ᐅ Planning a single-family house (basement + ground floor + upper floor) on a 480 m² plot
Created on: 19 Jan 2022 17:37
E
Elias_dee
Hello! In another thread, I was advised to present my project here. First of all, we are still at the very beginning of the planning process, have luckily secured a plot of land, and now need to study everything carefully. Tips, criticism, suggestions, etc., are always welcome.
Here are "our" key data:
- We are 2 adults, no children, and none planned for the time being
- Electricity consumption: about 3,000 - 3,500 kWh
- Hot water consumption: I don’t have exact data right now, but it’s rather high because we shower with warm water every day
- Fairly handy, so we would like to do at least the painting ourselves (interior + exterior), lay floor coverings (except tiles), and do the garden completely ourselves (we already have experience in all these areas)
Here are the key data for the plot:
- Plot size 480 m² (5,167 ft²)
- New development area
- 2 parking spaces required
- 2 full floors mandatory according to the development plan / zoning plan (building permit / planning permission)
- Ridge direction East-West, renewable energy preferred according to the development plan, photovoltaic as an independent roofing layer is possible
And here is what we want for the house:
- Ground floor with living room, kitchen, guest room, and bathroom with shower
- Upper floor with bedroom, walk-in closet, bathroom with shower, office 1, office 2
- Basement with technical room, utility room, possibly sauna and fitness area, but this might shift to just fitness + sauna in the garden
- Central long straight staircase as a design element
- About 80 m² (860 ft²) living space per floor
- Garage: We want an attached (prefabricated?) garage with direct access to the house plus a carport on the opposite side of the house (unfortunately required by the development/zoning plan)
According to the current plan (but I am still very uncertain here, so criticism is always welcome):
- Build according to KfW55 standard, even if there is no subsidy, or at least close to it—KfW40 does not seem worthwhile to me
- Natural gas connection is already laid to the plot, so my current preference is natural gas heating combined with solar thermal energy (for hot water and heating)
- Photovoltaics are currently not planned, as I don’t see the advantage given the low feed-in tariff
- A ventilation system, although I’m not sure yet if it should be central or decentralized
I can’t think of anything else at the moment—comments on anything are always welcome.
Thanks and best regards!
Elias_dee
Here are "our" key data:
- We are 2 adults, no children, and none planned for the time being
- Electricity consumption: about 3,000 - 3,500 kWh
- Hot water consumption: I don’t have exact data right now, but it’s rather high because we shower with warm water every day
- Fairly handy, so we would like to do at least the painting ourselves (interior + exterior), lay floor coverings (except tiles), and do the garden completely ourselves (we already have experience in all these areas)
Here are the key data for the plot:
- Plot size 480 m² (5,167 ft²)
- New development area
- 2 parking spaces required
- 2 full floors mandatory according to the development plan / zoning plan (building permit / planning permission)
- Ridge direction East-West, renewable energy preferred according to the development plan, photovoltaic as an independent roofing layer is possible
And here is what we want for the house:
- Ground floor with living room, kitchen, guest room, and bathroom with shower
- Upper floor with bedroom, walk-in closet, bathroom with shower, office 1, office 2
- Basement with technical room, utility room, possibly sauna and fitness area, but this might shift to just fitness + sauna in the garden
- Central long straight staircase as a design element
- About 80 m² (860 ft²) living space per floor
- Garage: We want an attached (prefabricated?) garage with direct access to the house plus a carport on the opposite side of the house (unfortunately required by the development/zoning plan)
According to the current plan (but I am still very uncertain here, so criticism is always welcome):
- Build according to KfW55 standard, even if there is no subsidy, or at least close to it—KfW40 does not seem worthwhile to me
- Natural gas connection is already laid to the plot, so my current preference is natural gas heating combined with solar thermal energy (for hot water and heating)
- Photovoltaics are currently not planned, as I don’t see the advantage given the low feed-in tariff
- A ventilation system, although I’m not sure yet if it should be central or decentralized
I can’t think of anything else at the moment—comments on anything are always welcome.
Thanks and best regards!
Elias_dee
I haven’t looked at the floor plan in detail yet, but you will definitely get feedback from the floor plan experts here.
Basically, I still think it’s great that you’re getting involved so “early” in the process. Here’s what I would generally recommend:
- Don’t go to the architect with a drawn plan. The risk is high that it will just be copied and only the technical flaws will be fixed.
- Go with a room program and your wishes prioritized. You’re also paying the architect for creative planning.
- Read through some threads and floor plan discussions here. Also check out the thread about additional construction costs.
- Recalculate your budget.
So, aside from some technical challenges with your floor plan, you can forget about the €2,500/sqm here. Plan on €3,000 to €3,500/sqm if you want to push this through. Cost drivers include balconies, bay windows, and cantilevered structures.
For example, the cantilever over the garage: to prevent cold from the garage penetrating your house through the building components, you either need to include the garage within the thermal envelope or decouple/insulate the connection points. Flat-roofed bay windows often require their own flat roof, often greened, and must be insulated and sealed.
The house is going to cost you over €1 million in Bavaria. Generally, with a house like this, other demands come along too. The “representative” staircase will not be a standard townhouse staircase made of beech with a beech railing. Most likely, it will have oak solid block steps and glass or cable railings. There are beautiful examples on Pinterest. But the price will go up accordingly—from around €5,000 to €15,000 with the railing (just rough estimates).
I know I’m being a bit of a downer in your thread. But it doesn’t make sense to build a castle in the air and discuss something you won’t be able to realize later.
Basically, I still think it’s great that you’re getting involved so “early” in the process. Here’s what I would generally recommend:
- Don’t go to the architect with a drawn plan. The risk is high that it will just be copied and only the technical flaws will be fixed.
- Go with a room program and your wishes prioritized. You’re also paying the architect for creative planning.
- Read through some threads and floor plan discussions here. Also check out the thread about additional construction costs.
- Recalculate your budget.
So, aside from some technical challenges with your floor plan, you can forget about the €2,500/sqm here. Plan on €3,000 to €3,500/sqm if you want to push this through. Cost drivers include balconies, bay windows, and cantilevered structures.
For example, the cantilever over the garage: to prevent cold from the garage penetrating your house through the building components, you either need to include the garage within the thermal envelope or decouple/insulate the connection points. Flat-roofed bay windows often require their own flat roof, often greened, and must be insulated and sealed.
The house is going to cost you over €1 million in Bavaria. Generally, with a house like this, other demands come along too. The “representative” staircase will not be a standard townhouse staircase made of beech with a beech railing. Most likely, it will have oak solid block steps and glass or cable railings. There are beautiful examples on Pinterest. But the price will go up accordingly—from around €5,000 to €15,000 with the railing (just rough estimates).
I know I’m being a bit of a downer in your thread. But it doesn’t make sense to build a castle in the air and discuss something you won’t be able to realize later.
Elias_dee schrieb:
From the front, it could look like this (but with a double garage instead of a carport): … the mainstream townhouse …
Elias_dee schrieb:
Any feedback is welcome! Is the living room in the hallway?
Hmm, I would say: the $50,000 for an architect would be very well spent.
Do not include placeholder furniture. Use the pieces you have or want in the correct scale.
Pantry: how to furnish it
Kitchen? Is it really like that or just because of the stairs?
Such a cramped bedroom and the narrow corridor leading to the shooting slit on the upper floor.
Use the photos to create a detailed room program.
Bedroom bed with the exact dimensions
Distance between bed and wall
6 m (20 feet) linear built-in wardrobe. Walk-in closet is necessary, maybe, no
Pantry: how to furnish it
Kitchen? Is it really like that or just because of the stairs?
Such a cramped bedroom and the narrow corridor leading to the shooting slit on the upper floor.
Use the photos to create a detailed room program.
Bedroom bed with the exact dimensions
Distance between bed and wall
6 m (20 feet) linear built-in wardrobe. Walk-in closet is necessary, maybe, no
Phew! That’s almost as bad as my first attempts here.
You can’t build over the staircase like that, at most 1-2 steps depending on the ceiling height.
These are all narrow tunnels you want to create. That won’t have the desired effect. The straight staircase won’t have the impact you’re looking for either.
I would also recommend going to an architect with your wish list, but make sure they consider cost-effective alternatives wherever they think it might get expensive, without needing a completely new floor plan.
You can’t build over the staircase like that, at most 1-2 steps depending on the ceiling height.
These are all narrow tunnels you want to create. That won’t have the desired effect. The straight staircase won’t have the impact you’re looking for either.
I would also recommend going to an architect with your wish list, but make sure they consider cost-effective alternatives wherever they think it might get expensive, without needing a completely new floor plan.
Elias_dee schrieb:
Question for @Würfel, how many square meters is your bathroom with sauna on the upper floor?
Regarding fitness: I share Würfel’s view, for me it’s also about the heat generation. I would still place it in the basement. Another question for Würfel, how many square meters is your fitness area in the basement?My bathroom is 24 m² (258 sq ft), which I already consider quite spacious. Our freestanding tub was meant to be a centerpiece and therefore needs space. Your planned 27 m² (290 sq ft) is quite large, I would rather allocate more space to the bedroom! About the sauna costs: We got a high-quality custom sauna including a bio stove, delivery, and installation for €15,000 about 4 years ago. And I live in the most expensive city in Germany. So you really don’t need more than that...Our fitness area is 45 m² (484 sq ft). We need that because I like working out with friends and need a large area where we can move around freely. I’d say you could manage with half that size. And anyone who doesn’t is just making a perfect excuse not to exercise at home :p Rick lives in another dimension, so we regular folks shouldn’t compare ourselves to him. My Kettler cross trainer cost only €1,500 and two strong men had no problem bringing it down the stairs and through a standard door. And it’s perfectly sufficient for me! By the way, we have floor mats covering about 25 m² (269 sq ft) of the 45 m² (484 sq ft). The underfloor heating only runs a little in the depths of winter. And that works well.
About your floor plan: I don’t like it at all. The living room will be pitch dark. The narrow patio door is right below a balcony, which makes it even darker. On the plus side, you have a great view of the entrance door from the sofa! So it will never feel cozy!! The kitchen and dining area are quite narrow and elongated. The guest bathroom on the ground floor is a bit oversized. The bedroom upstairs is too small, while there is an excessive amount of circulation space. You probably won’t use all those balconies, but you will have to pay for them, maintain them, renovate them eventually, etc.
I would also go to an architect.
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