Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 1170 sqm (28.5 x 40 m)
Slope: none
Site coverage ratio
Floor area ratio
Building envelope, building line and boundary
Edge development: no
Number of parking spaces: 5 available
Number of floors: 1.5
Roof type: gable roof
Orientation: gable must face the street.
Homeowner Requirements
Number of occupants: main house for 4 people (2 children and 2 adults); granny flat for 1-2 adults and age-appropriate extension for 2.
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor
Office: family use and home office (paperless office)
Overnight guests per year: varies
Enclosed architecture
Conservative or modern style
Closed kitchen with cooking island
Number of dining seats: 4
Fireplace: no
Music/sound system wall
Roof terrace
Garage, carport available
Wishes/features/daily routine: pantry and cloakroom to remain in place. Opposite the pantry will be the family info wall (1.50 m wide).
House Design
Designed by:
- Architect
What do you dislike? Why?: On the upper floor there is currently a knee wall of 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in), but the windows cannot be opened (I find fall protection unattractive) and I would also like shutters there. However, then the window would only be 60 cm (24 in) high… I can’t really imagine how that would look.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: 380,000€
Personal budget limit for the house: 252,000€ financed, rest as own contribution.
Preferred heating system: geothermal heat pump
If you have to give up something, which details/extensions
- can you do without:
- cannot do without: separate utility room with washing machine including access to the yard.
Why was the design created as it is now? I specified the rooms based on my ideas and the architect implemented them.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan in 130 characters? Window planning, I can’t imagine how it will look.
Plot size: 1170 sqm (28.5 x 40 m)
Slope: none
Site coverage ratio
Floor area ratio
Building envelope, building line and boundary
Edge development: no
Number of parking spaces: 5 available
Number of floors: 1.5
Roof type: gable roof
Orientation: gable must face the street.
Homeowner Requirements
Number of occupants: main house for 4 people (2 children and 2 adults); granny flat for 1-2 adults and age-appropriate extension for 2.
Space requirements on ground floor and upper floor
Office: family use and home office (paperless office)
Overnight guests per year: varies
Enclosed architecture
Conservative or modern style
Closed kitchen with cooking island
Number of dining seats: 4
Fireplace: no
Music/sound system wall
Roof terrace
Garage, carport available
Wishes/features/daily routine: pantry and cloakroom to remain in place. Opposite the pantry will be the family info wall (1.50 m wide).
House Design
Designed by:
- Architect
What do you dislike? Why?: On the upper floor there is currently a knee wall of 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in), but the windows cannot be opened (I find fall protection unattractive) and I would also like shutters there. However, then the window would only be 60 cm (24 in) high… I can’t really imagine how that would look.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: 380,000€
Personal budget limit for the house: 252,000€ financed, rest as own contribution.
Preferred heating system: geothermal heat pump
If you have to give up something, which details/extensions
- can you do without:
- cannot do without: separate utility room with washing machine including access to the yard.
Why was the design created as it is now? I specified the rooms based on my ideas and the architect implemented them.
What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan in 130 characters? Window planning, I can’t imagine how it will look.
Why is the building designed with such a complicated layout, including the building envelope?
An inner courtyard might be nice, but this one will never get any sunlight and will therefore just rot.
If I look at the main building and focus on the wardrobe/pantry area separately, I don’t understand why this section isn’t arranged differently to create two well-furnished rectangular rooms, instead of the current narrow, corridor-like spaces.
Also, the rooms in the northeast could be swapped so that the utility rooms are situated on the north side, resulting in a shorter hallway that ends with the office and then the living room. A shorter hallway means more usable living space.
Similarly, in the grandmother’s apartment within this building envelope, there are more options if the bathroom door is simply relocated to the hallway and the hallway itself is shortened. Placing the kitchen on the north side (top of the plan) allows for a generous kitchen unit and more flexibility with furniture placement.
Overall, it’s really very convoluted… the large roof terrace is also hard to justify. Sealing such a large surface will be a challenge, and the terrace itself will be a significant cost factor. This setup isn’t simple: the roof needs a slope, and there must be wood decking at the same level. This area requires thorough calculation and proper construction.
Regarding the budget: I also don’t see 360,000/80,000 as realistic.
About your concerns with the roof: why not build the main house as a two-story with a pitched roof? Calculations for the grandmother’s apartment would then make the building effectively single-story...
Mobile greetings from the road
An inner courtyard might be nice, but this one will never get any sunlight and will therefore just rot.
If I look at the main building and focus on the wardrobe/pantry area separately, I don’t understand why this section isn’t arranged differently to create two well-furnished rectangular rooms, instead of the current narrow, corridor-like spaces.
Also, the rooms in the northeast could be swapped so that the utility rooms are situated on the north side, resulting in a shorter hallway that ends with the office and then the living room. A shorter hallway means more usable living space.
Similarly, in the grandmother’s apartment within this building envelope, there are more options if the bathroom door is simply relocated to the hallway and the hallway itself is shortened. Placing the kitchen on the north side (top of the plan) allows for a generous kitchen unit and more flexibility with furniture placement.
Overall, it’s really very convoluted… the large roof terrace is also hard to justify. Sealing such a large surface will be a challenge, and the terrace itself will be a significant cost factor. This setup isn’t simple: the roof needs a slope, and there must be wood decking at the same level. This area requires thorough calculation and proper construction.
Regarding the budget: I also don’t see 360,000/80,000 as realistic.
About your concerns with the roof: why not build the main house as a two-story with a pitched roof? Calculations for the grandmother’s apartment would then make the building effectively single-story...
Mobile greetings from the road
Development Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: Total just under 15,000sqm (3.7 acres), of which 1,170sqm (28.5 x 40m / 94 x 131 feet) is within the building zone
Slope: no
Border development: no
Number of parking spaces: 5 already existing on the property, as we already live here
Number of Floors: 1.5
Roof Type: Gable roof
Orientation: Gable end must face the street (north)
Construction method: Calcium silicate brick with reinforced concrete ceilings (also in the extension)
Number of People: Main house for 4 people (2 children and 2 adults); granny flat for 1-2 adults; age-appropriate extension for 2 people.
Office: Family use (craft room) and home office (paperless office)
Overnight guests per year: varies
Closed architecture
Conservative and modern design
Closed kitchen with cooking island
Number of dining seats: 4 in the kitchen and 8 in the living room
Fireplace: no
Roof terrace above the extension, to be completed later by the son
Garage and carport available
Wishes / Special Features / Daily Routine:
Main House Ground Floor:
Pantry and cloakroom will remain and are planned precisely according to my needs and ideas.
Opposite the pantry will be the family info wall (1.50m / 5 feet wide)
Bedroom is intentionally small and faces northeast.
Utility room is the laundry room with access to the drying area.
Office is at the same level as the driveway into the yard and therefore always in view during work.
Main House Upper Floor:
Here, sleeping is also intended to be just the bed (200 x 220cm / 79 x 87 inches) in size, with a drywall partition separating it from the wardrobes (no dressing room).
Child 1 has the wardrobe directly opposite the door (so you don’t have to walk across the entire room and no toys block the wardrobe) and to the left is their quiet area, with the back part being the play area.
Child 2 occupies the granny flat with its own kitchenette and bathroom; the room can be arranged freely, and the bed fits in any corner. Entrance is through the main house and via the terrace (which makes it easier to rent out if they decide to move away).
Age-appropriate Extension:
The bathroom can be accessed from both the hallway and the bedroom.
The bedroom window faces west.
Windows in the living and kitchen areas have a sill height (BH) of approximately 50cm (20 inches).
Currently, the upper floor has kneewalls of 1.80m (6 feet), but the kneewall windows cannot be opened (I find safety guards unattractive). I would also like roller shutters there. However, then the window height would only be 60cm (24 inches), which I cannot imagine aesthetically.
Price estimate according to architect: €380,000; we have construction costs of about €1,200/sqm (111 USD/sqft). We are building without a developer, so no sales representative is earning from us. Since we can do a lot ourselves, some areas incur only material costs (and we have very good supply conditions here). Some costs are also avoided, such as an additional construction power connection; a toilet is already available for the workers; scaffolding is on site; excavator and wheel loader are parked in the yard.
Outsourced work will include: foundation slab, shell construction, windows, and roof (except we will lay the roof tiles ourselves again).
On the area where the house is now being built, there was recently a stable building (demolition costs for clients around €30,000; my costs amount to time, fuel (€300), disposal (€3,000), and two barbecue evenings).
Plot size: Total just under 15,000sqm (3.7 acres), of which 1,170sqm (28.5 x 40m / 94 x 131 feet) is within the building zone
Slope: no
Border development: no
Number of parking spaces: 5 already existing on the property, as we already live here
Number of Floors: 1.5
Roof Type: Gable roof
Orientation: Gable end must face the street (north)
Construction method: Calcium silicate brick with reinforced concrete ceilings (also in the extension)
Number of People: Main house for 4 people (2 children and 2 adults); granny flat for 1-2 adults; age-appropriate extension for 2 people.
Office: Family use (craft room) and home office (paperless office)
Overnight guests per year: varies
Closed architecture
Conservative and modern design
Closed kitchen with cooking island
Number of dining seats: 4 in the kitchen and 8 in the living room
Fireplace: no
Roof terrace above the extension, to be completed later by the son
Garage and carport available
Wishes / Special Features / Daily Routine:
Main House Ground Floor:
Pantry and cloakroom will remain and are planned precisely according to my needs and ideas.
Opposite the pantry will be the family info wall (1.50m / 5 feet wide)
Bedroom is intentionally small and faces northeast.
Utility room is the laundry room with access to the drying area.
Office is at the same level as the driveway into the yard and therefore always in view during work.
Main House Upper Floor:
Here, sleeping is also intended to be just the bed (200 x 220cm / 79 x 87 inches) in size, with a drywall partition separating it from the wardrobes (no dressing room).
Child 1 has the wardrobe directly opposite the door (so you don’t have to walk across the entire room and no toys block the wardrobe) and to the left is their quiet area, with the back part being the play area.
Child 2 occupies the granny flat with its own kitchenette and bathroom; the room can be arranged freely, and the bed fits in any corner. Entrance is through the main house and via the terrace (which makes it easier to rent out if they decide to move away).
Age-appropriate Extension:
The bathroom can be accessed from both the hallway and the bedroom.
The bedroom window faces west.
Windows in the living and kitchen areas have a sill height (BH) of approximately 50cm (20 inches).
Currently, the upper floor has kneewalls of 1.80m (6 feet), but the kneewall windows cannot be opened (I find safety guards unattractive). I would also like roller shutters there. However, then the window height would only be 60cm (24 inches), which I cannot imagine aesthetically.
Price estimate according to architect: €380,000; we have construction costs of about €1,200/sqm (111 USD/sqft). We are building without a developer, so no sales representative is earning from us. Since we can do a lot ourselves, some areas incur only material costs (and we have very good supply conditions here). Some costs are also avoided, such as an additional construction power connection; a toilet is already available for the workers; scaffolding is on site; excavator and wheel loader are parked in the yard.
Outsourced work will include: foundation slab, shell construction, windows, and roof (except we will lay the roof tiles ourselves again).
On the area where the house is now being built, there was recently a stable building (demolition costs for clients around €30,000; my costs amount to time, fuel (€300), disposal (€3,000), and two barbecue evenings).
kbt09 schrieb:
Missing site plan, north arrow, floor plan dimensions, etc. Still missing 😉 (although I just found a small note on the ground floor... too bad plans can’t be submitted either with a clearly visible north arrow or at least oriented north). The location on the plot would still be interesting, though. Repeating the other points wasn’t that relevant 😉 and doesn’t make the sleeping/closet area on the upper floor any more appealing 😉.
The wardrobe argument for child 1… well… so child 1 stands by the closet looking for clothes (100 to 120 cm (39 to 47 inches) is also… well, quite tight) and then mom opens the door and she ends up with her back turned.
Everything’s been said about the knee wall height—either accept it or convert it to a full story 😉. What kind of suggestions are you expecting? And generally, what are you hoping to get from this thread now?
kbt09 schrieb:
Closet argument for child 1… well… child 1 stands at the closet looking for clothes (100 to 120cm (40 to 48 inches) is also… well, quite tight) and then mom opens the door and she ends up right behind them.Thanks, that’s exactly the point of criticism I hadn’t thought of! I’ll have to reconsider that!
kbt09 schrieb:
Everything that can be said about the knee wall height has been said: either accept it as is or convert it into a full story 😉. What suggestions are you expecting? And what are you generally expecting from this thread now?Unfortunately, we are not allowed to have a full story. And they are actually only meant to bring a bit of light into the room.
kbt09 schrieb:
with a clearly visible north arrow or at least oriented to north).Unfortunately, I only brought the two printouts, so I don’t have others available.
My photos are unfortunately too large to upload.
If you ever plan to rent out the granny flat, you should look at it through the eyes of a tenant, not through those of your adult son who still wants to comfortably move back home. The granny flat you have designed is really quite unpleasant for a stranger to live in. It’s important to make a realistic plan for it.
Other than that... is there no site plan where you can sketch the location of the house?
No measurements of the house either? Unfortunately, you can’t rely on the furniture layouts from architects as approximate scales because these are often drawn much smaller than reality. I find it really difficult to assess the practicality of a house without any visible measurements.
Other than that... is there no site plan where you can sketch the location of the house?
No measurements of the house either? Unfortunately, you can’t rely on the furniture layouts from architects as approximate scales because these are often drawn much smaller than reality. I find it really difficult to assess the practicality of a house without any visible measurements.
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