Hello everyone,
we are still at the very beginning of our building project.
After several discussions with our construction company, we have now developed a floor plan.
It would be great if you could take a look and provide us with any suggestions for improvements or tips.
Thank you very much :-)
Development plan / restrictions
Plot size: 447 sqm (4800 sq ft)
Slope: plot slopes down 2 m (6.6 ft)
Site coverage ratio: 0.3
Floor area ratio: 0.6
Knee wall height: 1.85 m (6 ft)
Roof pitch: 24 degrees
Border development: no
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 1.5
Roof type: gable roof
Homeowners’ requirements
Basement: yes
Floors: basement, ground floor, and upper floor
Number of occupants: 2 adults and currently 1 child
Office: family use
Guests per year: 1-2
Open-plan design
Modern construction style
Open kitchen with breakfast bar
Number of dining seats: 6
Double carport
House design
Who designed the plan?
Mostly by us. Minor changes by the architect.
What do you like most?
Living and dining area, kitchen, and upper floor
What don’t you like?
Maybe the distance to the TV is a bit too short?!?
Preferred heating system:
Heat pump
Overall, I find it quite well done.
1. Install a laundry chute. Since the bathrooms and utility room are perfectly aligned, the laundry can be transported in the shortest possible way to where it belongs. I love this convenience, especially since we only have one floor to cover. 🙂
2. I’m not so happy with the dressing room/bedroom arrangement. I always prefer entering the bedroom through the dressing area, with proper doors in between—especially if there is going to be a double casement window. I find those windows incredibly noisy when it rains and couldn’t sleep with that happening. In your case, I would consider adding a dormer or something similar to create space for more wardrobes. Otherwise, it seems a bit sparse to me.
1. Install a laundry chute. Since the bathrooms and utility room are perfectly aligned, the laundry can be transported in the shortest possible way to where it belongs. I love this convenience, especially since we only have one floor to cover. 🙂
2. I’m not so happy with the dressing room/bedroom arrangement. I always prefer entering the bedroom through the dressing area, with proper doors in between—especially if there is going to be a double casement window. I find those windows incredibly noisy when it rains and couldn’t sleep with that happening. In your case, I would consider adding a dormer or something similar to create space for more wardrobes. Otherwise, it seems a bit sparse to me.
In my opinion, the bedroom layout is not ideal. The large area in front of the bed is wasted space – it’s not really usable. It would be better to redesign the walk-in closet with its own entrance, as Kisska suggested.
The floor area ratio (FAR) refers to the buildable/sealable area, right? So, from 447 square meters (1346 square feet), you are allowed to build 134 square meters (1442 square feet). If the carport and roof overhang are directly attached to the house, do they still count as outbuildings? You are planning nearly 180 square meters (1938 square feet) of built-up area (carport + house), which means a 50% exceedance. This would leave only about 67 square meters (721 square feet) for outbuildings, terraces, and pathways—not much space left for those.
The floor area ratio (FAR) refers to the buildable/sealable area, right? So, from 447 square meters (1346 square feet), you are allowed to build 134 square meters (1442 square feet). If the carport and roof overhang are directly attached to the house, do they still count as outbuildings? You are planning nearly 180 square meters (1938 square feet) of built-up area (carport + house), which means a 50% exceedance. This would leave only about 67 square meters (721 square feet) for outbuildings, terraces, and pathways—not much space left for those.
I would move the pantry door outward. Such a small pantry (although it probably isn’t really one, but rather meant for storing a vacuum cleaner and similar items) doesn’t make much sense.
In the upstairs bathroom, I would swap the sink and the bathtub. Since you have small children, it’s useful to have a lot of wall space as a splash guard.
Consider making the wall between the toilet and the shower in the upstairs bathroom half-height and glass; this would let more light into the shower.
Otherwise, having dimensions would be helpful.
In the upstairs bathroom, I would swap the sink and the bathtub. Since you have small children, it’s useful to have a lot of wall space as a splash guard.
Consider making the wall between the toilet and the shower in the upstairs bathroom half-height and glass; this would let more light into the shower.
Otherwise, having dimensions would be helpful.
Your design strongly reminds me of the floor plan of a model home from a prefabricated house manufacturer in southern Baden.
We also like that design and will probably build a slightly modified version of it. However, the house is a bit wider and longer than your version.
I would swap the WC and the cloakroom/pantry on the ground floor. I would remove the pantry entirely. What purpose does this small room serve? Your kitchen is large enough. If you move the cloakroom toward the front, you’ll have a designated area for dirty shoes and coats right at the entrance, so you won’t have to walk through the dirty area every time you need to use the WC.
Unfortunately, your plan doesn’t include any dimensions, so I can’t tell if the distance to the TV is too short. In my opinion, it should be around 4.5m (15 feet).
Do you also have elevations of the building?
And where is south?
We also like that design and will probably build a slightly modified version of it. However, the house is a bit wider and longer than your version.
I would swap the WC and the cloakroom/pantry on the ground floor. I would remove the pantry entirely. What purpose does this small room serve? Your kitchen is large enough. If you move the cloakroom toward the front, you’ll have a designated area for dirty shoes and coats right at the entrance, so you won’t have to walk through the dirty area every time you need to use the WC.
Unfortunately, your plan doesn’t include any dimensions, so I can’t tell if the distance to the TV is too short. In my opinion, it should be around 4.5m (15 feet).
Do you also have elevations of the building?
And where is south?
Similar topics