Hello everyone,
After following this forum for what feels like forever, I finally have to “lay all my cards on the table.” Some time ago, we bought a plot of land in rural Lower Saxony right next to our current apartment, and now we want to slowly but surely start the house building process.
I’ve filled out the questionnaire as much as possible. For roof style, number of floors, building setback lines, etc., I only have information from an old preliminary building inquiry made by the previous owner of the land. However, a lot has changed since then (several houses with two full floors, etc.), so I can well imagine that two full floors won’t be a problem.
I’ve attached the floor plans for the ground floor (GF) and upper floor (UF), as well as a relevant excerpt from Google Maps. The two floor plans are not oriented to north, so I added a north arrow there. The Google Maps image is oriented north. The red frame roughly marks the property. The small red box on the street marks the lowered curb for the driveway access. The larger red box roughly indicates the area where the house including the carport is planned to be located. I hope this is enough for now?
Zoning Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 1978 sqm (about 0.49 acres)
Slope: No
Building setback lines and building boundaries: 6.0 and 19.0 m (about 20 and 62 feet) from the street-side property boundary (still being clarified, a lot has changed recently)
Number of floors: 1.5 or 2 (still being clarified, a lot has changed recently)
Roof style: Gable roof
Homeowners’ Requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: Gable roof
Basement, floors: No basement, 1.5 or 2 floors
Number of residents, ages: 4 people (33, 32, 5, 2 years old)
Room requirements on GF, UF:
GF: Kitchen with dining area, living room (can be separated), office, guest bathroom with shower, utility room, small storage space
UF: 2 children’s bedrooms, bathroom, storage room, master bedroom
Office: Family use or home office? Home office
Number of overnight guests per year: Negligible
Open or closed architecture: rather closed
Conservative or modern style: a “middle ground”
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen with island, living room can be separated
Number of dining seats: 6 permanently
Fireplace: No
Music/stereo wall: No
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Carport for one car and possibly a simple parking space in front of the house (cars are for us purely practical items)
Kitchen garden, greenhouse: Unclear
Other: The kitchen island is intentionally only 1 meter (39 inches) deep. This seems like a comfortable depth for us since both of us can easily reach the far end (we’re both not very tall, about 170 cm (5’7”), and we tested by placing a 1-meter-wide wooden board on our current countertop). A nice side effect is that this frees up more space for the dining table. Overall, we still plan to discuss the kitchen layout further in the other forum.
House Design
Who designed the plan: Do-it-yourself with the probably usual approach (we looked at many floor plans from friends and prefab house providers)
What do you like most and why? We’re quite happy with the design. We really like the sliding door in the dining area and the large window in the living room because of the direct connection between garden and indoors. The sliding door between living and dining rooms allows retreat to the living room when guests are over (it’s not a big deal that you still have to walk through the dining area). The staircase should be separated from the living space but not located in a direct dirt/splash zone. The children’s rooms are sufficiently large and have south-facing windows overlooking the garden.
What do you dislike and why? We’re still tinkering with the exterior and window positions. Especially upstairs, the window layout is far from finalized. For the stairs, I grabbed a floor plan from a stair builder that fits (concrete stairs); I hope the dimensions are also realistic in real life?
Personal budget for the house including fittings: 300k, the average price per square meter given by our banking contact pretty much matches the costs of several friends currently building (rural Lower Saxony, about 1650 - 1850 €/sqm)
Preferred heating system: Heat pump with horizontal loop collector
If you had to give up anything, which details / features could you do without?
- Could do without: Honestly, not much
- Cannot do without: Office, sliding door, kitchen island
Why does the design look like it does now?
We looked at many floor plans from friends and prefab house suppliers. Changing existing plans mostly didn’t help, so in the end we spent nights drawing our own plans (which is fun, anyway).
What do you think makes it particularly good or bad?
We managed to fit our entire room program into our limit of about 150 sqm (about 1,615 sq ft). When mentally going through our typical day, the floor plan works quite well and all rooms seem sufficiently sized.
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan summed up in 130 characters?
Since we are still happy with it after letting it “sit for a while and reviewing it again,” the question naturally arises whether we have overlooked something fundamental. Does anything stand out as a problem that wouldn’t work? Something we would regret for the next 30 years? More specifically: is the kitchen with the dining area too narrow or too long and narrow?
I look forward to hopefully plenty of feedback.
Thanks in advance!
After following this forum for what feels like forever, I finally have to “lay all my cards on the table.” Some time ago, we bought a plot of land in rural Lower Saxony right next to our current apartment, and now we want to slowly but surely start the house building process.
I’ve filled out the questionnaire as much as possible. For roof style, number of floors, building setback lines, etc., I only have information from an old preliminary building inquiry made by the previous owner of the land. However, a lot has changed since then (several houses with two full floors, etc.), so I can well imagine that two full floors won’t be a problem.
I’ve attached the floor plans for the ground floor (GF) and upper floor (UF), as well as a relevant excerpt from Google Maps. The two floor plans are not oriented to north, so I added a north arrow there. The Google Maps image is oriented north. The red frame roughly marks the property. The small red box on the street marks the lowered curb for the driveway access. The larger red box roughly indicates the area where the house including the carport is planned to be located. I hope this is enough for now?
Zoning Plan / Restrictions
Plot size: 1978 sqm (about 0.49 acres)
Slope: No
Building setback lines and building boundaries: 6.0 and 19.0 m (about 20 and 62 feet) from the street-side property boundary (still being clarified, a lot has changed recently)
Number of floors: 1.5 or 2 (still being clarified, a lot has changed recently)
Roof style: Gable roof
Homeowners’ Requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: Gable roof
Basement, floors: No basement, 1.5 or 2 floors
Number of residents, ages: 4 people (33, 32, 5, 2 years old)
Room requirements on GF, UF:
GF: Kitchen with dining area, living room (can be separated), office, guest bathroom with shower, utility room, small storage space
UF: 2 children’s bedrooms, bathroom, storage room, master bedroom
Office: Family use or home office? Home office
Number of overnight guests per year: Negligible
Open or closed architecture: rather closed
Conservative or modern style: a “middle ground”
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen with island, living room can be separated
Number of dining seats: 6 permanently
Fireplace: No
Music/stereo wall: No
Balcony, roof terrace: No
Garage, carport: Carport for one car and possibly a simple parking space in front of the house (cars are for us purely practical items)
Kitchen garden, greenhouse: Unclear
Other: The kitchen island is intentionally only 1 meter (39 inches) deep. This seems like a comfortable depth for us since both of us can easily reach the far end (we’re both not very tall, about 170 cm (5’7”), and we tested by placing a 1-meter-wide wooden board on our current countertop). A nice side effect is that this frees up more space for the dining table. Overall, we still plan to discuss the kitchen layout further in the other forum.
House Design
Who designed the plan: Do-it-yourself with the probably usual approach (we looked at many floor plans from friends and prefab house providers)
What do you like most and why? We’re quite happy with the design. We really like the sliding door in the dining area and the large window in the living room because of the direct connection between garden and indoors. The sliding door between living and dining rooms allows retreat to the living room when guests are over (it’s not a big deal that you still have to walk through the dining area). The staircase should be separated from the living space but not located in a direct dirt/splash zone. The children’s rooms are sufficiently large and have south-facing windows overlooking the garden.
What do you dislike and why? We’re still tinkering with the exterior and window positions. Especially upstairs, the window layout is far from finalized. For the stairs, I grabbed a floor plan from a stair builder that fits (concrete stairs); I hope the dimensions are also realistic in real life?
Personal budget for the house including fittings: 300k, the average price per square meter given by our banking contact pretty much matches the costs of several friends currently building (rural Lower Saxony, about 1650 - 1850 €/sqm)
Preferred heating system: Heat pump with horizontal loop collector
If you had to give up anything, which details / features could you do without?
- Could do without: Honestly, not much
- Cannot do without: Office, sliding door, kitchen island
Why does the design look like it does now?
We looked at many floor plans from friends and prefab house suppliers. Changing existing plans mostly didn’t help, so in the end we spent nights drawing our own plans (which is fun, anyway).
What do you think makes it particularly good or bad?
We managed to fit our entire room program into our limit of about 150 sqm (about 1,615 sq ft). When mentally going through our typical day, the floor plan works quite well and all rooms seem sufficiently sized.
What is the most important / fundamental question about the floor plan summed up in 130 characters?
Since we are still happy with it after letting it “sit for a while and reviewing it again,” the question naturally arises whether we have overlooked something fundamental. Does anything stand out as a problem that wouldn’t work? Something we would regret for the next 30 years? More specifically: is the kitchen with the dining area too narrow or too long and narrow?
I look forward to hopefully plenty of feedback.
Thanks in advance!
11ant schrieb:
Unfortunately, for homeowners, symmetry is the top priority when it comes to exterior views; and regarding the floor plans, the linear meter rule applies. The windows then need to be deep, so they still let in light even when narrow... I can’t complain about a lack of light in my home. I did worry about it once, but it’s fine.
lulzwoot schrieb:
Why did the design end up the way it is now?
We looked at many floor plans from friends and from modular home providers. Modifying those plans usually didn’t help much, so in the end, we spent several nights drawing our own plans from scratch (which was kind of fun anyway).
What do you think makes it particularly good or bad?
We managed to fit our entire room program within our limit of about 150 square meters (1,615 square feet). When we mentally go through our daily routine, the floor plan works quite well and I think all rooms are sufficiently sized.
Which software or app did you use to draw/edit the floor plans? Can anyone recommend a good program?
Regarding the floor plan, I would strongly recommend making the "storage" area, also known as the walk-in closet or utility room for everyone, wider. It should be wide enough to fit cabinets with a depth of 60cm (24 inches) on both sides. So, at least about 2.20m (7 feet 3 inches) in width. Whether the children's rooms then measure 16.5 or 17.2 m² (177 or 185 sq ft) is less important when they are already a reasonable size. This room also benefits from a nice southern exposure, so it might be worth considering swapping it with the study on the ground floor, especially if the study is used exclusively as a private workspace.
RomeoZwo schrieb:
Whether the children's rooms are 16.5 or 17.2 m² (178 or 185 sq ft) is no longer that relevant when the size is reasonable.We don’t even know if they actually have this size. These could simply be floor areas – and the fact that the upper floor has only straight walls doesn’t necessarily mean it won’t be a sloped roof attic.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
lulzwoot schrieb:
According to which "idea"? Yes, I saw the stairs in the reference thread. Then I kept browsing the forum and came across a thread where the stairs were only 2x2 meters (6.6x6.6 feet) as well.According to this one:lulzwoot schrieb:
After reading along here in the forum for what feels like ages, I have to finally "show my cards".Of course, I took your easy set-up. But honestly: You say you’ve read a lot here. Then you surely know that we always stress the importance of proper and easy-to-use stairs. And you choose the only “2x2 meter (6.6x6.6 feet) borderline acceptable stair,” probably a fixed attic ladder, and plan your entire house around this unique feature. That can’t be taken seriously. What would you say in our position?
Then further on:
lulzwoot schrieb:
However, a lot has changed here in the meantime (several houses with 2 full stories, etc.), so I can well imagine that 2 full stories are no problem.lulzwoot schrieb:
Plot boundary (still under clarification, a lot has happened here recently)
Number of stories: 1.5 or 2 (still under clarification, a lot has happened here recently)What does “still under clarification” mean? If only a knee wall of max. 1.80 meters (5.9 feet) is allowed, then this design is worthless.
What does the development plan say? What are the details from the building inquiry? Those are important!
On the one hand, you cannot rely on “a lot has changed” without any certainty. On the other hand, you apparently own a plot but have no clear knowledge about it.
If I don't complain now, who will? In your own interest, you should know the buildability before purchasing.
Rural areas always mean low site coverage ratios. Two-story houses in rural Lower Saxony don't really fit either.
In your Google Maps screenshot I don’t see any two-story houses. I see gable and half-hipped roofs, usually built without or with only a small knee wall and as single-story buildings.
I suggest you fully clarify the buildability before proceeding so that your planning does not become a waste of time.
chrisw81 schrieb:
I don’t believe that. I think everyone tries to create a nice exterior view, because that’s basically what you see first. And the first impression…I just say west-facing windows.
But it’s good to read you here. Because your 150 m² (1,615 sq ft) house reminded me of the space issue with the dining table, and if the OP @lulzwoot has time and interest, you should … you should read through the last 10/20 pages from Christian to understand. You can find the thread via @chrisw81’s profile.
Thank you for the many replies; unfortunately, I couldn’t respond sooner.
The separation between the kitchen/dining area and the living room is set in our case. I still like the sliding doors on the left and right, but my wife now prefers the wider door on the right again. I honestly never really noticed that some of the chairs are basically in the middle of the walkway. But now that you pay attention to it... If the chairs are always pushed in when not in use, it works fine again. I will equip the storage room on the upper floor with 60cm (24 inches) deep shelves and an appropriate aisle, as suggested.
I probably shouldn’t post links? It seems I haven’t made enough posts to send private messages yet. We used "Floor planner." It’s the first result when you google it.
Not really? I would definitely take the person who is clearly seeking help here seriously. And if it bothered me too much, I might at least point it out in a different tone. Anyway.
I wouldn’t see it quite that drastically. What I do know is that a 164sqm (1,765 sq ft) house with a height of 8.50m (28 feet) was approved as okay in the preliminary building inquiry by the previous owner. And the building ground survey is also positive.
I took a closer look on my way home just now. There are at least two town villas here (one of them is the house north behind the open space next to our direct neighbor), one pitched roof house, and the large house opposite (which was extended last year) with two full floors. The street isn’t very long, and to the south of us, there is just one more house.
I will do that; I already know part of the thread.
I’ll try to reach someone at the building authority again tomorrow. After work today, no one was available. As soon as I have more information, I’ll post it.
Nevertheless, even at the risk of it being a wasted effort, I kept moving things around in the kitchen on the ground floor. We like it—better than what we had before. Whether the island will remain purely a workspace or if it will include a sink, I don’t know yet. But I’d want to remove the cooktop given the position of the seating area.
Best regards!
The separation between the kitchen/dining area and the living room is set in our case. I still like the sliding doors on the left and right, but my wife now prefers the wider door on the right again. I honestly never really noticed that some of the chairs are basically in the middle of the walkway. But now that you pay attention to it... If the chairs are always pushed in when not in use, it works fine again. I will equip the storage room on the upper floor with 60cm (24 inches) deep shelves and an appropriate aisle, as suggested.
HsweetH schrieb:
Which program/app did you use to draw/edit the floor plans?
I probably shouldn’t post links? It seems I haven’t made enough posts to send private messages yet. We used "Floor planner." It’s the first result when you google it.
ypg schrieb:
You can’t take this seriously. What would you say in our position?
Not really? I would definitely take the person who is clearly seeking help here seriously. And if it bothered me too much, I might at least point it out in a different tone. Anyway.
ypg schrieb:
Also, apparently you own a plot of land that you have no knowledge about.
I wouldn’t see it quite that drastically. What I do know is that a 164sqm (1,765 sq ft) house with a height of 8.50m (28 feet) was approved as okay in the preliminary building inquiry by the previous owner. And the building ground survey is also positive.
ypg schrieb:
I don’t see any two-story buildings in your Google Maps screenshot.
I took a closer look on my way home just now. There are at least two town villas here (one of them is the house north behind the open space next to our direct neighbor), one pitched roof house, and the large house opposite (which was extended last year) with two full floors. The street isn’t very long, and to the south of us, there is just one more house.
ypg schrieb:
You should read the last 10/20 pages by Christian.
I will do that; I already know part of the thread.
I’ll try to reach someone at the building authority again tomorrow. After work today, no one was available. As soon as I have more information, I’ll post it.
Nevertheless, even at the risk of it being a wasted effort, I kept moving things around in the kitchen on the ground floor. We like it—better than what we had before. Whether the island will remain purely a workspace or if it will include a sink, I don’t know yet. But I’d want to remove the cooktop given the position of the seating area.
Best regards!