Another hipped roof city villa (240 sqm)

Development Plan/Restrictions
Size of the plot: 1100 sqm
Slope: Yes (west-east)
Site coverage ratio: no
Floor area ratio: no
Building window, building line, and boundary: no
Edge development: theoretically possible, since the neighboring plot belongs to parents
Number of parking spaces: 2 per residential unit (relevant if split into 2 apartments)
Number of floors: no
Roof shape: only gable roof & hip roof (also for garage!)
Style: no
Orientation: no
Maximum heights/limitations: no
Other requirements: roof overhang of at least 50 cm

Client Requirements
Style, roof shape, building type: Hip roof city villa
Basement, floors: yes, 2 full floors
Number of people, age: 36, 35, 4, 0
Space requirements on ground floor, upper floor:
Office: family use or home office? Home office once a week
Overnight guests per year: 1-2
Open or closed architecture: semi-open
Conservative or modern construction: rather modern
Open kitchen, cooking island: yes, yes
Number of dining seats: 4-8
Fireplace: not necessary, cannot find a reasonable place either
Music/stereo wall: TV wall yes
Balcony, roof terrace: balcony (but only because of possible splitting into two apartments)
Garage, carport: double garage
Utility garden, greenhouse
Other wishes/special features/daily routine, also reasons why this or that should be or not: bay window with balcony, even if it gets expensive...

House Design
Who designed it: do-it-yourself with SweetHome3d
What do you like especially? Why? Everything. I think I have been tinkering with the floor plan for too long and am therefore in love with it and probably totally “blind” to it.
What do you not like? Why?
Price estimate according to architect/planner:
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment: €750,000
Preferred heating technology: gas

If you have to do without, which details/finishes
-you can do without: somehow nothing
-you cannot do without: large entrance/wardrobe; large children’s rooms, master bedroom to the east (I want to see the sunrise), large aquarium as a highlight in the living area, platform staircase, children’s bathroom, and my wife absolutely wants a gallery.

Why has the design become what it is now?

I have felt like I have seen every floor plan from all prefabricated house manufacturers and, annoyed by the “cookie-cutter” (keyword living room-kitchen-dining tube and staircase-always-right-at-the-dirty-entrance), I started to develop my own floor plan. Many thanks to the forum here because I learned a lot in the floor plan discussions! I even engaged with Feng Shui for the floor plan.

What makes it particularly good or bad in your eyes?

The rooms are ideally oriented to the sun: inhabited rooms are in the south, uninhabited in the north. Additionally, due to the slight slope (to the east), nice residential basement rooms are possible. The floor plan can also be easily divided into two apartments and is therefore flexible for the barrier-free future. The technical rooms/pipes were also considered: the technical room is on the street side and pipes/water lines do not run crisscross but are spatially close together.

The only downside I see is that the kitchen is “far away” from the entrance. But I do not find this very bad and only mention it because otherwise it would probably have been a point of criticism.

What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
I am very grateful for suggestions/optimizations of any kind! Especially tips for the master bathroom.
I am not 100% satisfied with it yet.

Best regards
Alro

Where do you access the terrace on the ground floor?

Regarding the 2nd residential units
How do you want to separate the staircase on the ground floor from the living rooms?
I find the gallery above the entrance unnecessary and obstructive when separated
Where will a barrier-free bathroom be located on the ground floor?
Are connections for washer, dryer, and kitchen planned on the upper floor?
I find the balcony too narrow. A table with 4 chairs should definitely fit

Ground floor

Spacious entrance that transitions into a narrow dark corridor. I miss openness and light here

Why this protrusion at the aquarium?

What is the purpose of this huge utility room on the ground floor? It takes away space from the dining area. The distances between table and wall or kitchen island are okay but not generous and too narrow for a house of this size

Where will the television be placed?


Upper floor
The parents’ area looks like Tetris. I would remove a few corners
Are you really planning with an 80x80 cm shower? The bathtub in the children’s bathroom is somewhat small, right?
A different arrangement of the rooms would prevent parents and child from being wall to wall
Move the doors in the children’s rooms slightly so that a wardrobe fits behind the door

Have you ever drawn all the furniture to scale by hand?

Hello Haydee

Where do you get to the terrace on the ground floor?

The terrace is supposed to run along the entire south side. So you could go out from the TV room or in the middle of the living room. (the French windows are supposed to be terrace doors)

I find the gallery above the entrance unnecessary and disturbing when separated

My wife insists on it and I had to install it for her. But now I also like it If separated, it should be locked and then you would have a small room left (e.g. office)

Where is a barrier-free bathroom placed on the ground floor?

The current bathroom and the pantry should then be combined. That should be enough, right? Then there would still be space for a floor-level shower. Only with the small window it won’t be very bright...

Are connections for washing machine, dryer and kitchen planned on the upper floor?
I have (theoretically) thought about kitchen connections. The kitchen is roughly planned to be above the current one. Maybe I should draw the floor plans of the two apartments sometime

I find the balcony too narrow. A table with 4 chairs should fit
Yes, that’s true. But then the ground floor and the bay window get even bigger...

Spacious entrance leads into a narrow dark corridor. I miss openness and light there
Yes, I have to agree with you on that too! It’s also a problem with separation. Originally I wanted to brighten the corridor over the stairs, but then the window had to give way to the garage.

Why this protrusion at the aquarium?
You mean on the hallway side? I wanted to "pull" the aquarium a bit into the room. In the corridor, the protrusion can then be used for a sideboard or something like that

What is the huge utility room on the ground floor for? It takes away space from the dining area. The distances between table-wall or kitchen island are okay but not generous and too narrow for a house of this size
The utility room was originally planned as an office. But then we swapped the two rooms for shorter walking distances.

Where does the TV go?
Opposite the sofa, that is on the right wall of the TV room.

The parents' area looks like Tetris. I would remove a few corners
Which ones?

Are you really planning with an 80x80 cm shower? The bathtub in the kids' bathroom is a bit small, right?
I just used the standard items from Sweet Home 3D. Yes, I still have to think about that.

Different room arrangements would prevent the parents and child being wall to wall
Shift doors in the kids' rooms a bit so that a wardrobe fits behind the door
I have also considered swapping the master bathroom with the master bedroom. But then both are next to the bathrooms. I didn’t like that either

Have you ever drawn all the furniture to scale by hand?
No. I will catch up on that.

--
Many, many thanks for the tips! They have already helped me a lot!

Best regards
Alro

but only because of the possible split into two apartments)

I don't see any apartment separation with the staircase location.

Garage, Carport: double garage

Isn't it a bit narrow?

I want to see the sun rise)

When and where? For how long? Are you setting an alarm? For what time? Do you then go to the bathroom?

my wife absolutely wants a gallery.

I don't see any gallery. You have an open space there, but no gallery.

The floor plan can also be easily divided into two apartments and is therefore flexible for barrier-free use in the future.

?? I don't see that.

But then the ground floor and the bay window become even bigger...

Yes, but... Nevertheless, the balcony is way too narrow and thus hardly useful for anything, unless you need to have a smoke before going to bed or disturb the other's privacy.

mentioned the rest: bottleneck in the hallway on the ground floor and upper floor parent area. That's not nice.

The utility room is too big. Many things are kept very large. Still not necessarily effective or better to furnish, e.g. bedroom, dressing room...

How is the plot?

Why should the house be able to be divided into 2 apartments? I wouldn't build it based on the possibility that maybe someday something... (does not refer to barrier-free)

So the kitchen is not next to the terrace?
Do you have direct garden access from the ground floor?

What is the point of the open space? Maybe with an open staircase, a hallway, and a reading corner, but like this?

The walk-in closet has some unnecessary corners.

Don’t plan with disadvantages now, just because it might be shared in the future.
Enclose the open space
The 2nd bathroom upstairs must be removed
Bathroom to the ground floor
Separate the staircase
That is a lot of money + now a suboptimal floor plan

You have a big budget, but it could have been smaller without loss of functionality.