster has already considered the suggestion to change the dimensions to, for example, 11 by 9 meters (36 by 30 feet), and so on.
There’s no need to defend anyone here. If the original poster writes something like, “No problem, my general contractor is also willing to change the exterior walls or square meters without much fuss,” then that’s settled and everything is fine.
If you (or Katja) don’t need the answer, that’s okay. You can keep making suggestions.
I’m genuinely curious, and I don’t think I’m the only one—the question didn’t come only from me. Isn’t it legitimate to ask if the building design is fixed? That specific information was definitely not provided.
If you didn’t stop following the thread after #25, you would have seen that the original poster has already considered the suggestion to change the dimensions to, for example, 11 by 9 meters (36 by 30 feet), and so on.
There’s no need to defend anyone here. If the original poster writes something like, “No problem, my general contractor is also willing to change the exterior walls or square meters without much fuss,” then that’s settled and everything is fine.
If you (or Katja) don’t need the answer, that’s okay. You can keep making suggestions.
I’m genuinely curious, and I don’t think I’m the only one—the question didn’t come only from me. Isn’t it legitimate to ask if the building design is fixed? That specific information was definitely not provided.
It’s probably like with many general contractors. The floor area is fixed (for example, 100m² (1,076 sq ft) built-up area or 160m² (1,722 sq ft) living space) and likely the enclosed volume as well. Then there are all the detailed specifications like ceiling heights, wall thicknesses, etc.
I also assumed a fixed number of square meters. But not that a general contractor is already confirmed. In that case, ceiling heights, staircase designs, roof shape, and so on are set, and here also the rectangular shape, since the contract was signed for a rectangular layout. Any changes would only be possible with additional costs. I would have preferred to know that earlier.
It’s also unfortunate for the original poster if design ideas are developed that they might like but which can’t be realized under the contract or fit the budget.
I also assumed a fixed number of square meters. But not that a general contractor is already confirmed. In that case, ceiling heights, staircase designs, roof shape, and so on are set, and here also the rectangular shape, since the contract was signed for a rectangular layout. Any changes would only be possible with additional costs. I would have preferred to know that earlier.
It’s also unfortunate for the original poster if design ideas are developed that they might like but which can’t be realized under the contract or fit the budget.
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Bauherrin9231 Jan 2019 18:43There is quite a lot going on here.
I will respond to all posts as best as I can this evening, but to start with: As long as nothing changes in the overall building footprint, we can continue working on the floor plan, including adjusting exterior dimensions, moving walls, etc.
I already mentioned that we want a townhouse-style home with a spiral staircase, a hipped roof, and so on, so I did not think it was necessary to explicitly state that this is contractually agreed upon. If I should have made that clearer, I apologize for that.
I will respond to all posts as best as I can this evening, but to start with: As long as nothing changes in the overall building footprint, we can continue working on the floor plan, including adjusting exterior dimensions, moving walls, etc.
I already mentioned that we want a townhouse-style home with a spiral staircase, a hipped roof, and so on, so I did not think it was necessary to explicitly state that this is contractually agreed upon. If I should have made that clearer, I apologize for that.
face26 schrieb:
Edit: I could have used you as an example too, but the post by @kaho674 stayed in my mind. And as I said... it would be a shame if someone (including you) makes an effort only to find out later that it's not possible because something is already contractually restricted or limited.I just read this now... sorry. I went through everything again... but I already knew all of it.
By “to me” I just meant that I know the feeling of investing time in drafts, only to eventually get hit with the realization that the house is already built.
face26 schrieb:
So, not asking anymore whether it makes sense but just making suggestions?Yes, yes. Best to do that right from #2.
face26 schrieb:
If you didn’t stop following the thread at #25, you’ve probably noticed that the OP has already picked up the suggestion to change the dimensions to, for example, 11x9, and so on.... I have been following everything, but I didn’t find it particularly noteworthy.
kaho674 schrieb:
Not about the fact that the general contractor is already confirmed. DAs I said before, to me, quite a few things were already set, such as the
Bauherrin92 schrieb:
floor area
Bauherrin92 schrieb:
As long as the total floor area remains the same, we can continue working on the floor plan, including changing exterior dimensions, moving walls, etc. face26 schrieb:
that the original poster has already suggested changing the dimensions to, for example, 11 by 9, and so on. Constant total floor area, all-you-can-move-walls, same price, and a variation in eleven-by-nine – am I being cynical if this reminds me of https://www.hausbau-forum.de/threads/auf-welchen-dieser-Grundrisse-koennen-wir-weiter-aufbauen.29540/?
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
ypg schrieb:
Just reading this now... sorry. I have gone through everything again... but I was familiar with all of it.
When I said “to me,” I only meant that I know the feeling of investing time into designs, and then suddenly realizing the house is already built. Alright then... let's make a deal again