ᐅ Single-family house floor plan, approximately 150 sqm, with east-facing garden
Created on: 9 Jan 2020 21:17
O
OWLer
Hello everyone,
after reading many threads here about how well-intentioned floor plans are expertly dissected, I’m now stepping out from the shadows. We plan to build this year and have already purchased the plot. We are currently in discussions with two providers. Provider 1 never really impressed us with their designs and plans very large houses without offering much living space. I’m bringing Provider 2 into the discussion here because, apart from the points mentioned below, we still like their design.
We hope the collective forum expertise will point out some pitfalls and maybe even help solve our hallway dilemma.
Sorry for the rough sketches of the measurements.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 610 sqm (648 with purchased noise barrier)
Slope: approx. 70cm (28 inches) over 19m (62 feet), sloping from north to south
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: 0.8
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 3m (10 feet) from the street, 3m (10 feet) to neighbors north/south, building envelope 10m (33 feet) east-west
Edge development
Number of parking spaces
Number of stories: 2
Roof type: gable roof ≤45°
Architectural style
Orientation: ridge running north-south
Maximum heights / limits: max. ridge height 10.5m (34 feet), eaves max. 6.0m (20 feet)
Other requirements: On the east side, a noise barrier is built along half of the plot, with forest behind it. Due to the noise barrier, the garden is practically not visible from outside.
Clients’ Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: rather classic
Basement, number of floors: basement, 1.5 floors
Number of residents, age: currently 2 (ages 33 and 27 – planning 2 children)
Space requirements on ground floor: shower WC, open living space (kitchen, dining, living), study; upper floor: 2 kids’ rooms, bathroom, master bedroom (walk-in closet)
Office: home office (teaching profession)
Overnight guests per year: approx. 15
Open or closed architecture: rather open
Conservative or modern construction: conservative and brick-faced
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: preferably yes, budget permitting
Music / stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: carport / budget permitting
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Further wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons for why or why not something is desired
House Design
Designer: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
We really like the upper floor. Room sizes fit well. We can’t really assess the master bedroom on the south side yet. The kids’ rooms seem the right size and have a good layout in my opinion.
A guest room was not a requirement – apparently there was space on the upper floor. We are not unhappy about that.
The living-dining area really appeals to me. Kitchen opening to the terrace. My wife likes the pantry options with access to the garden, basement, and carport.
What don’t you like? Why?
What we don’t like is the narrow corridors. I imagine 1.2m (4 feet) and 1m (3 feet) very cramped. Between the carport and along the stairs, this wouldn’t bother me so much, but the entrance definitely should be wider.
The master bedroom on the south side does not convince me much.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: >440k€
Personal price limit for the house, including fittings: approx. 440k€
Preferred heating system: gas heating required by the plot purchase contract.
If you had to give up something, which details / features could you do without:
I could do without the pantry and use that space for the WC instead. My wife, however, sees this differently.
Which features can you not give up:
The study on the ground floor is a must due to my teaching profession. The idea is to be able to drop things off in the study after returning from school, close the door, and have some downtime without needing to go upstairs or downstairs.
The basement is also essential. Many friends and acquaintances who have built in recent years do so mostly without basements. It takes iron discipline to keep utility rooms “tidy.” We manage that in our rental now but want to move away from that. We don’t want to become hoarders but want more space to spread out. Also, I want to be able to store all my tools in the basement and comfortably repair my bicycles.
Why was the design made the way it is?
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
Large windows on the ground floor facing the garden, as it is not directly visible.
A bay window on the street side is mandatory for the look. The planned flat-roof bay will definitely be changed to a pitched roof. The plaster on the bay will be replaced by brick cladding. We find the bay window to the garden quite nice. Not a must-have, but it was part of the planning basis we provided and, in my opinion, positively impacts the kids’ rooms.
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What makes it particularly good or bad in your eyes?
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
How do you evaluate the usability of the pantry—does it work as well as we imagine it? What other ways, besides widening the house, do you see to widen the corridors? Does the indicated wardrobe area fit?
In principle, I would like to build it this way if only the narrow corridors weren’t an issue. Making the house 25-50cm (10-20 inches) wider is not technically feasible and probably financially difficult.
after reading many threads here about how well-intentioned floor plans are expertly dissected, I’m now stepping out from the shadows. We plan to build this year and have already purchased the plot. We are currently in discussions with two providers. Provider 1 never really impressed us with their designs and plans very large houses without offering much living space. I’m bringing Provider 2 into the discussion here because, apart from the points mentioned below, we still like their design.
We hope the collective forum expertise will point out some pitfalls and maybe even help solve our hallway dilemma.
Sorry for the rough sketches of the measurements.
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 610 sqm (648 with purchased noise barrier)
Slope: approx. 70cm (28 inches) over 19m (62 feet), sloping from north to south
Site coverage ratio: 0.4
Floor area ratio: 0.8
Building envelope, building line and boundary: 3m (10 feet) from the street, 3m (10 feet) to neighbors north/south, building envelope 10m (33 feet) east-west
Edge development
Number of parking spaces
Number of stories: 2
Roof type: gable roof ≤45°
Architectural style
Orientation: ridge running north-south
Maximum heights / limits: max. ridge height 10.5m (34 feet), eaves max. 6.0m (20 feet)
Other requirements: On the east side, a noise barrier is built along half of the plot, with forest behind it. Due to the noise barrier, the garden is practically not visible from outside.
Clients’ Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: rather classic
Basement, number of floors: basement, 1.5 floors
Number of residents, age: currently 2 (ages 33 and 27 – planning 2 children)
Space requirements on ground floor: shower WC, open living space (kitchen, dining, living), study; upper floor: 2 kids’ rooms, bathroom, master bedroom (walk-in closet)
Office: home office (teaching profession)
Overnight guests per year: approx. 15
Open or closed architecture: rather open
Conservative or modern construction: conservative and brick-faced
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: preferably yes, budget permitting
Music / stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: carport / budget permitting
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Further wishes / special features / daily routine, also reasons for why or why not something is desired
House Design
Designer: planner from a construction company
What do you particularly like? Why?
We really like the upper floor. Room sizes fit well. We can’t really assess the master bedroom on the south side yet. The kids’ rooms seem the right size and have a good layout in my opinion.
A guest room was not a requirement – apparently there was space on the upper floor. We are not unhappy about that.
The living-dining area really appeals to me. Kitchen opening to the terrace. My wife likes the pantry options with access to the garden, basement, and carport.
What don’t you like? Why?
What we don’t like is the narrow corridors. I imagine 1.2m (4 feet) and 1m (3 feet) very cramped. Between the carport and along the stairs, this wouldn’t bother me so much, but the entrance definitely should be wider.
The master bedroom on the south side does not convince me much.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: >440k€
Personal price limit for the house, including fittings: approx. 440k€
Preferred heating system: gas heating required by the plot purchase contract.
If you had to give up something, which details / features could you do without:
I could do without the pantry and use that space for the WC instead. My wife, however, sees this differently.
Which features can you not give up:
The study on the ground floor is a must due to my teaching profession. The idea is to be able to drop things off in the study after returning from school, close the door, and have some downtime without needing to go upstairs or downstairs.
The basement is also essential. Many friends and acquaintances who have built in recent years do so mostly without basements. It takes iron discipline to keep utility rooms “tidy.” We manage that in our rental now but want to move away from that. We don’t want to become hoarders but want more space to spread out. Also, I want to be able to store all my tools in the basement and comfortably repair my bicycles.
Why was the design made the way it is?
Standard design from the planner?
Which wishes were implemented by the architect?
Large windows on the ground floor facing the garden, as it is not directly visible.
A bay window on the street side is mandatory for the look. The planned flat-roof bay will definitely be changed to a pitched roof. The plaster on the bay will be replaced by brick cladding. We find the bay window to the garden quite nice. Not a must-have, but it was part of the planning basis we provided and, in my opinion, positively impacts the kids’ rooms.
A mix of many examples from various magazines...
What makes it particularly good or bad in your eyes?
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
How do you evaluate the usability of the pantry—does it work as well as we imagine it? What other ways, besides widening the house, do you see to widen the corridors? Does the indicated wardrobe area fit?
In principle, I would like to build it this way if only the narrow corridors weren’t an issue. Making the house 25-50cm (10-20 inches) wider is not technically feasible and probably financially difficult.
Up early today – can’t sleep. There are two reasons.
The first reason is very positive.
The kitchen was delivered on Friday and is being installed today and tomorrow. In addition, the electrician is finishing up today. The interior doors are also arriving.
From Wednesday, the tiler will finally come back to work on the hallway and the guest bathroom. The wrong tiles were delivered there, and it wasn’t possible to include a timely replacement on the truck. Now the tiler has been pushed back behind the other trades.
So much is happening in such a short time now. Yesterday, I even laid the parquet flooring in the hallway and still need to glue in the cork strips. I’m really curious how it will look with the doors after work!
Unfortunately, the painter will probably not come back until November. He got started so quickly and did an excellent job but was then held up by our staircase mishap until other customers are scheduled.
MOVE-IN DATE IS SET FOR OCTOBER 19! I’m so excited! 🙂
The second reason is unfortunately not so pleasant. I’m currently reading through §§27–30 of the Neighborhood Act of NRW.
Our neighbors originally did not want to change the ground level and naturally wanted to drain precipitation towards us. I already spoke to them about the terrace and similar areas, where drainage should also occur within their property. No drainage or runoff into the stormwater system is planned.
Since everyone used L-shaped retaining stones for sloping, I suggested to them that would be a neat solution. But as long as the ground level isn’t changed or sealed, I have no claim to that. It would have been nice for a clean transition, though.
Now they have done extensive landscaping and raised the level well above the natural ground. Since we’ve already experienced some heavy rainfall events, I really don’t want to risk having their surface water flow towards our basement.
They are genuinely very nice but have clearly stated they do not want to build any L-stones or walls at the property line. Our task now is to gently encourage them to take responsibility. Fortunately, the landscaping machinery is still on site. I really want to avoid dealing with this through legal paragraphs or a lawyer. But I’ve printed out everything I might need for support.
Well, first the good news this afternoon, then possibly the necessary obligations.
The first reason is very positive.
The kitchen was delivered on Friday and is being installed today and tomorrow. In addition, the electrician is finishing up today. The interior doors are also arriving.
From Wednesday, the tiler will finally come back to work on the hallway and the guest bathroom. The wrong tiles were delivered there, and it wasn’t possible to include a timely replacement on the truck. Now the tiler has been pushed back behind the other trades.
So much is happening in such a short time now. Yesterday, I even laid the parquet flooring in the hallway and still need to glue in the cork strips. I’m really curious how it will look with the doors after work!
Unfortunately, the painter will probably not come back until November. He got started so quickly and did an excellent job but was then held up by our staircase mishap until other customers are scheduled.
MOVE-IN DATE IS SET FOR OCTOBER 19! I’m so excited! 🙂
The second reason is unfortunately not so pleasant. I’m currently reading through §§27–30 of the Neighborhood Act of NRW.
Our neighbors originally did not want to change the ground level and naturally wanted to drain precipitation towards us. I already spoke to them about the terrace and similar areas, where drainage should also occur within their property. No drainage or runoff into the stormwater system is planned.
Since everyone used L-shaped retaining stones for sloping, I suggested to them that would be a neat solution. But as long as the ground level isn’t changed or sealed, I have no claim to that. It would have been nice for a clean transition, though.
Now they have done extensive landscaping and raised the level well above the natural ground. Since we’ve already experienced some heavy rainfall events, I really don’t want to risk having their surface water flow towards our basement.
They are genuinely very nice but have clearly stated they do not want to build any L-stones or walls at the property line. Our task now is to gently encourage them to take responsibility. Fortunately, the landscaping machinery is still on site. I really want to avoid dealing with this through legal paragraphs or a lawyer. But I’ve printed out everything I might need for support.
Well, first the good news this afternoon, then possibly the necessary obligations.
Aaaand we’ve moved in. I’m really glad I finally got to see professional movers at work for the first time in my life. My wife and I have accumulated a lot of stuff over the past 7 years. Moving three floors down from the attic duplex apartment with the heavy oak table and sofa had me really worried about whether the movers could handle it. But everything went well; it was a great company and everyone was in a good mood. We felt bad that we didn’t have any refreshments ready at the old place. Luckily, the fridge was already stocked at the new house, so we were able to motivate the team with drinks, coffee, and cake. Afterwards, we gave them a nice tip. It was really enjoyable working with them.
What I’ve noticed so far:
My TV is too small for the wall at 50"
Doing laundry is actually fun when you don’t have 10 other washing machines next to yours
I have no idea where my wife put anything in the new kitchen. Luckily, I found the bottle opener.
My desk, which has been moved three times already, definitely needs to go.
The Chrometta shower pipe 240 is pure wellness.
We really need the loft door between the hallway/staircase and the living/dining area. Luckily, the locksmith came by today to take measurements. Let’s just hope steel availability is good so we can open that door before Christmas.
There’s dust everywhere since the painters were still sanding in the hallway yesterday – tomorrow it’s wallpapering, and next week it’s time to paint.
So, we’ll be busy over the next few days and weeks getting organized. 🙂
What I’ve noticed so far:
My TV is too small for the wall at 50"
Doing laundry is actually fun when you don’t have 10 other washing machines next to yours
I have no idea where my wife put anything in the new kitchen. Luckily, I found the bottle opener.
My desk, which has been moved three times already, definitely needs to go.
The Chrometta shower pipe 240 is pure wellness.
We really need the loft door between the hallway/staircase and the living/dining area. Luckily, the locksmith came by today to take measurements. Let’s just hope steel availability is good so we can open that door before Christmas.
There’s dust everywhere since the painters were still sanding in the hallway yesterday – tomorrow it’s wallpapering, and next week it’s time to paint.
So, we’ll be busy over the next few days and weeks getting organized. 🙂
OWLer schrieb:
My 50" TV is too small for the wall every man says that after moving in...
OWLer schrieb:
Doing laundry is really fun, ...because the washing machine's porthole doubles as a TV replacement...
OWLer schrieb:
I have no idea where my wife put things in the new kitchen. ...my husband still says that after 7 years...
OWLer schrieb:
My desk, which I've moved 3 times before, really needs to go. ...yeah, sure. The wife's dressing table too...
OWLer schrieb:
The Chrometta Showerpipe 240 is pure wellness. ...enjoy the new feeling 🙂
ypg schrieb:
...my husband still says that after 7 years...It's just annoying when the kitchen is my domain. 😉
Everything still feels completely surreal here in the house!
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