ᐅ Single-family house floor plan, 2 full stories, approximately 170 square meters, slight slope site

Hello,

I would appreciate some feedback on the current status of my architect’s design. The draft is by no means final, and we are supposed to provide the architect with feedback now, so some help would be great...

A few notes:

• Location: a smaller city in northern Bavaria
• The plot is located within a water protection area. The groundwater must not be disturbed and is unfortunately about 2 meters (6.5 feet) below the surface. For this reason, a basement is only possible with disadvantages: the house would have to be raised quite a bit above ground level (there would then be a staircase about 1 meter (3.3 feet) high at the front door, making terrace design difficult). Therefore, no basement. It took some time to reach this conclusion... There was a more detailed previous design with a basement. This is the first new design without a basement.
• In general, there is no formal zoning plan. A preliminary inquiry with the city showed that the house must fit into the neighborhood. Two full stories with a pitched roof would be acceptable.
• Windows: windows are still a very open topic. The large south-facing window is controversial (difficult to clean, etc.). Also, the window in the ground-floor office is far too large. On the first floor, I would prefer somewhat larger windows on the west side and a more uniform look overall.
• What I am still struggling with: the living area is intended to be bright and open. But on the other hand, the sofa should not be placed in front of a (floor-to-ceiling) window as shown in the design. I would be especially interested in ideas for this.
• The living area also has a small split-level, adapting the building somewhat to the slight slope of the land. The drawbacks, such as reduced accessibility, are known and this is not decided yet. I would particularly welcome opinions on this...
• Regarding the entrance area: we told the architect that we would like a covered entrance. I have gotten used to the design now and probably am a bit too accustomed to it.
• The staircase is 1 meter (3.3 feet) wide but feels almost a bit narrow to me.
• In the first-floor plan I inserted a greyed-out area at one point, which somehow felt better to me (this area is definitely going to be changed).

Here are some answers to the questions (although not complete):

Style, roof shape, building type, basement, number of floors: 2 full stories, pitched roof, no basement
Number of people, age: 2, mid-40s, no children
Office: family use or home office? Home office
Number of overnight guests per year: 5
Open or closed architecture: open
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Fireplace: yes, desired
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: single garage, with an option for a second single garage on the south side adjacent to the neighboring plot. A double garage is not preferred by local planning authorities.
Other wishes / special features / daily routine, including reasons why certain things are wanted or not: The house should comfortably fit two adults, allowing them to have some privacy when needed. The first floor is designed accordingly.

House design
Who created the design: architect
What do you like most? Why?
What do you dislike? Why?
Cost estimate according to architect/planner: 600k
Personal price limit for house including fittings: 650k
Preferred heating technology: heat pump
If you have to compromise, which details / features could you do without: the large window, windows in general. Possibly the entrance area without a canopy, if that helps to stay within budget.

Images: