ᐅ Single-Family Home Orientation: Garden and Patio Facing South or West?

Hello.

I would like your advice on the basic planning of the ground floor, specifically regarding the orientation of the garden and the terrace—whether the south side or the west side of the house is better.

At this stage, the rest of the house is not the main focus and will be adjusted later. Still, here are the key details.


Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 814m² (8757 sq ft)
Slight north-facing slope
Site coverage ratio 0.4
Floor area ratio 0.7
Building envelope, building line, and boundary: See pictures
Surrounding development
Number of parking spaces: Large double garage (2 cars, bicycles, etc. should fit)
Number of floors: Basement and ground floor
Roof type: Gable roof, pitch 30°, ridge direction east-west as prescribed by the building envelope, but this might be flexible
Architectural style: Standard
Maximum height/limits: None


Owners’ requirements
Basement and floors: Due to the slope, there will be a basement with two large rooms on the north side, each with a large window
Number and age of occupants: 4 people, ages 44, 42, 13, and 14
Conservative construction method
Open kitchen
Seating for 6-8 at the dining table
No fireplace
Music/sound system wall, large TV on sideboard or mounted on the wall

House design
Designed by: Self-designed
Preferred heating system: District heating, 100% renewable

Level access from the garage is explicitly desired, and all necessary rooms (bedroom, bathroom, office) should be on the ground floor level. The children will have large rooms with proper windows (no light wells) and a shared bathroom in the basement on the north side.

An upper floor is probably excluded due to cost constraints. The north-facing slope is a given, with about a 2m (6.6 ft) height difference across the entire plot; inside the house, it is about 1m (3.3 ft). The terrain on the north side will be adjusted accordingly. Slight deviations from the building envelope will likely be tolerated.


I have been working on this for a while but still can’t decide whether the living room and terrace should face the south or the west side of the house.


If the terrace is on the west side, it will get sun at noon and in the evening, but the "best side" of the house will not be very visible from the street. I am also unsure if the living room suits the west side.


What is your opinion, or what would you change and why?


All plans are oriented to true north; my own sketches are slightly rotated because I cannot draw otherwise.

Thank you very much.

Regards, Ralf

I would plan the terrace facing west/north, especially if you have an unobstructed view in that direction. In my opinion, a south-facing terrace is overrated; in summer, nobody wants to sit there voluntarily.

Why don’t you position the house closer to the street and create a nice garden area at the back? It can be accessed from both the basement and the ground floor (e.g., raised terrace).

Basement children's room with a north-facing window, but there are concerns about the terrace... Just my kind of humor.

You probably can’t resist opening a new thread for every single aspect of the same building project über ein und dasselbe Bauprojekt constantly [hheh].

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https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/

Is this an April Fools’ joke?
“Probably,” “most likely”... costs not considered and no visit to the building authority/planning office has been made yet.

Ralf1980 schrieb:

So either two small families, or one large family spread over two floors.

Ralf1980 schrieb:

A first floor is probably ruled out for cost reasons. The north slope is simply there, and there is a 2m (6.6 ft) height difference across the entire plot,

I had a feeling the person asking here doesn’t even know for whom or what the house is actually being built—one moment it’s for two small families, then for themselves and someone “else,” and now the slope is finally being considered—does this mean it’s actually for a larger family?!

Now there’s going to be a staircase in a stairwell that dates back to the days of the two-family house, which also has nothing to do with family life with children. That dark apartment corridor is really terrible, but it has already been criticized extensively both ways.

Ralf1980 schrieb:

I’ve been messing around with this for a while now

I did that as a teenager too—although it was only a setup provided by me, the lesson is that as an adult you should know your limits at some point.

@11ant and ypg:

I really appreciate your expertise, but somehow we just don’t seem to get along. Please provide constructive suggestions instead of just opposing everything.

I specifically asked that only actual questions be answered here—namely, the orientation of the living room and the terrace, along with all their advantages and disadvantages.

In other threads, garages and parking spaces were discussed, with quotes like “cars are bare sleepers,” but if someone wants a garage, you have to accept that. That’s why this should focus only on the real question.

The north-facing slope is what it is, and we have to accept that. Also, the budget is not unlimited, and I will probably need a basement.

I can’t place the house outside the building envelope at the front by the street and block the view of the other two houses; that’s definitely not an option. A slight extension of the building envelope toward the north was at least verbally promised to me.

An entrance through the garage is explicitly desired, and this means that this entrance must end somewhere in a stairwell since there is no utility room on the ground floor.

The district heating supply comes directly from the southwest and cannot be routed around the house, so the basement is necessary because I can’t also have a utility/heating room on the southwest side.

Some acquaintances have a similar setup with a slight slope and living spaces in the basement with large windows, and I have to accept that.

The classic single-family home looks different; I understand that.

So I kindly ask for relevant answers, preferably without referring to old topics, which unfortunately have become confusing due to those discussions.

Best regards