ᐅ Floor plan of a single-family house, 240 m², on a gentle slope

We are currently in the middle of planning our single-family home. There is an existing house built in 1965 that will mostly be demolished, but the basement will be retained and expanded. According to the current plan, a few exterior walls and the stairwell will remain.

Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 950 m² (11,000 sq ft)
Slope: yes, rising approx. 7 m (23 ft) from the access road to the end of the property
Site coverage ratio: N/A
Floor area ratio: N/A
Building envelope, building line, and boundary: see plan
Setbacks: 3 m (10 ft) to the west, taken into account
Parking spaces: N/A
Number of levels: Basement + 1.5 floors
Roof type: Gable roof, 25 degrees
Architectural style: Modern single-family home
Orientation: View towards street/north, at the end of a cul-de-sac
Maximum height/limits: Eaves and ridge heights specified, matching neighboring buildings

Owners’ Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: Modern 1.5-story single-family house, approximately 250 m² (2,690 sq ft) with gable roof

Basement, Floors
Number of occupants: 3 (possibly +1). 2 adults, 1 child (2 years old), maybe another child later.
Office: Family use or home office? Home office
Overnight guests per year: rather few, not a priority
Open or closed layout: Open layout
Conservative or modern construction: Modern
Open kitchen with cooking island: Open kitchen with cooking island
Number of dining seats: 8
Fireplace: yes
Music/sound wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: Covered outdoor seating area
Garage, carport: Currently planning 3 garages, 2 mandatory
Utility garden, greenhouse: No

House Design
Who designed it: Architect

What do you particularly like? Why? Open living spaces, pantry, separate children’s area including entrance and bathroom. Upper floor for parents. Entrance in the basement with wardrobe at street level, open atrium.

Cost estimate according to architect/planner: approx. 1.5 million EUR (all inclusive, also built-in furniture, lighting, landscaping, etc.)
Personal budget for house and fittings: manageable as planned
Preferred heating system: Heat pump

If you have to give up anything, which details/extensions
- Can you give up: Atrium
- Cannot give up: Home office

Why is the design the way it is now? For example:
Due to the size of the plot and the restriction of not being allowed to build two full floors, the basic idea is to build as much area as possible on the ground floor. The eaves heights are given and significantly restrict the attic, so the children’s area in the attic was discarded. Storage (utility space) is also important so it does not reduce the ground/upper floor living space. Currently, this means about 240 m² (2,585 sq ft) of living space + 100 m² (1,075 sq ft) of utility space (including a granny flat) + 3 garages.

The atrium is certainly a matter of taste. We plan to fully glaze it towards the upper floor (to reduce noise and odors), but want the ground floor to feel airy. However, due to maximum height restrictions, we cannot build as high ceilings on the ground floor as we would like. Currently, there is a small child who will initially occupy the attic in the office/guest room. Rooms for children 1 and 2 will initially be used as playroom and office. When the child is older, they can move to the area with their own bathroom. If there is only one child, possibly one room per child. In the basement, there are an additional approx. 50 m² (540 sq ft) of living space with shower and toilet as a granny flat, which could be another option for child 2. Currently, this is used as a fitness/hobby room.

On the plans, north is roughly towards the bottom. Overall, we like the design very much and have already gone through several scenarios and optimizations—but we would be grateful for any further feedback.

Those are impressive dimensions! Congratulations!

12 m² (130 sq ft) per child caught my attention first – something doesn’t add up there.

1.5 million for 240 m² (2,583 sq ft) – that works!

GD

Regarding the topic of “children,” I wrote a bit more in the introduction. I’d like to briefly explain our thoughts here:
The two children’s bedrooms form a separate unit, including their own bathroom and private entrance, approximately 30m² (320 ft²). The granny flat unit offers the same setup again. This way, we could provide two teenagers with their own individual spaces within the house. From my perspective, this seems suitable for children. And if there is only one child, it doesn’t really matter.

This is not meant as a justification; we appreciate any criticism and input and will reconsider it accordingly.

Hello,

Are both the children's bathroom and the guest toilet without windows? And is the bathroom in the separate apartment also windowless?

Best regards

Gerddieter schrieb:

12 square meters (129 square feet) per child was the first thing I noticed – something doesn’t add up.

That was the first thing I noticed too. I also find the location next to the living room and TV wall less than ideal. Our children always wanted to fall asleep with the door open, so having the bedrooms next to the living room wouldn’t have worked for us…

derdietmar schrieb:

Are both the children's bathroom and the guest toilet without windows? And is the apartment bathroom windowless as well?

Windows are not fully planned everywhere yet. The children's bathroom will have a window, while the guest toilet and the apartment bathroom are planned without windows.