ᐅ Floor Plan Single-Family Home, 1.5 Stories

Hello dear forum members,

We are very fortunate to be able to purchase a plot of land in a newly developed residential area in our hometown and are currently planning our future single-family home. We are working with an independent architect and intend to obtain 3-4 comparable offers based on the final design. Due to the requirements of the zoning plan (passive house, details below), we have already been able to narrow down some providers and identify two favorites.

We have now received the second draft from our planner, which we would like to share with you. We look forward to honest, constructive feedback as well as ideas and suggestions.

Zoning Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 528 m² (new development area, no construction projects completed yet)
Slope: none
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: no specifications
Building envelope / distances: 2.5 m (8 feet) setback from boundary, orientation see image, garage may be built on boundary
Edge development: see images
Number of parking spaces: no specifications
Number of floors: max. 2 full stories
Roof type: for gable and hip roofs, roof pitches from 30° to 48°, for pyramid roofs up to 35°, for shed roofs up to 15° permitted
Architectural style: classic-modern
Orientation: see images
Maximum heights / limits: ridge height max. 12.5 m (41 feet); eave height max. 6.5 m (21 feet)
Additional requirements:
Passive house standard with two criteria: maximum heating demand
15 kWh/(m²a) and total “Renewable Primary Energy” demand max. 60 kWh/(m²a)

Owners’ Requirements
Architectural style, roof type, building type: classic, gable roof, no bay windows or other special features
Basement, floors: no basement, 1.5 floors
Number of people, age: 2 adults and 2 cats (future 1-2 children)
Space requirements ground floor, upper floor: 150 - 160 m² (1615 - 1720 sq ft)
Office: home office and guest room
Overnight guests per year: 4-5
Open or closed design: rather open
Conservative or modern construction: mixed
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen, kitchen island (optional)
Number of dining seats: frequently up to 12
Fireplace: no
Music / stereo wall: home cinema (planned are floor speakers on the wall and surround speakers in the ceiling behind the couch)
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: double garage (currently planned as carport)
Utility garden, greenhouse: no

Additional Wishes / Special Features / Daily Routine

• Focus on a large kitchen with a walk-in pantry and generally spacious living and dining area,
• cost-efficient planning has been communicated,
• expandable attic space on one half of the upper floor, children’s room with high ceilings on the other half (not yet planned but communicated and feasible).

House Design
Designer: independent architect

What do you particularly like? Why?

• Efficient layout, e.g. utility/technical room that can be located under the stairway,
• pantry behind the kitchen,
• size of the children’s rooms and the walk-in closet,
• bay window seat in the dining area as potential seating extension,
• laundry chute in the utility room.

What do you not like? Why?

• uncertain about window planning, e.g. only one skylight in the office and the skylight in the upper floor hallway (difficult to clean),
• relatively large area on the ground floor in front of the stairs that is not clearly usable,
• bathtub placement not optimal,
• roof pitch needs to be adjusted to at least 30° as required.

Price estimate according to architect/planner: approx. 500 - 550k
Personal budget limit for house including features: approx. 600k
Preferred heating technology: geothermal heat pump

If you had to give up something, which details / expansions would you waive?

• Can give up: in the second plan we already gave up the office/guest room on the ground floor, passage from garage to utility/technical room, kitchen island
• Cannot give up: spacious kitchen and living-dining area

Why does the design look like it does now?
This is the second draft. The first draft (see image) had a large kitchen island, which felt space-consuming and too central. Also, the office/guest room was on the ground floor, which we have now dropped to gain more space there. The first draft also lacked a pantry.

In the first draft, the house was rotated 90°. The orientation of the house on the plot remains crucial for us and may still not be final. We welcome suggestions and new ideas. Our wish is definitely that most of the terrace faces the retention area.

[ATTACH type="full" width="500px" alt="Zwei Grundrisspläne zeigen Hausbau-Entwurf: Erdgeschoss und Obergeschoss mit Räumen und Treppen">

From here, images of the current second draft follow:
Ground floor

Upper floor

That’s enough from me for now. I look forward to your input and thank you in advance for reading my post.

Best regards,
Mathias