ᐅ Floor plan design of an urban villa with 140–145 sqm living space on a 1200 sqm plot
Created on: 28 Nov 2025 07:55
D
Der-Dachs
Hello dear forum members, after being a silent reader for a long time, I would like to introduce myself and share our floor plan. It is currently in the planning stage and almost finalized. I have completed the questionnaire to the best of my knowledge and belief.
Urban villa, 140-145 sqm (1507-1562 sq ft)
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size – 1200 sqm (12917 sq ft)
Slope – no
Floor area ratio – unknown or according to §34 Building Code
Plot coverage ratio – §34 Building Code
Building line, building boundary – §34 Building Code
Edge development –
Number of parking spaces – 2
Number of floors – 2 full floors
Roof type – hipped roof
Architectural style – modern
Orientation – main entrance south/southeast, terrace north/northwest
Maximum heights/limits –
Other requirements –
Homeowner requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type – urban villa with hipped roof, modern design
Basement, floors – 2 full floors without basement
Number of people, ages – 2 adults (33, 29), 1 child (1), 1 dog (3), one more child planned in the next years
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor – Ground floor: open living-dining area with open kitchen, pantry, utility room, office/guest room, guest toilet with shower
Office: family use or home office? – office for home office and family use
Guests per year – parents-in-law or other family about 3 times per year
Open or closed architecture – rather open
Traditional or modern construction – modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island – open kitchen yes, kitchen island possibly
Number of dining seats – currently 3 daily, occasionally more up to 12
Fireplace – yes
Music/stereo wall – home theater if possible
Balcony, roof terrace – no
Garage, carport – in the future yes, carport next to the house, garage if possible at the back of the plot
Vegetable garden, greenhouse – vegetable garden yes, small area up to 100 sqm (1076 sq ft)
House design
Who designed the plan: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
What do you dislike? Why?
Estimated price according to architect/planner: 330,000€
Personal budget limit for the house, including fittings: 370,000€
Preferred heating system: heat pump
If you have to give up something, which features/expansions
- can you give up:
- can you not give up:
Why is the design as it is? For example:
The first draft from the planner included a winding staircase, but since we don’t like those and wanted uniform step depths, the final design features a straight staircase. We also tried a staircase with a landing, but it took up too much space.
The design was therefore partly based on our wishes and partly self-planned. We tried to fit everything as well as possible.
Regarding the design, there is a storage room on the upper floor which will still be modified. Instead of a storage room, this will become the entrance to the bedroom. The wall where the wardrobes will be placed will be extended forward so it almost aligns with the fireplace. The bed will be positioned facing the window.
The bathroom layout is provisional and will be changed. A major wish is to include a small sauna, but this is a low priority.
I hope I have provided enough information and will try to respond as quickly as possible.
Thank you in advance for your input.
Urban villa, 140-145 sqm (1507-1562 sq ft)
Development plan/restrictions
Plot size – 1200 sqm (12917 sq ft)
Slope – no
Floor area ratio – unknown or according to §34 Building Code
Plot coverage ratio – §34 Building Code
Building line, building boundary – §34 Building Code
Edge development –
Number of parking spaces – 2
Number of floors – 2 full floors
Roof type – hipped roof
Architectural style – modern
Orientation – main entrance south/southeast, terrace north/northwest
Maximum heights/limits –
Other requirements –
Homeowner requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type – urban villa with hipped roof, modern design
Basement, floors – 2 full floors without basement
Number of people, ages – 2 adults (33, 29), 1 child (1), 1 dog (3), one more child planned in the next years
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor – Ground floor: open living-dining area with open kitchen, pantry, utility room, office/guest room, guest toilet with shower
Office: family use or home office? – office for home office and family use
Guests per year – parents-in-law or other family about 3 times per year
Open or closed architecture – rather open
Traditional or modern construction – modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island – open kitchen yes, kitchen island possibly
Number of dining seats – currently 3 daily, occasionally more up to 12
Fireplace – yes
Music/stereo wall – home theater if possible
Balcony, roof terrace – no
Garage, carport – in the future yes, carport next to the house, garage if possible at the back of the plot
Vegetable garden, greenhouse – vegetable garden yes, small area up to 100 sqm (1076 sq ft)
House design
Who designed the plan: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
What do you dislike? Why?
Estimated price according to architect/planner: 330,000€
Personal budget limit for the house, including fittings: 370,000€
Preferred heating system: heat pump
If you have to give up something, which features/expansions
- can you give up:
- can you not give up:
Why is the design as it is? For example:
The first draft from the planner included a winding staircase, but since we don’t like those and wanted uniform step depths, the final design features a straight staircase. We also tried a staircase with a landing, but it took up too much space.
The design was therefore partly based on our wishes and partly self-planned. We tried to fit everything as well as possible.
Regarding the design, there is a storage room on the upper floor which will still be modified. Instead of a storage room, this will become the entrance to the bedroom. The wall where the wardrobes will be placed will be extended forward so it almost aligns with the fireplace. The bed will be positioned facing the window.
The bathroom layout is provisional and will be changed. A major wish is to include a small sauna, but this is a low priority.
I hope I have provided enough information and will try to respond as quickly as possible.
Thank you in advance for your input.
Der-Dachs schrieb:
I remember the pantry from my grandparents’ house, where all sorts of things were preserved and it didn’t necessarily have to be stored in the fridge or freezer. If you have space for additional large electrical appliances, that’s great and I would consider it as well. You’re missing the point. It’s not primarily about a freezer cabinet or large electrical appliances (that was just an example from my personal experience), but rather that there are some basic layout principles. Spaces where you might place cabinets about 60 cm (24 inches) deep—like old kitchen cabinets saved for cost reasons—should not be planned with a depth of 120 cm (47 inches), which in reality, after accounting for plaster and so on, will end up around 115 cm (45 inches). Then you can’t even fully open the door of an old 60 cm (24 inches) wide base cabinet.
EDIT:
Closets and similar areas are also planned with a minimum clearance of about 66 cm (26 inches) depth to allow for doors and such.
D
Der-Dachs2 Dec 2025 20:09ypg schrieb:
And now my husband also hangs his wet jackets and the dog’s in the shower. As someone who likes to keep things tidy, that’s a challenge for me. If I know this in advance, I take action or plan everything so that this only happens as an exception.
… because any changes also affect other rooms.
The house designs are presented here for critique so that weak points can be identified. And yes: the weak points should be fixed by those who are paid for it. Professionals. Not you or me, nor the critic.
And honestly: it doesn’t seem like you actually want to change anything. You admit it’s not ideal, but you justify every weak point. That means you want to stay where you are. You don’t want to move forward or take a different path. Standing still is also a form of resignation. And we can’t help with that.
Regarding the vegetable garden/storage:
If it’s just a hobby, then half an upper cabinet is enough.
And a bigger kitchen. Apart from making a few kilos of jam occasionally, I don’t see any potential for processing larger quantities. We have settled well with hanging items in the shower; for us, it’s not a problem. As mentioned above, it doesn’t happen so often that we have to clean everything completely every day. It’s also an advantage to have a short-haired dog 😉
As you mentioned, changing one room affects others, making it harder to find a good compromise. Unfortunately, the small issues are not resolved by the people who are paid for it, which is why I have turned to this forum.
I am open to changes; however, here subjective opinions meet other subjective opinions. Everyone can criticize certain aspects, and I do take that on board, but I can’t change anything based on that yet. If I already had ideas for changes, I would have implemented them during planning. Some changes actually happened during the thread creation, as I posted the next draft right away.
Regarding usage/storage: You say half an upper cabinet is enough, but we already have a shelf (1.6 meters long × 2 meters high × 0.4 meters deep [5 ft 3 in × 6 ft 7 in × 1 ft 3 in]) full of jars, supplies, etc. It’s just not in the kitchen but in the small office. Hence the desire for a pantry with shelves in a dark and dry place.
Arauki11 schrieb:
Somehow this thing seems to be stuck at the moment.
@Der-Dachs maybe you could bring some fresh momentum by saying what you want to change or where you are willing to consider participants’ ideas more thoroughly at least once. I already posted the next draft here, where I removed the storage room on the upper floor, moved the fireplace so it’s hidden in the utility room, and positioned it in the corner of the upstairs bedroom. Additionally, I did take up the idea to remove the partition wall to the walk-in closet; this makes the bedroom somewhat larger, and the wardrobes don’t have to be hidden either.
Please believe me, I am constantly trying to figure out how I could move things to make it better.
I also try to address every point and share my opinion about it.
Papierturm2 Dec 2025 20:14... now that the financial situation is much more relaxed, I reviewed the floor plan again.
The dining area is more than large enough to spare 20cm (8 inches) for the pantry. This way, you would have a functional pantry even if the space is used differently than originally planned in the future. I would really recommend considering this. A width of 140cm (55 inches) will work much better in daily use, regardless of what the pantry is used for.
The dining area is more than large enough to spare 20cm (8 inches) for the pantry. This way, you would have a functional pantry even if the space is used differently than originally planned in the future. I would really recommend considering this. A width of 140cm (55 inches) will work much better in daily use, regardless of what the pantry is used for.
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