ᐅ Building a House – Where Do I Start? I Feel Like I’m Going in Circles!

Hi everyone!

First of all: I’m afraid this will be a longer post…

Starting with the current situation:

I currently live in an older house (owned property) built sometime in the late 1800s. I renovated the ground floor and basement a few years ago. Now it’s time to update the first floor and the roof. This will cost a lot of money, and yet the house will still be old. On top of that, the location isn’t ideal. However, I also have a building plot available. It’s quite small (about 480m² (5,167 ft²)), oddly shaped (roughly 14m (46 ft) wide and 34m (112 ft) deep), with side setbacks of 3m (10 ft) each, and I have to keep an 8m (26 ft) distance from the street. I don’t remember the rear building line at the moment.

Anyway, I’ve started planning myself and had initial talks with house manufacturers (timber frame construction). But I keep going in circles…

If I stick to the building boundaries, I can’t fit my ideas “into the house.” The main issue is the 8m (26 ft) setback from the street. If I could reduce that, things would look better.

Of course, it could be that an architect comes up with brilliant ideas to realize my plans within the building limits.

But if the architect can’t manage that, I’m back to the problem of “exceeding the building boundaries.” Then the question is how to handle that best. Should I present my own ideas to the local authority? I might “sell myself badly” because I’m not very familiar with the procedures. Result: application rejected. Or should I leave it to an architect who knows the “tricks” to better convince the authority? Even then, acceptance is not guaranteed. If the architect charges according to the fee schedule, just this initial assessment will cost a significant amount of money… And without any guarantee of success. Don’t get me wrong! I understand that work must be paid for.

If I decide to go through an architect, the question is: should I hire an independent one or use the one from the potential house manufacturer? I would prefer the “in-house” architect because I can assume they are familiar with the specifics of timber frame construction. Besides, there’s the question of whether the architect I pick would be any good or not… When you ask them, of course, they’ve done it all before, know everything, and all their customers are very satisfied. Whether they will give you the names of unhappy clients… ;-) So picking the right architect is really a choice between the lesser of two evils ;-)

I can already imagine the laughter from the builder when I come to them with this request: “Look, if you manage to fit my ideas within the building envelope or arrange for me to leave the building envelope, you probably get the contract…” And since the company currently with the best offer for me is fully booked, they don’t need to chase customers.

At the moment, I’m stuck and don’t know the best way to proceed…

Any suggestions?

Thanks and best regards

T 🙂 m

Tom, go to the local authority yourself and discuss your issue. If you have valid reasons for your plans, the case officer will support and advise you. That will be the case. Just don’t try to deceive them...

Don’t take this the wrong way... I didn’t read all the way through. From my own experience that I’m currently going through... go to an architect. It’s their job to make it work. Ideally, find one who has built several times in your area; they know the local authorities and understand what gets approved or what exceptions are possible.
You’ll be surprised at what an architect can achieve.

We also have a “difficult plot” – its shape is a bit like a slice of pie 😀
Our experience was that general contractors only come up with poor ideas; they want to get the job quickly, finish fast, and build everything the usual way. We also spent too much time in the prefab house sector.
Find an architect and discuss your wishes with them in detail.
Now, with an architect and individual contracting, we are not paying less than with a general contractor. However, we have achieved a much higher standard. Also, with each trade, you still have the choice yourself...
In any case, we are very glad that we chose this path!

Dynamit Harry schrieb:
At the moment, I'm stuck and not sure how to proceed best…

Then why not share your ideas here for discussion: Extract from the development plan, textual regulations, excerpt from the cadastral map (1:500), floor plan draft with an explanation of your concepts.

Dynamit Harry schrieb:
If I present my own ideas to the local authority, it might be that I don’t “sell” myself well because I’m not really familiar with the subject. Result: application rejected.

You don’t have to submit a complete preliminary request. A preliminary consultation can already make a difference. You can’t expect thorough efforts for planning exceptions from an architect unfamiliar with the area and working for a distant firm. The possibilities for exceptions and dispensations are listed in §31 of the Building Code. The chances of success increase the older the development plan is. It also matters how many neighbors have already been granted exemptions. If everyone on both sides complies with the 8 m (26 ft) rule, you can probably forget about an exemption since your plot doesn’t seem that small or awkwardly shaped (subject to the cadastral map not approximating a rectangle). The local authority should be able to provide you with an assessment that your architect can later use to support your case.

I would try to stay within the development plan. I don’t quite understand why the 8m (26 feet) setback from the street bothers you so much. There are still 26m (85 feet) of land left at the back, where it would of course be important to know the building line. A house width of 8m (26 feet) is still quite normal in my opinion. For an architect, it should definitely not be a problem to create something nice there.

Or are your requirements so exaggerated that you’re bursting at the seams? Then just show us what you have in mind. We’ll be sure to give you a reality check. 😉