Hello, I have been following this forum for a long time and find it always interesting. I thought I might share our planning here. We started planning at the end of 2018, began construction in 03/2019, and moved in by 12/2019.
We planned the floor plans, dimensions, materials, etc., ourselves and then hired a retired architect to create the construction drawings and structural engineering, as well as to submit the building permit / planning permission application. He also handled the approvals and insurance.
Since we live in a historic preservation area with classical architecture, we wanted to reflect this style in our house and I did a lot of research. I know nothing is perfect and it is a series of compromises (size, budget, historic style). We wanted about 120sqm (1292 sqft) of living space, aimed not to exceed a certain budget, and wanted to choose and plan all the trades ourselves (this really saves a lot of money!). I have almost no craftsmanship skills, yet we still did or helped with many tasks ourselves (preparations for the electrician, applying window and facade plaster molding ourselves, ceiling molding, wooden baseboards, cladding the carport, assembling the garden shed, distributing 55t (60 US tons) of soil, planting, manually drilling a garden well, etc.). Ok, my father-in-law helped a lot because he is handy.
We wanted to keep as much symmetry as possible and had a rough idea inspired by a Georgian house. Wooden sash windows and front door made by the local carpenter, facade plaster molding, ceiling height of 2.75m (9 ft) on the ground floor, and a hipped roof with clay tiles.
The staircase was a bit challenging because the hallway is central and the dimensions we set (somewhat arbitrarily) limited a straight staircase. The stair builder managed it nevertheless using some tricks (a bit steeper and with a longer tread or something like that).
Since I talked a lot with energy consultants and wanted a reasonable price-performance/use balance, we made the following decisions:
* Energy standard just enough to meet requirements (saves construction costs)
* Therefore, deliberately only double-glazed windows
* Gas condensing boiler with underfloor heating and gas fireplace
* Solar thermal system for hot water (I would have preferred to skip this as a cost driver; in summer you don’t need 270l (71 gallons) of hot water and in winter the sun usually isn’t sufficient despite the south-facing side)
* No electric window openers (but conduits were installed)
* 36.5cm (14.4 inches) aerated concrete walls on the outside and 17.5/11.5cm (6.9/4.5 inches) limestone interior walls
* Interior walls plastered with cement plaster to Q3 level (relatively smooth)
* Plumbing and heating company installed everything. Toilets, sinks, faucets were bought by us (all Villeroy & Boch and GROHE, mostly via eBay)
* Floor tiles and parquet also bought by us and then installed by professionals
The total cost excluding the land was €297,000 (about USD 320,000) including connections and exterior works, garden planting (partly €500 (about USD 540) per tree), double carport, 12sqm (129 sqft) garden shed, 150sqm (1615 sqft) paving, 24sqm (258 sqft) travertine terrace, insurance, surveying, 55t (60 US tons) of topsoil (we added about 20-30cm (8-12 inches) of soil), kitchen and appliances, electric garden gate, and masonry gate pillars (including historically accurate pillar caps) etc.
Land size: 680sqm (7320 sqft)
Living space: 122sqm (1313 sqft)
* 29sqm (312 sqft) living room
* 11.5sqm (124 sqft) kitchen
* 7.5sqm (81 sqft) utility room (laundry hangs from the ceiling with Foxydry)
* approx. 9.5sqm (102 sqft) hallway downstairs
* 11.5sqm (124 sqft) children’s room
* 9sqm (97 sqft) guest room/library/study
* approx. 9.3sqm (100 sqft) bathroom with shower, freestanding bathtub, toilet, bidet, washbasin
* approx. 20sqm (215 sqft) bedroom with walk-in closet/wardrobe
* The attic is currently an unheated storage room but could still be developed.
The space is sufficient, sometimes missing 0.5-1m (1.6-3.3 ft) here and there, but more space would have come at significantly higher construction costs.
What do you think of the floor plan? Any questions?
I’ve attached some pictures to give you a rough idea.
We planned the floor plans, dimensions, materials, etc., ourselves and then hired a retired architect to create the construction drawings and structural engineering, as well as to submit the building permit / planning permission application. He also handled the approvals and insurance.
Since we live in a historic preservation area with classical architecture, we wanted to reflect this style in our house and I did a lot of research. I know nothing is perfect and it is a series of compromises (size, budget, historic style). We wanted about 120sqm (1292 sqft) of living space, aimed not to exceed a certain budget, and wanted to choose and plan all the trades ourselves (this really saves a lot of money!). I have almost no craftsmanship skills, yet we still did or helped with many tasks ourselves (preparations for the electrician, applying window and facade plaster molding ourselves, ceiling molding, wooden baseboards, cladding the carport, assembling the garden shed, distributing 55t (60 US tons) of soil, planting, manually drilling a garden well, etc.). Ok, my father-in-law helped a lot because he is handy.
We wanted to keep as much symmetry as possible and had a rough idea inspired by a Georgian house. Wooden sash windows and front door made by the local carpenter, facade plaster molding, ceiling height of 2.75m (9 ft) on the ground floor, and a hipped roof with clay tiles.
The staircase was a bit challenging because the hallway is central and the dimensions we set (somewhat arbitrarily) limited a straight staircase. The stair builder managed it nevertheless using some tricks (a bit steeper and with a longer tread or something like that).
Since I talked a lot with energy consultants and wanted a reasonable price-performance/use balance, we made the following decisions:
* Energy standard just enough to meet requirements (saves construction costs)
* Therefore, deliberately only double-glazed windows
* Gas condensing boiler with underfloor heating and gas fireplace
* Solar thermal system for hot water (I would have preferred to skip this as a cost driver; in summer you don’t need 270l (71 gallons) of hot water and in winter the sun usually isn’t sufficient despite the south-facing side)
* No electric window openers (but conduits were installed)
* 36.5cm (14.4 inches) aerated concrete walls on the outside and 17.5/11.5cm (6.9/4.5 inches) limestone interior walls
* Interior walls plastered with cement plaster to Q3 level (relatively smooth)
* Plumbing and heating company installed everything. Toilets, sinks, faucets were bought by us (all Villeroy & Boch and GROHE, mostly via eBay)
* Floor tiles and parquet also bought by us and then installed by professionals
The total cost excluding the land was €297,000 (about USD 320,000) including connections and exterior works, garden planting (partly €500 (about USD 540) per tree), double carport, 12sqm (129 sqft) garden shed, 150sqm (1615 sqft) paving, 24sqm (258 sqft) travertine terrace, insurance, surveying, 55t (60 US tons) of topsoil (we added about 20-30cm (8-12 inches) of soil), kitchen and appliances, electric garden gate, and masonry gate pillars (including historically accurate pillar caps) etc.
Land size: 680sqm (7320 sqft)
Living space: 122sqm (1313 sqft)
* 29sqm (312 sqft) living room
* 11.5sqm (124 sqft) kitchen
* 7.5sqm (81 sqft) utility room (laundry hangs from the ceiling with Foxydry)
* approx. 9.5sqm (102 sqft) hallway downstairs
* 11.5sqm (124 sqft) children’s room
* 9sqm (97 sqft) guest room/library/study
* approx. 9.3sqm (100 sqft) bathroom with shower, freestanding bathtub, toilet, bidet, washbasin
* approx. 20sqm (215 sqft) bedroom with walk-in closet/wardrobe
* The attic is currently an unheated storage room but could still be developed.
The space is sufficient, sometimes missing 0.5-1m (1.6-3.3 ft) here and there, but more space would have come at significantly higher construction costs.
What do you think of the floor plan? Any questions?
I’ve attached some pictures to give you a rough idea.
ypg schrieb:
And which of you women work and have to carve out free time for these things, or who has free time during the day to focus only on fragrant lavender and shabby chic furniture?
Keep in mind; Joanna Gaines doesn’t do anything herself either, except decorating 😉 ah thanks, now I don’t feel so bad that my country house doesn’t look as perfect as on HGTVIt would work too. Just let an HGTV team go through your house.
I just guess that after 6 months most of the decoration will be missing. It’s simply impractical. You can’t quickly dust the cabinet because first you have to remove 10 different decorative items. The sofa cushions end up all piled in one corner, and so on.
Without decoration, the interior feels incomplete.
I just guess that after 6 months most of the decoration will be missing. It’s simply impractical. You can’t quickly dust the cabinet because first you have to remove 10 different decorative items. The sofa cushions end up all piled in one corner, and so on.
Without decoration, the interior feels incomplete.
M
Myrna_Loy4 Oct 2021 09:55Dusting is overrated anyway.
In der Ruine4 Oct 2021 10:12haydee schrieb:
I would too. Let an HGTV crew walk through your house sometime.
And the great setups on HGTV are unfortunately quite unrealistic. Never a TV, always too few cabinets and therefore too little storage space, and so on.
M
Myrna_Loy4 Oct 2021 10:23In der Ruine schrieb:
and the great features on HGTV are unfortunately quite unrealistic.
Never a TV, basically too few cabinets and therefore storage space, and so on. In the USA, built-in wall closets are common, and with the large floor plans, there are usually TV rooms, mudrooms, etc. That's why it’s a bit unrealistic when homebuilders try to force the HGTV aesthetic into German floor plans.