ᐅ Terraced houses, site development, floor plans – ideas welcome

I would also strongly recommend filling out the questionnaire if you want good and useful advice here.

Just a quick thought: I also noticed the issue with the bathtub. We have a baby here who is almost 9 months old – you really need a bathtub for that!
And: Your hallway downstairs will be very dark when the doors are closed. Are you aware of that?

Thank you for your comments, I have now completed the questionnaire:

Development Plan/Restrictions
Plot size: 323 sqm (approximately 3,476 sq ft)
Slope: no slope, flat plot
Site occupancy index: 0.6
Floor area ratio: 2 full floors
Building envelope, building line and boundary: see development plan

Edge development
Number of parking spaces: 1.5
Number of floors: 2
Roof type: shallow pitched roof
Architectural style: modern, Bauhaus
Orientation: -
Maximum heights/limits: ridge height max 7.20 m (23.6 ft), eaves height max 6.50 m (21.3 ft), eaves height min 6.00 m (19.7 ft)
Other requirements: building method A1 terraced house

Client Requirements
Style, roof type, building type: green flat roof specified, modern style, with large windows
Basement, floors: basement planned with 2 full floors
Number of residents, age: 3 people (34, 31, 9 months)
Room requirements on ground floor and upper floor: on ground floor kitchen, living and dining areas and an additional office (does not need to be large, for a home office space)
Office: family use or home office? Home office space
Overnight guests per year: none
Open or closed architecture: open architecture
Conservative or modern construction: modern construction
Open kitchen, kitchen island: open kitchen
Number of dining seats: 4–6 seats
Fireplace: no
Music/sound system wall: integrated into the TV wall
Balcony, roof terrace: balcony planned above the living room extension, access via the children's room
Garage, carport: as this is a terraced house, the garage/carport connects to the neighboring house. We are currently inquiring with the municipality whether it will be a carport or garage. It must be at least 3 m (9.8 ft) wide.
Utility garden, greenhouse: garden with lawn and hedge.
Additional wishes/special features/daily routine, including reasons why some things are included or excluded: No major special features. We don’t need a bathtub because none of us really take baths. Instead, we have planned a larger shower measuring 90 x 120 cm (35 x 47 inches) and prefer two sinks, or one large sink. Since our family life mainly takes place in the living/dining area and kitchen, these rooms should be bright and pleasant.

House Design
Who designed the plan: we have so far planned ourselves and combined the best from several layouts. Our current furniture is already included in the plan and will be moved into the new home.

What do you particularly like? Why? Bright, open living and dining area with garden access. We like it bright and friendly.
What do you dislike? Why? The bathroom is not yet optimal; a different layout would be better.
Price estimate according to architect/planner: currently around €450,000
Personal price limit for house including fittings: estimate is still within budget
Preferred heating technology: air-to-water heat pump

If you have to give up, which details/extensions
-can you give up: loggia
-can you not give up: basement

Why is the design as it is now?
We combined ideas from several layouts. In the upstairs hallway there is a general space for a piano or a second desk. The open living-dining area with kitchen is a must for us. Also, the kitchen must have a window to look outside. We have a very large closet in the hallway to store items like coats and vacuum cleaner. The bathroom layout is currently not optimal in our view.

What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan, summarized in 130 characters?
We have to design a terraced house but are last in the row, so only one side adjoins a neighbor, the other side borders the street. We need ideas and experience regarding terraced houses—what must be considered for the floor plan in this case?

Have someone calculate how much more it would cost to fully build over the living room bay window. That could help reduce the load on the sleeping floor a bit.

saralina87 schrieb:



Just a quick thought: I also noticed the bathtub issue. We have a baby here who is almost 9 months old – no bathtub, no chance!

I’m also planning the house almost around the bathtub so the child can be soaked :o)

Without a bathtub, it just wouldn’t work for us. Aside from that, a bathroom without a bathtub feels incomplete. Maybe in 20 years, you’ll be glad to have a therapeutic bath. Retrofitting one is very difficult or sometimes impossible. Better to skip the balcony, make the upper floor a bit more spacious, and include a bathtub.

I would place the office in the basement and include a light well. On the ground floor, there is also limited space in a few areas.