Corner plot 513m² with 130m² house and double garage

Hello everyone,

I would like to present my house project to you and would be grateful to the community for suggestions for improvement, inspirations, and food for thought.

First, the questionnaire

Development plan/restrictions
Plot size 513 sqm, approx. 18m (N-S) by 28m (E-W)
Slope slight incline from NE to SW (approx. 1m)
Site coverage ratio site coverage ratio 0.3
Floor area ratio floor area ratio 0.6
Building window, building line and boundary see ground floor draft
Setback distances according to Bavarian Building Regulations, boundary garage with 1m distance
Number of floors I+D or II (depending on wall or ridge height)
Roof type gable roof with min. 60cm eaves
Orientation free, development plan only suggests
Maximum heights/limits see excerpt of development plan
Access and utility connections from the west
Note on adjacent areas Plot 201/20: green strip of the municipality - may be used, in return for maintenance
Plot 201/16: pedestrian/cycle path and green strip - south of this: little-trafficked road to a small village (hamlet) - 30 km/h zone
Plot 201/33: road
Plot 201/38: agriculturally used green area

Client requirements
Style, roof type, building type Single-family house with gable roof, regionally typical (Allgäu) with wooden cladding in the upper floor and eaves of about 1m
Basement, floors Basement, ground floor, and upper floor
Number of people, ages 2 adults + 1 toddler + possibly 1-2 children in the future
Space requirements ground floor, upper floor Ground floor: kitchen-dining-living area, WC with shower, storage/pantry
Upper floor: bedroom, 2 children’s rooms, bathroom, "flex" room (dressing room/office/guest room or children’s room)
Office: family use or home office? No separate office necessary
Overnight guests per year low (e.g. partner’s parents) - if family situation does not allow, then no more
Open or closed architecture basically closed architecture
Conservative or modern style conservative style
Open kitchen, kitchen island open kitchen, kitchen island not necessary, but with work-cooking area facing dining area
Number of dining seats 6-8, can be more for family gatherings with additional table + chairs
Garage, carport large garage for two vehicles - 1 family vehicle (Passat, Octavia, A4, ...) + 1 small car

House design
Who designed it: own design with a "2D program" and first adjustments by building planner
What do you particularly like? Why? room layout on the upper floor with gallery
What do you not like? Why? window arrangement - south side, niche for cloakroom (usable with 1m) - do not want to walk through the hallway with street shoes
garage position - further west, garage protrudes in the east, distance to front door relatively far -> issue of entrance canopy
bathroom on the upper floor - shower in niche practical, but issue with room height or unusable corner between toilet and shower
Price estimate according to architect/planner: 500,000 €
Preferred heating technology: air-water heat pump

What would you do without, which details/extensions
- could you do without: seating window at dining table, possibly bathtub, roof windows (if lighting is sufficient)
- could you not do without: room plan, storage/pantry, stairs (only straight stairs or stairs with landing)

Why is the design as it is now?
Due to the plot and building boundaries, only a narrow, elongated house is possible with a double garage.
Inspirations were collected from the internet, as well as from friends and relatives and adopted with adaptations.
In my opinion, the floor plan is a mix of my cousin's house and that of a couple of friends, just not as elongated. But you probably don’t know those houses ;)

Points that bother me or where I would be grateful for inspirations/food for thought:
- South view: all windows are different and also not symmetrical or in a harmoniously positioned arrangement.
Idea: the special window on the east side in the dining area is a seating window -> move table further north/east to the seating window
->instead of a low window and terrace door (wing door), a lift-slide door about 2.5 - 3m wide + kitchen window further east (possibly also lengthened) + align upper floor windows
Does the south side then look like a window is missing in the west?
- Opinion: is a roof window necessary/useful in the dressing room (flex room)? (topics: cost including shading and heat protection with roller shutter)
- Garage position: garage further to the west -> no overhang in the east -> upper floor window (north) possibly also move so that less roof extension to the front door is needed
- Size of the cloakroom niche: is the size of the niche sufficient? How to furnish most sensibly?
- Bathroom upper floor: how to deal with corner between shower and toilet? completely close off or extend shower (topic splash protection ceiling)? Wider shower possible or must toilet and bathtub be moved (possibly corner bathtub). But I am still undecided whether a bathtub should go in at all, since we really only use it with our toddler.

I am also grateful for any "improvements" (what you would do differently) or inspirations

What material is the house intended to be built from: the hatching looks more like bricks, but the dimensions do not?
What is the wall at the (shower?) just before the knee wall supposed to be?
I do not see a fireplace, which is contemporary.

In my opinion, the floor plan is a mix between my cousin's house and that of a couple of friends, just not as elongated.

From which of these two houses does the inspiration for the decorative exposed beam box above the sofa come?

Guests per year are few (e.g. partner's parents) – if the family situation does not allow, then no more.

So, precisely when there are several grandchildren, the parents-in-law are supposed to stay away?
The dressing room ("flex room") also becomes obsolete if there will be a third child?
(it’s clear, moms don’t bother to dress up anymore, right?)

The first thing I notice is that the pantry, which I consider unnecessary in a house with a basement, has been given the best position.

Then, the kitchen area with the high window will be quite dark and overall the large open space (cooking/dining/living) will benefit little from light and sun. I also find the layout of cooking/dining with only 326 cm depth not particularly good ... kitchen planning will definitely result in a rather small kitchen.

The wardrobe corner with 100 cm depth is also not very practical. If there is a closet area for the jackets, only 40 cm of walkway remains at most; otherwise jackets, etc. cannot hang nicely side by side on hangers, but must hang one behind the other in 20 to 30 cm depth.

Overall, the external dimensions of 750x1200 cm are not really that huge, but there is a lot of hallway space which is poorly usable. Then I wonder, garage ... 2 cars? What about bicycles, lawnmower, etc.? There is plenty of basement space, but it is not accessible for that.

The bedroom on the upper floor does not allow for a good built-in wardrobe.

One should definitely make sure that windows etc. are placed so that the entire wall can be used with wardrobe depth. Including doors and considering shell dimensions, one should always assume 70 cm. In my opinion, this value is not reached in the dressing room on the left side of the plan. Also, the fact that the upper floor has knee walls of only 185 cm is still an issue. Why actually?

From the location on the plot, in favor of a wide garage with side clearance, the garden area to the south/southwest is quite reduced. Oh, I just read again, the southern property may be used as well ... so why are the windows on the south/southeast so modest? Main light source especially in winter. EDIT: Is the orientation freely selectable? What about the photovoltaic system?

The house lacks depth in the living areas on the ground floor. The garage is to blame. I would start again by rotating the house along with the garage 90 degrees counterclockwise on the plot.

If the dressing room becomes Child 2, where have the parents stored their wardrobe + bed linen and towels?

And carry the laundry/bed linen down to the basement, almost daily?

The cars will be happy, you will be annoyed your whole life about the hose you live in. Complete misplanning... Either the garage somehow comes in front of the house or you do without it?

They are cars... they are used to sleeping outside.