ᐅ Single-family house floor plan, slight hillside location, northwest orientation
Created on: 23 May 2025 18:30
K
kronos215
Hello everyone,
We have almost finalized our planning with the architect and would appreciate you taking a critical look at the floor plan. Afterwards, we plan to proceed with the tendering process.
We generally like the ground floor (GF) very much. However, we are considering flipping the house and making some changes to the upper floor (UF). The garage, utility room, and technical room would move to the right, and the entire house would be shifted closer to the neighbor’s hedge on the left side (3m (10 feet) distance). The living room would then be on the left. It’s unclear whether the view of the neighbor’s hedge at a 3m (10 feet) distance will be nicer. On the positive side, the house would be better oriented towards the south and would let in more sunlight. The kitchen would then be on the right, providing wind protection from the open field while still allowing sunlight to reach the terrace.
Corner plot, one neighbor on the left, fields to the back and right
Ground floor area: 99m2 (without terrace), garage 30m2
Upper floor area: 78m2 (from 1.5m (5 feet))
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size
approx. 750m2
Slope
Yes, uphill on the mountain side. There is a manhole cover on the street in front of the plot and one behind it. The elevation difference between the covers is about 3m. The plot initially rises about 1m (3 feet) above the sidewalk and
Edge development
Yes, it’s a corner plot. There is a neighbor on the left side. Behind the house and to the right is a field path and fields.
Number of parking spaces
The adjacent street should provide sufficient parking spaces. A garage is also planned.
Number of stories
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are permitted.
Roof type
According to the development plan, only gable roofs are allowed.
Orientation
Northwest
Maximum heights / limits
According to the development plan, the house must be built exactly in this alignment
Requirements of the homeowners
Style, roof shape, building type
Country house style, gable roof (eaves facing the street), single-family home
Basement, number of floors
A basement was initially planned but was dropped due to budget. 1.5 floors are allowed and planned as per the development plan.
Number of occupants, age
Two adults, early 30s, no children yet but a child’s room is planned
Space requirements on GF, UF
GF: Garage, entrance hall, office 1, kitchen, living room, dining room, pantry, technical room, utility room, guest bathroom with shower
UF: Bedroom, child’s room, office 2, bathroom, storage room (planned due to no basement)
Office: family use or home office?
Both offices are currently needed for work.
Overnight guests per year
Very rarely or none
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are allowed
Somewhat open
Conservative or modern construction
Modern (?)
Open kitchen, cooking island
Open kitchen planned, cooking island desired but dropped due to space constraints
Number of dining seats
6, preferably expandable to 10
Fireplace
Desired and planned as a partition between dining and living room
Music / stereo wall
Desired; a niche in the living room works well for this
Balcony, roof terrace
Desired but dropped for budget reasons
Garage, carport
Planned; it is questionable whether the garage should instead be located on the right to avoid blocking the south side.
House design
Who is responsible for the design?
Architect
What do you particularly like? Why?
The open living and dining area. The open view of the fields.
The dormer on the upper floor.
What do you dislike? Why?
The corridor on the upper floor feels dark. Many skylights are planned (knee wall 80cm (31 inches) per development plan, gable roof with eaves facing the street).
The ground floor might also be dark. The garage is located on the south side. The windows facing the fields are towards the northeast.
Skylights block the option for photovoltaic panels and the attic space.
The storage room feels out of place.
Since a basement was initially planned, a hobby room was also considered, but this has been dropped.
The master bed is directly adjacent to the child’s room, but the bedroom must remain there.
Price estimate according to architect:
€540,000 (we find this optimistic; we expect higher costs and would thus like to make the floor plan more compact)
Personal price limit for house including fixtures and fittings:
€550,000 (all-in)
Preferred heating technology:
Heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions
-you could give up: a two-story open space was planned but removed, storage room on the upper floor (is it really necessary?), the GF could generally be smaller to save costs
-you cannot give up: large windows on the GF, open living-dining area, access to the house via garage and utility room, fireplace, pantry
Why has the design turned out this way?E.g.
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? The architect implemented the room concept well and incorporated many of his own ideas that we mostly find coherent.
What do you consider particularly good or bad about it? We like the ground floor very much; there is still potential for changes on the upper floor. We would also like another dormer above the entrance door, but this does not seem possible due to the development plan (the upper floor would become a full story if too much area is covered by dormers). The study could then be where the storage room currently is. The storage room could become a combined storage and hobby room.
We are grateful for any input and suggestions. We are particularly concerned about the south orientation. We do not want the rooms to become too dark.
We have almost finalized our planning with the architect and would appreciate you taking a critical look at the floor plan. Afterwards, we plan to proceed with the tendering process.
We generally like the ground floor (GF) very much. However, we are considering flipping the house and making some changes to the upper floor (UF). The garage, utility room, and technical room would move to the right, and the entire house would be shifted closer to the neighbor’s hedge on the left side (3m (10 feet) distance). The living room would then be on the left. It’s unclear whether the view of the neighbor’s hedge at a 3m (10 feet) distance will be nicer. On the positive side, the house would be better oriented towards the south and would let in more sunlight. The kitchen would then be on the right, providing wind protection from the open field while still allowing sunlight to reach the terrace.
Corner plot, one neighbor on the left, fields to the back and right
Ground floor area: 99m2 (without terrace), garage 30m2
Upper floor area: 78m2 (from 1.5m (5 feet))
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size
approx. 750m2
Slope
Yes, uphill on the mountain side. There is a manhole cover on the street in front of the plot and one behind it. The elevation difference between the covers is about 3m. The plot initially rises about 1m (3 feet) above the sidewalk and
Edge development
Yes, it’s a corner plot. There is a neighbor on the left side. Behind the house and to the right is a field path and fields.
Number of parking spaces
The adjacent street should provide sufficient parking spaces. A garage is also planned.
Number of stories
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are permitted.
Roof type
According to the development plan, only gable roofs are allowed.
Orientation
Northwest
Maximum heights / limits
According to the development plan, the house must be built exactly in this alignment
Requirements of the homeowners
Style, roof shape, building type
Country house style, gable roof (eaves facing the street), single-family home
Basement, number of floors
A basement was initially planned but was dropped due to budget. 1.5 floors are allowed and planned as per the development plan.
Number of occupants, age
Two adults, early 30s, no children yet but a child’s room is planned
Space requirements on GF, UF
GF: Garage, entrance hall, office 1, kitchen, living room, dining room, pantry, technical room, utility room, guest bathroom with shower
UF: Bedroom, child’s room, office 2, bathroom, storage room (planned due to no basement)
Office: family use or home office?
Both offices are currently needed for work.
Overnight guests per year
Very rarely or none
According to the development plan, 1.5-story houses are allowed
Somewhat open
Conservative or modern construction
Modern (?)
Open kitchen, cooking island
Open kitchen planned, cooking island desired but dropped due to space constraints
Number of dining seats
6, preferably expandable to 10
Fireplace
Desired and planned as a partition between dining and living room
Music / stereo wall
Desired; a niche in the living room works well for this
Balcony, roof terrace
Desired but dropped for budget reasons
Garage, carport
Planned; it is questionable whether the garage should instead be located on the right to avoid blocking the south side.
House design
Who is responsible for the design?
Architect
What do you particularly like? Why?
The open living and dining area. The open view of the fields.
The dormer on the upper floor.
What do you dislike? Why?
The corridor on the upper floor feels dark. Many skylights are planned (knee wall 80cm (31 inches) per development plan, gable roof with eaves facing the street).
The ground floor might also be dark. The garage is located on the south side. The windows facing the fields are towards the northeast.
Skylights block the option for photovoltaic panels and the attic space.
The storage room feels out of place.
Since a basement was initially planned, a hobby room was also considered, but this has been dropped.
The master bed is directly adjacent to the child’s room, but the bedroom must remain there.
Price estimate according to architect:
€540,000 (we find this optimistic; we expect higher costs and would thus like to make the floor plan more compact)
Personal price limit for house including fixtures and fittings:
€550,000 (all-in)
Preferred heating technology:
Heat pump
If you had to give up something, which details / expansions
-you could give up: a two-story open space was planned but removed, storage room on the upper floor (is it really necessary?), the GF could generally be smaller to save costs
-you cannot give up: large windows on the GF, open living-dining area, access to the house via garage and utility room, fireplace, pantry
Why has the design turned out this way?E.g.
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? The architect implemented the room concept well and incorporated many of his own ideas that we mostly find coherent.
What do you consider particularly good or bad about it? We like the ground floor very much; there is still potential for changes on the upper floor. We would also like another dormer above the entrance door, but this does not seem possible due to the development plan (the upper floor would become a full story if too much area is covered by dormers). The study could then be where the storage room currently is. The storage room could become a combined storage and hobby room.
We are grateful for any input and suggestions. We are particularly concerned about the south orientation. We do not want the rooms to become too dark.
K
kronos21518 Mar 2026 07:57ypg schrieb:
I would change the stair entry and move the pantry under the stairs, or swap the kitchen and living room, as this would probably make the living/dining area feel more spacious. We’ve actually received this advice several times. However, I like that the stair entry is visible from the living area and that the first few steps are freely visible. I’m concerned that a rotated stair entry with the protruding corner extending into the open-plan room would create an awkward visual distraction. The only advantage I see is somewhat better access to the pantry/utility room under the stairs, but I’m open to being convinced otherwise.
ypg schrieb:
The wardrobe and office cabinets aren’t standard 60cm (24 inches) cabinets. That’s correct, and I forgot to mention it. I will definitely address this.
ypg schrieb:
Upstairs, I would swap the office and child’s room. Good point, and I was already considering this last night, but with the following adjustments:
- Parents’ room becomes Office 2
- Office 2 becomes the child’s room
- Child’s room becomes the bedroom with a dressing area
This moves the master bedroom into the largest room and creates space for a separate dressing area. As you suggested, the child’s room would move to Office 2, gaining a better southern orientation with a window away from the main road (on the right side of the plan), while still remaining a sufficiently sized room. The current bedroom, at 12 sqm (129 sq ft), should suffice for the office. I currently have 15 sqm (161 sq ft) in my office, which is more than enough. The downside is that the child’s room will be directly adjacent to the bedroom... The upside is that the bathroom will adjoin none of the sleeping rooms (which is convenient for showers and nighttime bathroom use).
ypg schrieb:
You need to pay attention to this: currently you have almost no space for clothes rails, neither in the wardrobe nor in the bedroom. Two meters (6.5 feet) of closet length is okay for a bedroom, but not generous. I will bring this up.
ypg schrieb:
Simply moving the partition wall back is not enough, since there’s a good reason it’s positioned there. What exactly do you mean by that? Structural reasons?
ypg schrieb:
If you plan a larger pantry, make it a utility room instead, including space for laundry. Also, don’t forget enough space in the main hallway for a proper wardrobe cabinet at least 2 meters (6.5 feet) long. The freezer room could then be made smaller. That’s a good idea, but I can’t quite imagine there being enough space in the room you drew (the lower red schematic) for a dryer, washing machine, a small cabinet, and a drying rack.
ypg schrieb:
Space-consuming platform stairs. Does it really take up more space than a half-turn staircase? I’ve heard so far that the additional space required is only minimal.
ypg schrieb:
There’s still a missing window on the west side in the open-plan area. That’s true, but it would be easy to implement with either of your alternative ground floor proposals (in the red design, you have already drawn it somewhat wider). I personally consider this important to create a clear sightline to the outside from the long hallway at the entrance.
ypg schrieb:
I would go for wider sill-height windows. I’m aware of the drawbacks of floor-to-ceiling windows, but they make the room appear brighter and more inviting. The light hits the floor better and reflects more effectively. If it’s reasonable, we would still keep them. However, in the upper floor it might be better to have fewer but wider windows (even though, purely architecturally, I quite like the look of three floor-to-ceiling windows side by side).
ypg schrieb:
What I personally don’t like: three corridors, .... Definitely add a window in the bay window on the ground floor! I would plan the kitchen by the terrace (that’s where it belongs); otherwise, with your layout, it would get quite cramped in the 6.57-meter (21.5 feet) wide space when you want a larger sofa, a fireplace, or often have many guests at the table. One corridor would be eliminated with your new (green) ground floor plan. By bay window, you mean the area under the dormer on the ground floor? That asymmetry does bother me as well, and your ground floor alternatives would allow addressing this.
Thanks very much for the helpful input. We have the opportunity to discuss it directly today.
K
kronos21518 Mar 2026 08:00What is still unclear to me and would be very helpful to clarify before today’s appointment is how the location of the main entrance and the carport is evaluated. Would access from the side or directly from the street be more advantageous? Or have we already found a good solution with the stairs to the house here that will later assist with garden access? Is placing the carport to the left side of the house not an option? I believe we would lose a lot of natural light on the ground floor that way. With the new ground floor plans, the window at the front, which we have currently planned by the stairs, is also no longer standing alone. I am wondering at what height this window will be positioned when you go up the stairs.
K
kronos21518 Mar 2026 08:17One more addition, since I can no longer edit: we are not fans of freestanding TV walls. Is there enough space to use the wall of the pantry/stairs according to the current design and place the sofa opposite it?
K
kronos21518 Mar 2026 08:17One more addition, since I can no longer edit: we are not fans of freestanding TV walls. Is there enough space to use the green design, the wall of the pantry/stairs, and place the sofa opposite it?
M
motorradsilke18 Mar 2026 08:23A 2 m (6.6 ft) closet for 2 people in the bedroom would be too small for me. I would probably allocate some space from the children's room to the bedroom, shifting the left bedroom further to the left. Then I would swap the office and the children's room. The office should be fine with a few square meters less.
Unordered Quotes/Replies
Then there will be no tripping step. I just see several optimized solutions with the change of the first step.
OK… keep in mind that none of these rooms really allow enough space for wardrobes. The windows and doors are positioned too close to the walls.
In or in front of the bay window, I don’t really see any useful wardrobe space unless it stands in front of the window.
We’ll see 🙂
I’m just assuming it’s a continuous wall that was shifted during planning to give the living area more width.
That definitely works if you don’t expect a dancing space. Drying rack, though, no. That’s correct. You have the dryer and then would need to put “small laundry,” which doesn’t accumulate regularly, somewhere else. But there are also wall and door solutions. You just have to check it out.
About 4 good square meters (about 43 square feet). Personally, I don’t like it either. For me, it belongs in an office wing.
No, on the contrary.
The light shouldn’t hit a dark floor, but rather light-colored walls. Light should spread out widely and broadly, not just up and down. You could try building a box and simulate it with a flashlight.
As you prefer – it’s your house, after all.
Not the asymmetry. But a bay window wants to show off what it has, and that includes a window. You will probably use a narrow one upstairs (because of the wardrobes) and then have a window in the same place downstairs. Unfortunately, I don’t see the bay window on the ground floor.
Doesn’t matter, it’s fine. I also wondered why the garage isn’t there now. But that might be due to financial reasons. For me, it works as is.
kronos215 schrieb:
However, I like that the first step from the living area is visible and that the first few steps protrude freely. I’m concerned that if the first step is rotated, the corner that sticks out
Then there will be no tripping step. I just see several optimized solutions with the change of the first step.
kronos215 schrieb:
Parents become Office 2
- Office 2 becomes Child’s room
- Child’s room becomes Bedroom with dressing area
OK… keep in mind that none of these rooms really allow enough space for wardrobes. The windows and doors are positioned too close to the walls.
In or in front of the bay window, I don’t really see any useful wardrobe space unless it stands in front of the window.
kronos215 schrieb:
The master bedroom will move to the largest room, creating some space for a separate dressing area.
We’ll see 🙂
kronos215 schrieb:
What exactly do you mean by that? Structural reasons?
I’m just assuming it’s a continuous wall that was shifted during planning to give the living area more width.
kronos215 schrieb:
In the room you drew (the lower (red) proposal), is there enough space for a dryer, washing machine, a small cabinet, and a drying rack?
That definitely works if you don’t expect a dancing space. Drying rack, though, no. That’s correct. You have the dryer and then would need to put “small laundry,” which doesn’t accumulate regularly, somewhere else. But there are also wall and door solutions. You just have to check it out.
kronos215 schrieb:
Does it really take up more space than a half-turn staircase? I’ve heard the space requirement is only slightly larger.
About 4 good square meters (about 43 square feet). Personally, I don’t like it either. For me, it belongs in an office wing.
kronos215 schrieb:
but they make the room look brighter and nicer
No, on the contrary.
kronos215 schrieb:
The light hits the floor better and is reflected better.
The light shouldn’t hit a dark floor, but rather light-colored walls. Light should spread out widely and broadly, not just up and down. You could try building a box and simulate it with a flashlight.
kronos215 schrieb:
If it makes sense, we would still keep these. However, upstairs it might be better to have fewer but wider windows (even though I personally like the look of three floor-to-ceiling windows side by side from an architectural perspective).
As you prefer – it’s your house, after all.
kronos215 schrieb:
By bay window, do you mean the area under the dormer on the ground floor? That asymmetry bothers me too.
Not the asymmetry. But a bay window wants to show off what it has, and that includes a window. You will probably use a narrow one upstairs (because of the wardrobes) and then have a window in the same place downstairs. Unfortunately, I don’t see the bay window on the ground floor.
kronos215 schrieb:
Wouldn’t side or direct street access be more advantageous?
Doesn’t matter, it’s fine. I also wondered why the garage isn’t there now. But that might be due to financial reasons. For me, it works as is.
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