ᐅ Difference between a townhouse and a detached single-family house

Hello everyone,

We are in the process of purchasing a plot of land in a new residential development.
There is a legally binding development plan for the area with different "zones."
According to the development plan, the plots that interest us can each be built up to two stories high. However, the marketing company clearly differentiates between the areas: in one zone, the permitted building types are "town villa & single-family house," while in the other zone only "single-family house" is allowed.
On closer inspection, roof pitches between 20–45 degrees are allowed in both zones.

So what exactly is the difference between a town villa and a single-family house if both are permitted to be built two stories, which we would basically prefer as well?
The marketer was not able (or willing) to give me specific details and referred me "to the architect." That is probably correct in principle, but since we do not yet have a detailed house plan or an architect, I wanted to ask here first if someone could generally explain the difference to me.

Edit: I just read that the maximum eave height in one zone is 7m (23 ft), and in the other zone it is 4m (13 ft). Could this be the decisive difference?

Many thanks & best regards from Hannover
Christoph

I’m not a construction expert either, but I can share my thoughts on this.

First of all, the definitions seem quite vague to me, and ideally, the real estate agent or the local authority should be able to provide clarification. A townhouse (or urban villa) is primarily characterized by having two full floors. The eaves height (height measured from a reference point up to the eaves—the part of the roof along the facade) is important here. That’s why a townhouse with an eaves height of 4m (13 feet) is not possible, but one with 7m (23 feet) is.

In my opinion, you can’t have two full floors with an eaves height of 4m (13 feet). In areas designated for “single-family houses,” they might allow buildings with two floors, but the upper floor would not count as a full story because it has sloping ceilings. Basically, a second habitable floor is allowed, but not a fully standard one.

On the other hand, I don’t think a single-family house excludes the possibility of being a townhouse or urban villa.

Everything is quite unclear, so I’d focus on the eaves height. When in doubt, consider buying a plot categorized for both “townhouse/urban villa and single-family house.”

But if I were you, I would definitely follow up with the real estate agent or the local authority again. The building department should be able to provide further assistance.

Yes, the eaves height is the key point. At 4 meters (13 feet), two full stories are possible, but the upper one will definitely have a sloped roof.

The difference is probably in the upper floor being either full height throughout or having sloped ceilings with a (steep) gable roof or even a mansard roof. Theoretically, this could also be a full story with sloped ceilings.

ChristophG schrieb:

There is a legally binding development plan for the area with different "zones."
The plots that are relevant to us can each be built with two stories according to the development plan. However, the marketing company clearly distinguishes between the zones: in one area, the permitted building types are "urban villa & single-family house," while in the other area only "single-family house" is allowed.
On closer inspection, roof pitches between 20° and 45° (degrees Celsius) are permitted in both zones.

I am always surprised how people choose the field they know least about for their professional work. Maybe you could name the development plan (note: not as a link! — for example, "Posemuckel No. 234 Old Barracks") so others can look it up. The legend or textual section will provide more detailed explanations.

ChristophG schrieb:

Edit: I just read that in one area the maximum eaves height is 7m (23 feet), while in the other it is 4m (13 feet). Could this be the decisive difference?

An eaves height of 4m (13 feet) practically rules out a full upper floor with vertical walls, but does not legally exclude two stories (i.e., depending on the state, more than two-thirds or three-quarters of the ground floor area can also be counted in the upper floor). The typology distinction between "urban villa" and "single-family house" is nonsense, but unfortunately, it is increasingly encountered on home builder websites. Other providers use terms like "country house," which the common language might call a "one-and-a-half-story house." This refers to houses where the upper floor necessarily has sloping ceilings due to the roof shape.

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Hello everyone,

thank you for the replies. Since we are not construction experts, this was very helpful to us.

Many thanks!
Christoph