ᐅ Floor Plan and House Positioning for a Bungalow with 120 sqm on a Corner Plot
Created on: 27 Nov 2025 08:58
L
Lurchi2025
Hello dear forum community,
I have been a silent reader for quite some time and would now like to ask for your help. We are currently planning to build our house and received the first draft from the architect of our general contractor (GC) yesterday, which I would like to share here for discussion.
In addition, I am hoping to get some input on the positioning of the house on the plot. So far, I was sure that we would position the house along the northern side street, with the driveway at the new eastern boundary. However, the homeowner prefers to place the house along the western main road because this would provide a larger garden, allow use of the “dead corner” in the northwest, and also offer visual and noise protection from the main road to the west. I am concerned, though, that the house might become too dark.
The site plan is oriented to the north, as is the aerial photo.
Zoning Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 600 sqm (6460 sq ft)
Slope: no slope
Floor space index: §34 applies, but the floor space index should not exceed 0.4
Floor area ratio
Building envelope, building line and boundary
Boundary development
Number of parking spaces: 2 required, although we only need 1
Number of storeys
Roof type
Architectural style
Orientation
Maximum height / limits
Additional requirements
Homeowners’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: bungalow approximately 120 sqm (1300 sq ft)
Basement, storeys: only ground floor
Number of occupants, ages: 2 adults (40/43), 1 child (almost 4)
Room requirements on ground floor: living/dining/cooking, bedroom, children’s room, guest room, bathroom, guest toilet
Office: family use or home office? Home office up to 2 days a week, the office should be integrated into the guest room
Guests per year: several
Open or closed architecture: rather open
Conservative or modern style: modern
Open kitchen with island: open kitchen with island
Number of dining seats: 6, expandable to up to 10
Fireplace: yes, preferred
Music/surround sound wall: no, but 5.1 system at the TV
Balcony, roof terrace
Garage, carport: long term a carport
Vegetable garden, greenhouse
Other wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons why or why not: Cooking together is very important to us, so we would like a sufficiently large kitchen, preferably with an island. The husband grills all year round, so the terrace and the entire outdoor area are very important to him.
House Design
Who created the design:
-Planner from a construction company The design comes from the architect of our GC but is unfortunately based on a rough sketch from us (we had no alternative with our GC)
-Architect
-Do-it-yourself
What do you particularly like? Why? It is already based on our rough plan; I like the cloakroom space at the entrance (though it could probably be a bit smaller) and the size of the children’s room, although 1-2 sqm (10-20 sq ft) less would also be fine.
What do you dislike? Why? The bedroom feels a bit cramped (Is there enough space at the foot end of the bed? The bed is only 2x1.80 m (6 ft 7 in x 5 ft 11 in), but the headboard also adds bulk), the hallway is rather narrow at 1.20 m (4 ft), the terrace is too long and narrow, there is quite a bit of unused open space at the entrance to the open-plan area, and I would like some storage space behind the door in the guest room.
Cost estimate according to architect/planner:
Personal budget limit for the house, including fixtures and fittings: €430,000
Preferred heating system: heat pump with controlled mechanical ventilation
If you had to give up on something, which details/features
-could you do without: the cloakroom could be 1.5-2 m (5-6.5 ft) wide, the children’s room could be around 13-14 sqm (140-150 sq ft) if that means we could save a few square meters elsewhere
-could you not do without: a good-sized kitchen directly adjacent to the terrace
Why has the design ended up like this? For example:
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? First draft based on a rough sketch from us. This was based on floor plans from friends and acquaintances and standard designs found online.
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What do you think makes it particularly good or bad?
I have been a silent reader for quite some time and would now like to ask for your help. We are currently planning to build our house and received the first draft from the architect of our general contractor (GC) yesterday, which I would like to share here for discussion.
In addition, I am hoping to get some input on the positioning of the house on the plot. So far, I was sure that we would position the house along the northern side street, with the driveway at the new eastern boundary. However, the homeowner prefers to place the house along the western main road because this would provide a larger garden, allow use of the “dead corner” in the northwest, and also offer visual and noise protection from the main road to the west. I am concerned, though, that the house might become too dark.
The site plan is oriented to the north, as is the aerial photo.
Zoning Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 600 sqm (6460 sq ft)
Slope: no slope
Floor space index: §34 applies, but the floor space index should not exceed 0.4
Floor area ratio
Building envelope, building line and boundary
Boundary development
Number of parking spaces: 2 required, although we only need 1
Number of storeys
Roof type
Architectural style
Orientation
Maximum height / limits
Additional requirements
Homeowners’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: bungalow approximately 120 sqm (1300 sq ft)
Basement, storeys: only ground floor
Number of occupants, ages: 2 adults (40/43), 1 child (almost 4)
Room requirements on ground floor: living/dining/cooking, bedroom, children’s room, guest room, bathroom, guest toilet
Office: family use or home office? Home office up to 2 days a week, the office should be integrated into the guest room
Guests per year: several
Open or closed architecture: rather open
Conservative or modern style: modern
Open kitchen with island: open kitchen with island
Number of dining seats: 6, expandable to up to 10
Fireplace: yes, preferred
Music/surround sound wall: no, but 5.1 system at the TV
Balcony, roof terrace
Garage, carport: long term a carport
Vegetable garden, greenhouse
Other wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons why or why not: Cooking together is very important to us, so we would like a sufficiently large kitchen, preferably with an island. The husband grills all year round, so the terrace and the entire outdoor area are very important to him.
House Design
Who created the design:
-Planner from a construction company The design comes from the architect of our GC but is unfortunately based on a rough sketch from us (we had no alternative with our GC)
-Architect
-Do-it-yourself
What do you particularly like? Why? It is already based on our rough plan; I like the cloakroom space at the entrance (though it could probably be a bit smaller) and the size of the children’s room, although 1-2 sqm (10-20 sq ft) less would also be fine.
What do you dislike? Why? The bedroom feels a bit cramped (Is there enough space at the foot end of the bed? The bed is only 2x1.80 m (6 ft 7 in x 5 ft 11 in), but the headboard also adds bulk), the hallway is rather narrow at 1.20 m (4 ft), the terrace is too long and narrow, there is quite a bit of unused open space at the entrance to the open-plan area, and I would like some storage space behind the door in the guest room.
Cost estimate according to architect/planner:
Personal budget limit for the house, including fixtures and fittings: €430,000
Preferred heating system: heat pump with controlled mechanical ventilation
If you had to give up on something, which details/features
-could you do without: the cloakroom could be 1.5-2 m (5-6.5 ft) wide, the children’s room could be around 13-14 sqm (140-150 sq ft) if that means we could save a few square meters elsewhere
-could you not do without: a good-sized kitchen directly adjacent to the terrace
Why has the design ended up like this? For example:
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? First draft based on a rough sketch from us. This was based on floor plans from friends and acquaintances and standard designs found online.
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What do you think makes it particularly good or bad?
L
Lurchi20255 Dec 2025 18:01Thank you for your suggestions regarding the floor plan, I really appreciate them. I especially like the idea of the pantry, as this would also keep the beverages protected from the heat in the utility room.
We have now received a response from the building authority stating that parking spaces may be arranged one behind the other. We still need to check with the local council about the setback distance to the property boundary. We inquired about both possible house positions because a 5 m (16 ft) setback (while maintaining the building line of the neighboring properties) from the northern boundary would be quite a waste of garden space.
We have now received a response from the building authority stating that parking spaces may be arranged one behind the other. We still need to check with the local council about the setback distance to the property boundary. We inquired about both possible house positions because a 5 m (16 ft) setback (while maintaining the building line of the neighboring properties) from the northern boundary would be quite a waste of garden space.
L
Lurchi202519 Dec 2025 12:38Hello dear forum community,
today we received the latest floor plan from our architect and would like to open it up for discussion again.
I haven’t had a chance to study it in detail or place any furniture yet, but at first glance, I actually find it quite good, although a few centimeters (inches) more here and there would probably be beneficial (width of the hallway? walking space around the bed, especially at the foot end?).
Unfortunately, my husband didn’t like the floor plan presented here by @ypg, as he didn’t want the children’s room next to the master bedroom.
[ATTACH alt="V2.JPG"]94343[/ATTACH]
today we received the latest floor plan from our architect and would like to open it up for discussion again.
I haven’t had a chance to study it in detail or place any furniture yet, but at first glance, I actually find it quite good, although a few centimeters (inches) more here and there would probably be beneficial (width of the hallway? walking space around the bed, especially at the foot end?).
Unfortunately, my husband didn’t like the floor plan presented here by @ypg, as he didn’t want the children’s room next to the master bedroom.
[ATTACH alt="V2.JPG"]94343[/ATTACH]
Lurchi2025 schrieb:
We received the next floor plan from the architect today and would like to open it up for discussion again.
I haven’t had the chance to examine it in detail or arrange furniture in it yet, The architect should provide proof that the floor plan also works when furnished. I am not the floor plan design critic here – but what stands out to me again is the technical flaw that the plan is full of arbitrary dimensions. These lead to workmanship issues due to unnecessary cutting of bricks and always carry the risk that the staggered brick pattern will be compromised by these non-standard measurements. This disrespect towards the bricklayers from the planners ultimately negatively impacts the building family, who gain no benefit from these arbitrary dimensions. Planners should simply stop this bad practice.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Lurchi2025 schrieb:
Unfortunately, my husband didn’t like the floor plan presented here by @ypg because he didn’t want the children’s room right next to the master bedroom. Then ask your husband why he has no concerns when the child’s room is next to the TV wall 😉
L
Lurchi202520 Dec 2025 12:41Damn, I completely overlooked that.
Unfortunately, there are still several issues that haven’t been well resolved, and I even have some doubts about the architect in certain areas. For example, there is a 3m (10 feet) wardrobe drawn into the bedroom against a rough wall measuring 3.055m (10 feet) in length. There’s no space planned for light switches, and the few centimeters of clearance will be taken up by plaster and baseboards. The bed also can’t have a headboard, otherwise the movement space between the bed and wardrobe becomes quite tight again. On the other hand, I have a comfortable 5.40m (18 feet) between the TV and the opposite wall in the living room.
I understand that 120sqm (1,292 sq ft) isn’t huge, but somehow… it just doesn’t all add up quite right.
Unfortunately, there are still several issues that haven’t been well resolved, and I even have some doubts about the architect in certain areas. For example, there is a 3m (10 feet) wardrobe drawn into the bedroom against a rough wall measuring 3.055m (10 feet) in length. There’s no space planned for light switches, and the few centimeters of clearance will be taken up by plaster and baseboards. The bed also can’t have a headboard, otherwise the movement space between the bed and wardrobe becomes quite tight again. On the other hand, I have a comfortable 5.40m (18 feet) between the TV and the opposite wall in the living room.
I understand that 120sqm (1,292 sq ft) isn’t huge, but somehow… it just doesn’t all add up quite right.
Lurchi2025 schrieb:
I am aware that 120 sqm (1,292 sq ft) is not very large, but somehow... everything feels a bit off. The thing is, as you already pointed out, 120 sqm (1,292 sq ft) is not very generous, so it’s hard to avoid certain planning compromises you might want to skip. Shared walls, for example between children's rooms/sleeping area/living room/technical room, are almost unavoidable. You can reduce sound transmission by using thicker walls. As far as I know, drywall has better soundproofing properties than porous clay blocks (Poroton) or aerated concrete (porous concrete).
Or it might be about the utility zones, since there are limited options to position the guest toilet somewhere else or out of direct view from the kitchen or dining area.
It also relates to the hallway layout: open or closed, long or short. I haven’t reviewed the site plan before writing this, but from memory, the shed also slightly restricts the building’s width.
Try to set priorities, including window placement, though this already looks quite well done here. A covered terrace obviously reduces the amount of natural light coming through the windows.
In the last version 2 of the design, I could imagine swapping the living room and kitchen: putting the terrace door in the kitchen, removing the door in the living area and placing the TV there instead, moving the fireplace to the left corner by the plan. The dining table could be rotated, kitchen tall cabinets placed along the children's room wall, and a long window installed on the south side above the countertop.
That would also allow moving a wall in the guest area slightly, so the bedroom could be furnished differently.
If I have time this evening, I could try to visualize this.
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