ᐅ Single-family house on a gentle hillside near the edge of a forest
Created on: 5 Jun 2015 10:49
L
lreplrep
Hello everyone,
My wife and I are planning to build a house in 2016. We have already identified a plot of land and have started thinking about how it could be developed. It is located in a very quiet rural area at the end of a dead-end road, adjacent to a forest (to the north).
Development plan / Restrictions
Plot size: approx. 850 square meters (0.21 acres)
Slope: yes, about 10% incline from northeast to southwest
No development plan (I still need to gather more information when things get serious)
Requirements from the builders
Style, roof type, building type: simple building with a shallow gable roof (25-30°), two stories without sloped ceilings
Basement, floors: two floors (basement partially built into the ground on the west/north side)
Number of occupants, age: currently 2 (aged 25/30), hopefully 4 later
Open or closed architecture: living/dining/kitchen open plan, but staircase separated in the hallway
Conservative or modern construction: rather conservative, possibly a Swedish-style house
Kitchen: small and practical rather than representative, no kitchen island (preferably a slight separation from the dining/living area by a small "bar")
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: masonry heater as a room divider (between dining and living area)
Balcony, roof terrace: terrace with a short direct exit from the kitchen
Garage, carport: garage for motorcycle, bicycles, workbench, etc.; cars rather parked outside
Additional wishes / special features / daily routine: separate area for children possible later (or possibly rental of the basement)
House design
Designed by: DIY (we understand the design is not yet finished or 100% complete)
What do you like most? Access to garden from basement and upper floor, lots of sunlight due to south-facing orientation, entrance at both upper and lower levels (which can be separated later), full bathrooms both upstairs and downstairs
What do you not like? Entrance upstairs over the garage, long hallway / entrance area upstairs, view from the north
Personal budget limit for the house, including fittings: €320,000 (without land but including additional costs)
Preferred heating technology: ground/air heat pump + masonry heater
If you have to give up on some details / build-outs
- What can you do without: garage; study/children’s room/bedroom could be smaller (however, the study would then no longer be suitable as a bedroom for two)
- What cannot be compromised: study, two approximately equal-sized children’s rooms, minimum 14 square meters (150 square feet) each
Many thanks in advance for your opinions and comments!
Best regards
My wife and I are planning to build a house in 2016. We have already identified a plot of land and have started thinking about how it could be developed. It is located in a very quiet rural area at the end of a dead-end road, adjacent to a forest (to the north).
Development plan / Restrictions
Plot size: approx. 850 square meters (0.21 acres)
Slope: yes, about 10% incline from northeast to southwest
No development plan (I still need to gather more information when things get serious)
Requirements from the builders
Style, roof type, building type: simple building with a shallow gable roof (25-30°), two stories without sloped ceilings
Basement, floors: two floors (basement partially built into the ground on the west/north side)
Number of occupants, age: currently 2 (aged 25/30), hopefully 4 later
Open or closed architecture: living/dining/kitchen open plan, but staircase separated in the hallway
Conservative or modern construction: rather conservative, possibly a Swedish-style house
Kitchen: small and practical rather than representative, no kitchen island (preferably a slight separation from the dining/living area by a small "bar")
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: masonry heater as a room divider (between dining and living area)
Balcony, roof terrace: terrace with a short direct exit from the kitchen
Garage, carport: garage for motorcycle, bicycles, workbench, etc.; cars rather parked outside
Additional wishes / special features / daily routine: separate area for children possible later (or possibly rental of the basement)
House design
Designed by: DIY (we understand the design is not yet finished or 100% complete)
What do you like most? Access to garden from basement and upper floor, lots of sunlight due to south-facing orientation, entrance at both upper and lower levels (which can be separated later), full bathrooms both upstairs and downstairs
What do you not like? Entrance upstairs over the garage, long hallway / entrance area upstairs, view from the north
Personal budget limit for the house, including fittings: €320,000 (without land but including additional costs)
Preferred heating technology: ground/air heat pump + masonry heater
If you have to give up on some details / build-outs
- What can you do without: garage; study/children’s room/bedroom could be smaller (however, the study would then no longer be suitable as a bedroom for two)
- What cannot be compromised: study, two approximately equal-sized children’s rooms, minimum 14 square meters (150 square feet) each
Many thanks in advance for your opinions and comments!
Best regards
lreplrep schrieb:
The terrace upstairs is, in my opinion, sufficiently sunnyAnd did you used to accept a grade 4 at school? (4 = satisfactory)
lreplrep schrieb:
The layout also has the advantage that a nearly or fully separate apartment could be set up downstairs later onmarv’s criticism does not contradict the possibility to separate two future apartments (basement/ground floor)
lreplrep schrieb:
We wanted to consider the future as well…That’s definitely possible! And precisely because people plan to live in a house for several decades, you shouldn’t cut corners in the wrong places at the beginning.
Personally, I wouldn’t want a house with two hallways each six meters (20 feet) long and only one meter (3 feet) wide. That’s not designing.
Sorry, but sometimes you have to be straightforward…
I'll try again...
By now I realize that the design is a mess. Sometimes you just don’t see your biggest mistakes anymore. Many thanks
Maybe a general question that was already briefly touched on: Would you place the living level upstairs or downstairs?
Downstairs means the west side would have no windows or doors, as it would be underground. But then the terrace would be on the south side, and no stairs would be needed from the entrance in the north. Although we’re a bit worried that downstairs might feel like being “in a hole,” since besides the underground west side, the terrace would also be below street level/dead-end...
Best regards
ypg schrieb:No, I actually meant: I even prefer a terrace on the west side rather than on the south.
And did you settle for a grade 4 at school? (4 = pass)
ypg schrieb:
At least I don’t want a house with two hallways that are six meters (20 feet) long and only one meter (3 feet) wide. That has nothing to do with good design.
Sorry, but sometimes you have to be blunt...
By now I realize that the design is a mess. Sometimes you just don’t see your biggest mistakes anymore. Many thanks
Maybe a general question that was already briefly touched on: Would you place the living level upstairs or downstairs?
Downstairs means the west side would have no windows or doors, as it would be underground. But then the terrace would be on the south side, and no stairs would be needed from the entrance in the north. Although we’re a bit worried that downstairs might feel like being “in a hole,” since besides the underground west side, the terrace would also be below street level/dead-end...
Best regards
Hello everyone,
attached is a heavily revised draft with elevations. I will soon consult an architect, as we would like to orient the roof ridge differently from what is specified in the building permit / planning permission, but I would still be interested in your opinions.
The living area is still located upstairs with a terrace facing west. I think this is the best solution because the building line is only 5m (16 feet) from the cul-de-sac, and due to the slope, the house would feel very "sunken" here.
I’m still unsure if the utility room is large enough (the technical installations are intended to be mostly in the garage and partially in the storage room upstairs). Also, the hallway needs better natural lighting – I definitely think a window is still missing there.
Best regards and thanks in advance for your feedback!
attached is a heavily revised draft with elevations. I will soon consult an architect, as we would like to orient the roof ridge differently from what is specified in the building permit / planning permission, but I would still be interested in your opinions.
The living area is still located upstairs with a terrace facing west. I think this is the best solution because the building line is only 5m (16 feet) from the cul-de-sac, and due to the slope, the house would feel very "sunken" here.
I’m still unsure if the utility room is large enough (the technical installations are intended to be mostly in the garage and partially in the storage room upstairs). Also, the hallway needs better natural lighting – I definitely think a window is still missing there.
Best regards and thanks in advance for your feedback!
Hi,
first of all, we also had a sloped plot and implemented it similarly to what you are planning.
That means the bedrooms are on the ground floor and the living areas are upstairs. It's not the traditional layout. However, the bedrooms are usually cooler, and the living area offers direct access to the outdoors.
The neighbors on both sides have excavated into the slope. For us, this is a disadvantage because we now have to secure the upper part of our property with a fence to prevent falls (small children). On the other hand, we’re not living in a bunker and still have a nice plot.
Our terrace faces east. So we get full sun in the morning and around noon, and in the afternoon, when it gets hot, it’s shaded. The neighbors behind us envy this a bit because their west-facing terrace is always in the blazing heat.
I, in turn, envy those neighbors because in autumn they can enjoy the (no longer so hot) evening sun on their terrace. Well, you can't have everything.
You can search through my nearly 800 posts—I shared my design over a year ago.
Regarding your design:
Consider whether the south terrace still makes sense (assuming it still exists – it’s not clear from your plans).
I have some difficulty understanding your design. You mention wanting to build a terrace on the west side but show a terrace over the garage on the north side? I don’t get it—what is that for?
Are you planning the entire entrance to the house through the garage (or am I missing something)? You said you don’t want to use the garage for parking cars, right? So you park outside, open the garage door, enter the garage, close the garage door, and then open the front door. It won’t take long before the garage door is left open.
Alternatively, you would take the stairs up and enter via the north terrace.
The relatively small bathrooms and somewhat small utility room have already been mentioned. At least plan one larger bathroom—you want to live there for decades.
first of all, we also had a sloped plot and implemented it similarly to what you are planning.
That means the bedrooms are on the ground floor and the living areas are upstairs. It's not the traditional layout. However, the bedrooms are usually cooler, and the living area offers direct access to the outdoors.
The neighbors on both sides have excavated into the slope. For us, this is a disadvantage because we now have to secure the upper part of our property with a fence to prevent falls (small children). On the other hand, we’re not living in a bunker and still have a nice plot.
Our terrace faces east. So we get full sun in the morning and around noon, and in the afternoon, when it gets hot, it’s shaded. The neighbors behind us envy this a bit because their west-facing terrace is always in the blazing heat.
I, in turn, envy those neighbors because in autumn they can enjoy the (no longer so hot) evening sun on their terrace. Well, you can't have everything.
You can search through my nearly 800 posts—I shared my design over a year ago.
Regarding your design:
Consider whether the south terrace still makes sense (assuming it still exists – it’s not clear from your plans).
I have some difficulty understanding your design. You mention wanting to build a terrace on the west side but show a terrace over the garage on the north side? I don’t get it—what is that for?
Are you planning the entire entrance to the house through the garage (or am I missing something)? You said you don’t want to use the garage for parking cars, right? So you park outside, open the garage door, enter the garage, close the garage door, and then open the front door. It won’t take long before the garage door is left open.
Alternatively, you would take the stairs up and enter via the north terrace.
The relatively small bathrooms and somewhat small utility room have already been mentioned. At least plan one larger bathroom—you want to live there for decades.
Thank you for your input,
I was able to find your post fairly quickly after all.
You actually have a very similar situation. It’s good to hear that the layout with the bedrooms downstairs and living areas upstairs has worked well. That’s somewhat unusual, and there are only a few experience reports available. Among our Austrian friends, I did find several who are very satisfied with such a layout.
Since it’s only 5m (16 feet) to the street and there is an embankment plus possible planting/privacy screening, we’re actually leaning against having a terrace here. I don’t think it’s worth it anymore. Maybe just a narrow paved path.
The main entrance is indeed upstairs via the garage. That’s why there is a railing there. This automatically creates a kind of terrace on the garage roof. It might actually be nice as an alternative spot if it gets too hot on the west side (including a view into the forest to the north).
We (actually my wife) prefer not to have the main entrance downstairs (essentially in the “private” area), so this solution was chosen. The garage might still be large enough for a car plus motorcycles/bikes (depending on costs).
A side entrance downstairs plus a passage from the garage to the utility room would take up too much space; I don’t think it’s worth it.
We will have to try to arrange the bathroom. It has become somewhat larger, currently about 9 sqm (97 sq ft).
Regards,
lreplrep
f-pNo schrieb:
You can try searching through my nearly 800 posts – I shared my design over a year ago .
I was able to find your post fairly quickly after all.
You actually have a very similar situation. It’s good to hear that the layout with the bedrooms downstairs and living areas upstairs has worked well. That’s somewhat unusual, and there are only a few experience reports available. Among our Austrian friends, I did find several who are very satisfied with such a layout.
f-pNo schrieb:
I’m wondering if the south-facing terrace still makes sense (does it even still exist? It’s not clear from the design).
Since it’s only 5m (16 feet) to the street and there is an embankment plus possible planting/privacy screening, we’re actually leaning against having a terrace here. I don’t think it’s worth it anymore. Maybe just a narrow paved path.
f-pNo schrieb:
I’m a bit confused about your design. You say you want to build a terrace on the west side but you show a terrace on the garage roof on the north side? I don’t understand – what is the purpose of that?
Do you want all access to the house to be through the garage (or am I missing something)?
The main entrance is indeed upstairs via the garage. That’s why there is a railing there. This automatically creates a kind of terrace on the garage roof. It might actually be nice as an alternative spot if it gets too hot on the west side (including a view into the forest to the north).
We (actually my wife) prefer not to have the main entrance downstairs (essentially in the “private” area), so this solution was chosen. The garage might still be large enough for a car plus motorcycles/bikes (depending on costs).
A side entrance downstairs plus a passage from the garage to the utility room would take up too much space; I don’t think it’s worth it.
We will have to try to arrange the bathroom. It has become somewhat larger, currently about 9 sqm (97 sq ft).
Regards,
lreplrep
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