Hello dear forum members!
I am looking for opinions and suggestions for improvement.
Development plan/restrictions okay
Plot size 573 sqm (6,167 sq ft)
Slope no
Floor area ratio (FAR) 0.2
Gross floor area ratio (GFAR) 0.5
Building zone, building line, and boundary 3 m (10 ft) street side
Edge development
Number of parking spaces 2
Number of stories 2
Roof type hipped roof
Architectural style city villa
Orientation west
Maximum height/limits 8.29 m (27 ft)
Builders’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type city villa
Basement, number of floors no basement, 2 floors
Number of occupants, ages 4 (36, 34, 6, 1)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor ???
Office: Family use or home office? family (guest/storage)
Number of guest stays per year 20
Open or closed architecture open
Conservative or modern design modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island open
Number of dining seats 4–6
Fireplace yes
Balcony, roof terrace no
Garage, carport double carport
Vegetable garden, greenhouse ?
House design
Who created the plan:
- Planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why? Kitchen is open but still separated from the living room, reasonable size of children’s rooms, straight staircase
What do you dislike? Why? Open hallway (noise transfers upstairs, and you can see from the entrance door straight into the living room)
Preferred heating system: geothermal, air heat pump
If you have to give up something, which details/features
-can you give up: large master bedroom, large kitchen, large utility room, garage, dressing room?
-can you not give up: guest room
Why did the design turn out as it is now? E.g. Almost all our ideas were implemented on a small living area.
Standard plan from the planner? yes, revised
Which wishes were fulfilled by the architect? Straight staircase, guest room, kitchen in a niche, guest WC with shower, large children’s rooms.
The orientation on the floor plan is incorrect; I marked the correct one on the site plan. The entrance will be planned from the street side. The dining area will be enlarged by shifting the kitchen about 40 cm (16 in) toward the utility room and shortening the stair wall. I am still not satisfied with window sizes and positions. The upper floor bathroom also needs improvement; we have an appointment planned at the bathroom studio.
Thank you very much for your suggestions.
I am looking for opinions and suggestions for improvement.
Development plan/restrictions okay
Plot size 573 sqm (6,167 sq ft)
Slope no
Floor area ratio (FAR) 0.2
Gross floor area ratio (GFAR) 0.5
Building zone, building line, and boundary 3 m (10 ft) street side
Edge development
Number of parking spaces 2
Number of stories 2
Roof type hipped roof
Architectural style city villa
Orientation west
Maximum height/limits 8.29 m (27 ft)
Builders’ requirements
Style, roof type, building type city villa
Basement, number of floors no basement, 2 floors
Number of occupants, ages 4 (36, 34, 6, 1)
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor ???
Office: Family use or home office? family (guest/storage)
Number of guest stays per year 20
Open or closed architecture open
Conservative or modern design modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island open
Number of dining seats 4–6
Fireplace yes
Balcony, roof terrace no
Garage, carport double carport
Vegetable garden, greenhouse ?
House design
Who created the plan:
- Planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why? Kitchen is open but still separated from the living room, reasonable size of children’s rooms, straight staircase
What do you dislike? Why? Open hallway (noise transfers upstairs, and you can see from the entrance door straight into the living room)
Preferred heating system: geothermal, air heat pump
If you have to give up something, which details/features
-can you give up: large master bedroom, large kitchen, large utility room, garage, dressing room?
-can you not give up: guest room
Why did the design turn out as it is now? E.g. Almost all our ideas were implemented on a small living area.
Standard plan from the planner? yes, revised
Which wishes were fulfilled by the architect? Straight staircase, guest room, kitchen in a niche, guest WC with shower, large children’s rooms.
The orientation on the floor plan is incorrect; I marked the correct one on the site plan. The entrance will be planned from the street side. The dining area will be enlarged by shifting the kitchen about 40 cm (16 in) toward the utility room and shortening the stair wall. I am still not satisfied with window sizes and positions. The upper floor bathroom also needs improvement; we have an appointment planned at the bathroom studio.
Thank you very much for your suggestions.
bika5 schrieb:
As soon as it gets sunny, I quickly reach room temperatures of 26°C (79°F) and above That’s what automatic shading systems are for.
I don’t see that you’re trying to make life in the West particularly appealing.
The house is not exactly unique – a standard house placed on a lot that requires some individual planning to adapt the house.
I also have the issue that you mention the entrance is on the street side, but the lot bends there, so it’s unclear how the house will actually sit on the property.
It would be best to sketch the house, carport, and terrace on the plot plan, including a north arrow.
There is a difference between planning your windows deliberately or arbitrarily.
Also, you won’t be able to keep the heat out if everything is planned as open. But then it will be dark and warm – not bright and warm.
In winter, you will fall into hibernation.
Best regards in brief
The house is not exactly unique – a standard house placed on a lot that requires some individual planning to adapt the house.
I also have the issue that you mention the entrance is on the street side, but the lot bends there, so it’s unclear how the house will actually sit on the property.
It would be best to sketch the house, carport, and terrace on the plot plan, including a north arrow.
There is a difference between planning your windows deliberately or arbitrarily.
Also, you won’t be able to keep the heat out if everything is planned as open. But then it will be dark and warm – not bright and warm.
In winter, you will fall into hibernation.
Best regards in brief
I always wonder what goes through the minds of employees at companies when a catalog house is positioned with the living area facing northeast. Do they have no personal standards at all?
However, I also find the effort some put into orienting the house perfectly south-facing to be excessive.
I agree with ypg that the approach to this should be reconsidered.
I also think that on 130 m² (1,400 sq ft), far too many of today’s typical "must-haves" (open floor plans, straight staircase, an excessive number of access points to the outside, fireplace, dressing area, toilet/shower layout in the bathroom with double vanity and walk-in shower) have been squeezed in.
However, I also find the effort some put into orienting the house perfectly south-facing to be excessive.
I agree with ypg that the approach to this should be reconsidered.
I also think that on 130 m² (1,400 sq ft), far too many of today’s typical "must-haves" (open floor plans, straight staircase, an excessive number of access points to the outside, fireplace, dressing area, toilet/shower layout in the bathroom with double vanity and walk-in shower) have been squeezed in.
Work with a quarter-turn staircase at the bottom instead of a straight one. It saves space. Extend it further at the bottom. Swap the guest / guest toilet areas with the kitchen and utility room. Then experiment with slightly different wall positions to see if that relieves some pressure. When the guest area is actually a guest room, it is usually empty anyway. So it could face north.
Upstairs, the bedroom needs more space. Consider reducing the dressing room slightly. Without the dressing room and using a classic wardrobe, the bedroom would be quite large. The children's rooms are huge—poor kids, they can get lost in them. Small children perceive such large spaces as even bigger. That space could also be used for storage, since there is none at all.
The bathroom upstairs feels overcrowded. In our bathroom, there will comfortably be space for a half-height laundry cabinet—about waist-high. It can hold towels, spare toilet paper, and similar items. I think that’s quite practical. Karsten
Upstairs, the bedroom needs more space. Consider reducing the dressing room slightly. Without the dressing room and using a classic wardrobe, the bedroom would be quite large. The children's rooms are huge—poor kids, they can get lost in them. Small children perceive such large spaces as even bigger. That space could also be used for storage, since there is none at all.
The bathroom upstairs feels overcrowded. In our bathroom, there will comfortably be space for a half-height laundry cabinet—about waist-high. It can hold towels, spare toilet paper, and similar items. I think that’s quite practical. Karsten
Nordlys schrieb:
Use a quarter-turn staircase at the bottom instead of a straight one. Saves space. In the corner, yes; but where it is now, the hallway would have to be wider because of that – and it is actually narrower here.
Alex85 schrieb:
I always wonder what goes through the minds of employees at companies like this when the catalog house is positioned with the living area facing northeast. Do they have no personal standards at all? I only partially agree with calling it a catalog house: this looks to me like there was originally a “building proposal” that exceeded the budget. So they loosened the floor plan a bit and reduced length and width. Without tricks like drawing the dining table too small or casually leaving out a second bedside table, it would of course be obvious.
I think what goes through the employee’s mind is plain and simple: to fit the offer to the customer’s budget at all costs. If they say, “If you want it to be good, it will unfortunately be more expensive,” then customers won’t buy. So the motto is: get the building plan signed.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Alex85 schrieb:
I always wonder what must be going through the minds of employees at these companies when the catalog house is positioned with the living area facing northeast. Don’t they have any standards themselves?
However, I also find some of the efforts to orient a house perfectly to the south to be a bit exaggerated.
I agree with ypg; the approach should be reconsidered.
I also think that on 130sqm (1400 sq ft), far too many of today’s typical "must-haves" (open spaces, straight staircase, an excessive number of outdoor exits, fireplace, dressing area, toilet/shower setup in the bathroom with a double vanity and walk-in shower) have been squeezed in.I completely agree with your last paragraph!!!
I do feel a bit sorry for the planners at the builder... sometimes nothing is expected from them: the builder restricts them through cost-saving structural measures, and the future homeowner doesn’t demand much.
At least with the points raised by the original poster, I would suggest having a conversation directly with the OP/homeowner.
Well, that’s why we are in this forum—to do things differently: to understand the homeowners, but also to discuss and stimulate thought processes, as well as to appreciate different needs.
But honestly: you read a lot here, OP, yet I don’t see much feedback that resonates with your approach—or even your arguments. So I wonder if you will provide further explanation regarding the sun’s position in summer and winter, natural lighting of rooms, the pros and cons of north-facing terraces, heat retention in new buildings, and so forth—or if you plan to share a drawing soon.
I’ll wait to see your plan.
Regards, Yvonne
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