ᐅ Floor plan of a traditional single-family house on a 700 sqm plot with east-facing access
Created on: 5 Oct 2021 00:20
M
Mitch404
Hey everyone,
many of you probably know this situation: suddenly there are three of you, and you realize that your current apartment will soon be too small. My wife and I have therefore decided to treat ourselves to a single-family home. We are currently working with the architect we chose to develop the floor plan.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 700 sqm (7,535 sq ft)
No slope
Site occupancy ratio (building coverage ratio): 0.3
Floor area ratio: 0.6
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 2 full stories; with two full stories, a knee wall is not allowed
Roof style: Gable roof
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: The roof style is fixed as a gable roof. The house should also blend in with neighboring buildings, so a more rectangular than square (town villa) footprint is preferred.
Basement, floors: No basement and no sloping ceilings desired; therefore, two full stories
Number of residents, ages: 3 people aged 35, 30, and 0.3 years; space for an additional child desired
Room requirements on ground floor and upper floor: Typical needs of a family with two children and no special hobbies. A sufficiently sized utility room to be able to hang laundry indoors in winter. Kitchen large enough to comfortably bake a cake occasionally (currently only a 6 sqm (65 sq ft) kitchen, which is rather tight). We had also considered a home office on the ground floor to avoid guests needing to enter the upper floor, but overall that made the ground floor feel too large.
Office: The office is for home office use, designed for two workstations (usually not used at the same time) and with the possibility to accommodate occasional overnight guests.
Overnight guests per year: None regularly. If our parents or friends want to stay over, we want to have the option to use the office space for this.
Open or closed architecture: We think open layouts look nice, but in everyday life we want practicality, which includes being able to retreat occasionally. Therefore, a large living/dining area with a kitchen that can be at least partially integrated via a large sliding door, while the rest remains rather closed off.
Conservative or modern construction: Modern construction as far as we like it (for example, an open staircase in the living area is currently trendy but we do not like it, and for the “T” layout solution, we find our bathroom too small and cramped).
Open kitchen, kitchen island: The kitchen should not be fully open but with a large sliding door. A kitchen island and dining area directly in the kitchen would be nice.
Number of dining seats: 8+
Fireplace: No fireplace
Music/surround sound wall: Not desired. Besides the TV, a 2.1 sound system will be installed as now, and that’s enough.
Balcony, roof terrace: Not desired
Garage, carport: Carport
Utility garden, greenhouse: We plan a small utility garden — a few raised beds, maybe 1-2 regular beds — but the focus will be a low-maintenance recreational and leisure garden.
Additional wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons why some things are desired or not: Each children’s bedroom has an attic ladder leading upward, so the rooms can be expanded upstairs when the kids are teenagers and want more space. We have seen this realized in 2-3 houses and think it’s pretty cool.
House Design
Who designed the plan: Independent architect
What do you especially like? Why? The southwest garden protected from the street. The living room, which is open yet still brings some calm due to the niche and the door that only leads into the dining area. The kitchen has a terrace door that can be unlocked from outside, so groceries can be carried straight into the kitchen. The walk-in closet, which adds visual calmness to the bedroom. Storage space under the stairs. The separation of the technical room and the utility room, allowing the utility room to be kept tidier.
What do you not like? Why? I worry that the bathroom on the ground floor and the office might be somewhat too small. The children’s rooms seem fairly generous with 17 sqm (183 sq ft); 16 sqm (172 sq ft) might have sufficed.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: The architect is handling only phases 1-4 for us. We have not yet decided whether to hire a general contractor or use individual contracts and arrange construction supervision ourselves.
Personal budget limit for the house, including fixtures and fittings: 500k
Preferred heating system: Ground-source heat pump with horizontal trench collector
If you had to give up something, which details/upgrades
- can you do without: We have already dropped the basement and fireplace; we will probably also give up on the “T” layout in the bathroom to avoid making it too dark and cramped.
- cannot do without:
Why is the design the way it is now? For example:
Standard design from the planner? The plan was created individually based on a questionnaire we completed for the architect.
Which requests were implemented by the architect?
- Carport and shed cover the neighbor’s unsightly prefabricated garage.
- House and carport form a kind of L shape lying down that creates a protected southwest garden.
- Two children’s rooms with at least 15 sqm (161 sq ft) + office
- Kitchen separated from the living/dining area by sliding door
- Long-term option to convert the upper floor into a separate living unit (for flexibility and eligibility for KfW funding for two dwelling units)
What do you think makes the plan particularly good or bad?
Overall, we quite like the plan. We now want to look at details (for example, the walk-in closet slightly larger by about 1 sqm (11 sq ft) so that a low cabinet could fit against the second wall). The windows are not planned yet and were initially placed arbitrarily by the architect.
We are especially looking forward to your open feedback to optimize the plan further before it gets serious and hopefully avoid some mistakes. 😉
Best regards
Mitch404
many of you probably know this situation: suddenly there are three of you, and you realize that your current apartment will soon be too small. My wife and I have therefore decided to treat ourselves to a single-family home. We are currently working with the architect we chose to develop the floor plan.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 700 sqm (7,535 sq ft)
No slope
Site occupancy ratio (building coverage ratio): 0.3
Floor area ratio: 0.6
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 2 full stories; with two full stories, a knee wall is not allowed
Roof style: Gable roof
Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: The roof style is fixed as a gable roof. The house should also blend in with neighboring buildings, so a more rectangular than square (town villa) footprint is preferred.
Basement, floors: No basement and no sloping ceilings desired; therefore, two full stories
Number of residents, ages: 3 people aged 35, 30, and 0.3 years; space for an additional child desired
Room requirements on ground floor and upper floor: Typical needs of a family with two children and no special hobbies. A sufficiently sized utility room to be able to hang laundry indoors in winter. Kitchen large enough to comfortably bake a cake occasionally (currently only a 6 sqm (65 sq ft) kitchen, which is rather tight). We had also considered a home office on the ground floor to avoid guests needing to enter the upper floor, but overall that made the ground floor feel too large.
Office: The office is for home office use, designed for two workstations (usually not used at the same time) and with the possibility to accommodate occasional overnight guests.
Overnight guests per year: None regularly. If our parents or friends want to stay over, we want to have the option to use the office space for this.
Open or closed architecture: We think open layouts look nice, but in everyday life we want practicality, which includes being able to retreat occasionally. Therefore, a large living/dining area with a kitchen that can be at least partially integrated via a large sliding door, while the rest remains rather closed off.
Conservative or modern construction: Modern construction as far as we like it (for example, an open staircase in the living area is currently trendy but we do not like it, and for the “T” layout solution, we find our bathroom too small and cramped).
Open kitchen, kitchen island: The kitchen should not be fully open but with a large sliding door. A kitchen island and dining area directly in the kitchen would be nice.
Number of dining seats: 8+
Fireplace: No fireplace
Music/surround sound wall: Not desired. Besides the TV, a 2.1 sound system will be installed as now, and that’s enough.
Balcony, roof terrace: Not desired
Garage, carport: Carport
Utility garden, greenhouse: We plan a small utility garden — a few raised beds, maybe 1-2 regular beds — but the focus will be a low-maintenance recreational and leisure garden.
Additional wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons why some things are desired or not: Each children’s bedroom has an attic ladder leading upward, so the rooms can be expanded upstairs when the kids are teenagers and want more space. We have seen this realized in 2-3 houses and think it’s pretty cool.
House Design
Who designed the plan: Independent architect
What do you especially like? Why? The southwest garden protected from the street. The living room, which is open yet still brings some calm due to the niche and the door that only leads into the dining area. The kitchen has a terrace door that can be unlocked from outside, so groceries can be carried straight into the kitchen. The walk-in closet, which adds visual calmness to the bedroom. Storage space under the stairs. The separation of the technical room and the utility room, allowing the utility room to be kept tidier.
What do you not like? Why? I worry that the bathroom on the ground floor and the office might be somewhat too small. The children’s rooms seem fairly generous with 17 sqm (183 sq ft); 16 sqm (172 sq ft) might have sufficed.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: The architect is handling only phases 1-4 for us. We have not yet decided whether to hire a general contractor or use individual contracts and arrange construction supervision ourselves.
Personal budget limit for the house, including fixtures and fittings: 500k
Preferred heating system: Ground-source heat pump with horizontal trench collector
If you had to give up something, which details/upgrades
- can you do without: We have already dropped the basement and fireplace; we will probably also give up on the “T” layout in the bathroom to avoid making it too dark and cramped.
- cannot do without:
Why is the design the way it is now? For example:
Standard design from the planner? The plan was created individually based on a questionnaire we completed for the architect.
Which requests were implemented by the architect?
- Carport and shed cover the neighbor’s unsightly prefabricated garage.
- House and carport form a kind of L shape lying down that creates a protected southwest garden.
- Two children’s rooms with at least 15 sqm (161 sq ft) + office
- Kitchen separated from the living/dining area by sliding door
- Long-term option to convert the upper floor into a separate living unit (for flexibility and eligibility for KfW funding for two dwelling units)
What do you think makes the plan particularly good or bad?
Overall, we quite like the plan. We now want to look at details (for example, the walk-in closet slightly larger by about 1 sqm (11 sq ft) so that a low cabinet could fit against the second wall). The windows are not planned yet and were initially placed arbitrarily by the architect.
We are especially looking forward to your open feedback to optimize the plan further before it gets serious and hopefully avoid some mistakes. 😉
Best regards
Mitch404
ypg schrieb:
As already asked: where are there two conceptual living units?
If the bathroom on the ground floor comes after the stairs, a door could be added there, creating living rooms, kitchen, and bathroom. Upstairs, for example, kitchen connections could be installed in the office, resulting in living rooms, bathroom, and kitchen each in two separate living units.
ypg schrieb:
Plan differently?…!I already understood "plan differently" the first time. However, so far I have not come across a floor plan that works without circulation areas and at the same time meets my other requirements. So "plan differently" is easy to say when no concrete proposal is made.ypg schrieb:
Who sets the 14 meters? Sorry, but I feel the planning status here is somewhat lacking in terms of changing something or everything. There is nothing in this plan that must be kept.You simply wrote "make it one meter wider." That made your suggestion sound to me like just enlarging the house. Of course, the plan is not set in stone and can be changed as desired.Mitch404 schrieb:
If the bathroom on the ground floor is located after the staircase, you could install a door there and have living spaces, kitchen, and bathroom. Upstairs, for example, you could add kitchen connections in the study, resulting in living spaces, bathroom, and kitchen in two separate housing units. As always advised: please also read the related threads on floor plan discussions and consider how they apply to your situation.
@Mitch404 .. external links are not allowed here. 😉
For another version, I would instead suggest a separate living room area and combine cooking and dining, which also saves space by eliminating the need for a separate dining table.
Mitch404 schrieb:
The kitchen won’t be furnished exactly like that. So far, we only want a sliding door, preferably a small kitchen island with seating, and a terrace door that can be locked from the outside. A side-by-side refrigerator should also be included. Everything else is still completely open/unplanned.
Mitch404 schrieb:Given the room dimensions, these wishes are not feasible.
As mentioned, the windows have not yet been planned. In the kitchen, a lockable terrace door was the main priority for us. However, if we go ahead with this layout, additional windows (or window bands) will naturally be added.
For another version, I would instead suggest a separate living room area and combine cooking and dining, which also saves space by eliminating the need for a separate dining table.
Mitch404 schrieb:
The kitchen will not be furnished exactly like that. [...] A side-by-side fridge/freezer will also be included. The rest is still completely open/unplanned. If it is going to be furnished differently, then it definitely doesn’t fit.
Mitch404 schrieb:
I have also considered making the house one meter wider. But with a length of 14 m (46 feet) and two full stories, that means 28 m² (300 sq ft) more space, which would cost over €50,000 and result in a total living area of about 200 m² (2,150 sq ft). Where in the bible does it say that the eave sides have to be parallel to each other?
Mitch404 schrieb:
What do you mean by the wardrobe-limiting wall in the bedroom being wrong?
There are no elevations yet. We are just now positioning the rooms and defining their sizes. Then we will move on to detailed planning with windows and the facade. The wall is simply shifted by its own thickness. I like M. C. Escher, but I wouldn’t want to replicate his style.
Windows have not yet been planned in detail, okay (so the answer to my question about the design phase is probably: 2), but at this point, we can’t even check if it roughly fits (for example, we don’t know which windows are supposed to be knee wall windows).
Mitch404 schrieb:
Our architect actually offers only phases 1–4 since he is employed about 80% of the time by a housing company and doesn’t have the time. That is a serious loss: design phase 5 is truly a crucial foundation; you cannot base a meaningful tender on just phase 4.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Mitch404 schrieb:
2.84m (9 feet 4 inches) was actually just a bit too narrow. Currently, we have 3m (10 feet) for the sofa and a floor lamp in the corner. It really shouldn’t be less than that. … and when you’re 10 years older, you’ll want a side table too 😉
And are you dreaming of two separate living units, where the bed is in the living room on the ground floor and there’s no room left for a sofa?
Who is supposed to live on the ground floor? The bathroom there isn’t suitable for aging in place.
And who should live upstairs without a balcony?
The fact is: the narrow house barely allows for reasonable living spaces downstairs because of the hallway.
I would set the draft aside and request a new one from the architect.
ypg schrieb:
I would set the design aside and request a new one from the architect.Good idea…… but when I read this here…
Mitch404 schrieb:
Overall, we quite like the plan. Now we want to look at the details.…it probably won’t happen.A few critical issues were mentioned that cannot be resolved by simply moving walls.
Two options: keep the 1960s style or hit the reset button.
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