Feedback on single-family house floor plan 200 m² city villa with hipped roof

The modification of the EG involves a change to the stairs. Therefore, I consider it pointless to talk about the OG now.

The change in the EG entails a change of the stairs.

Why do you see them as necessarily shifting?

Ok, first of all, thank you very much so far for the input!

I have thought through the criticism points from start to finish today, pushed things around, and even physically marked out the entrance area to estimate the size. I also reconsidered where the focus of the house lies and why the layout of the entrance/living area looks the way it does.

It is indeed the case that a large focus of the house is on the spacious living area, where we (and guests… who we actually rarely lock in the garage) mostly stay. The entrance area is also deliberately positioned here to be able to see all the way through to the back, and I think this also creates a certain "representative" impression. I think that based on your inputs, I am trying to get the maximum possible out of the space here, maybe moving the door further outwards, and then I will be satisfied. The entrance area is not a ballroom, but honestly, when marking it out, I didn’t find 1.80 by 2.60 meters "small" either; moreover, the guest’s view does not stop at the entrance to the living area, and only a glass door is planned as a separation between the two areas if anything, to allow the view.

I am really very grateful for how critically you addressed this and also the garage access. As for the latter, it is something I would really miss; this idea was already drawn in the very first plans and is important to me.

Ultimately, as ypg already wrote before, it is a matter of taste. But of course, it still preoccupies me. Therefore, just for better understanding, I would like to ask the opposite question… what size of entrance area would better correspond to your expectations for this house?

PS: I have calculated the current room sizes and attached them..

what size of entrance area would rather correspond to your ideas for this house?

The appropriate size for the entrance area depends on the people who use it: for example, I am a "quick passer-through" – but there are also people who (without the slightest sense of guilt!) cause a pile-up in every revolving door by stopping a hundred times. The mix of these user types needs to be taken into account when determining the capacity of a passage.

I can’t understand some things at all. For example, the "viewing" from the entrance all the way to the garden is rather uncomfortable for the person sitting at the table in the living room. Every mail carrier always immediately sees what is being cooked here. Who wants that?

The hallway or entrance area is basically the reception hall for you, the family, and everyone else. In a 200sqm villa, I expect an appropriate anteroom where I can enter calmly without bumping into a wall because the next person is already on my heels. As you can see, the entrance door barely opens before the first wall appears. You can still flee into the narrow and dark maze-like passage to the garage – but there, family and guests pile up like in a labyrinth. My "representative impression" would be completely different.

I haven’t read anything yet about whether you really want the staircase in the living area. There are several posts from experienced parents here, and it can be said that about 80% would never build something like that again with children.

Finally, the question why you don’t simply let a professional handle the matter? You need an architect anyway and definitely have to pay them. So why shouldn’t they do something for their money?

You need an architect anyway and definitely have to pay them. So why shouldn't they also do something for their money?

I wondered what determines the amount of compensation for an architect. Is it always based on the value of the house, similar to a lawyer's fee being based on the value in dispute? Or on time spent, or is it individual? The architect we contacted estimated about 10% of the value of the house. Unfortunately, he did not explain this in more detail.