Feedback on single-family house floor plan, 222 sqm desired

Hello everyone,

After you previously helped us a lot with the planning of our bathroom, we would be happy if you could also give us feedback on the overall floor plan of our house. We have to say, however, that with this version (except for the layout of the bathroom on the upper floor and the corner windows in the office and the bedroom above, which will each be replaced by 2 normal ones) we have almost reached the final version. That means a complete redesign is no longer possible/wanted.

Development plan/restrictions
Plot size: 5 a
Slope: no
Site coverage ratio: ?
Floor area ratio: 0.4
Building window, building line and boundary: the building window has already been exceeded and approved. Building boundaries have been fully utilized except for the boundary to the neighbor in the southwest (max 3m).
Edge development: garage on the boundary
Number of parking spaces: 2
Number of floors: 2 full floors
Roof type: hipped roof
Style: urban villa
Orientation: living rooms facing south, front door in the northeast
Maximum heights/limits
Other specifications: /

Requirements of the clients
Style, roof type, building type
Basement, floors: classic-modern, as simple/symmetrical roof shape as possible, urban villa, 2 full floors, no basement
Number of people, age: 3 people (adults mid-30s, child 1 year)
Space requirements on ground floor, upper floor: see plan
Office: home office
Overnight guests per year: estimated about 10
Open or closed architecture: partly, partly
Conservative or modern design: rather modern
Open kitchen, kitchen island: yes, U-shaped kitchen
Number of dining seats: 6
Fireplace: yes
Music/stereo wall: no
Balcony, roof terrace: balcony
Garage, carport: garage
Utility garden, greenhouse: no
Other wishes/special features/daily routine, also reasons why this or that should or should not be: /

House design
Who designed the plan:
-planner of a construction company

What do you particularly like? Why?
Floor plan is very practical (e.g. pantry close to kitchen and garage, utility room on the upper floor where most of the laundry accumulates), our corner windows in the “garage intermediate space” that provide a great view over the fields, our bright dining room with views into the garden, the parents’ area because we find the layout bathroom-dressing room-bedroom very nice and practical, location of the cloakroom: hidden yet equally easily accessible from the front door and the garage
What do you not like? Why?
The roof shape, which unfortunately cannot be designed differently. Due to the garage intermediate space (our substitute for a basement, which only came about afterwards and optimally utilizes the building window while taking up little garden space) the roof is not symmetrical but somewhat "bumpy".
Price estimate according to architect/planner: is still being prepared
Personal price limit for the house, including equipment: should be within range
Preferred heating technology: air/water heat pump + fireplace in the living room

If you have to do without, which details/extensions
-can you do without: possibly the fireplace
-can you not do without: garage intermediate space, office, garage, 3 children's rooms, photovoltaic on the roof

Why is the design the way it is now? Many of our own considerations, discussions with others, gathering inspirations via the internet and prefab house centers, our own living experiences, restrictions due to the shape of the plot and soil conditions
Standard design from the planner? No
Which wishes were implemented by the architect? Actually all (except the complicated roof shape)
What makes it particularly good or bad in your view? See above.

What is the most important/basic question about the floor plan summarized in 130 characters?
What do you like about our floor plan? Do you see any possible difficulties or disadvantages we haven’t considered yet?
Do you maybe have an idea how the roof could be designed differently – possibly with minimal changes to the floor plan?

With the designs, I am speechless and with the statement

have almost reached the final version. That means a complete replanning is no longer possible/we wouldn’t want that either.

I am left dumbfounded.

Sorry, but this has to be said: huge vestibule without any use on the ground floor, double hallway, kitchen quite small, narrow dining area, oversized living area, staircase where you never want it anymore, bedroom is not one... I’m not here to be mean, but this is a floor plan that feels like it’s from the 60s without modern living comfort.

I am lost for words regarding the drafts and the statement

I am speechless.

Sorry, but this has to be said: huge utility room without purpose on the ground floor, double hallway,
kitchen quite small, narrow dining area, oversized living area, staircase exactly where you’d no longer want it, no proper bedroom... I am not here to be mean, but this is a floor plan that feels like it’s from the 60s without modern residential comfort.

Here are a few follow-up questions regarding your comment:
Did you read my questions carefully and answer them?
Do you think your comment could be helpful?
Are all the (one-sided) negative comments justified and understandable?
Do you really think that (just because the function is not immediately indicated) we are designing a room without a function? (The function actually becomes obvious if you read the answers requested by you in the introduction text)
Do you think a very experienced architect from a local construction company, which has built up an excellent reputation over more than 20 years, would design and sign off on a floor plan that, according to your statements, is a total failure?

Do you think a very experienced architect from a local construction company, which has built up a great reputation over 20 years, would plan and sign off on a floor plan that according to your statements is a total failure?

At least I would answer that question with a resounding "yes." Just as there is bad literature, bad music, poorly designed city centers, and cars that have their fans, the same exists in home construction. You can see that here; otherwise, you wouldn't already be quite satisfied, and the architect wouldn't have released this draft as anything better than semi-finished.

You asked for feedback and you got it from me. Others are free to express their opinions as well, which often happens quite quickly when there are obviously small things that can be changed, immediately noticeable as "minor errors." I can be much more detailed and provide reasons. But since I really don't know where to start, I have summarized many things. Others are welcome to do the same, because criticism coming from only one person—that is, me—won't be believed as being true. And yes: there are architects who either cannot assert themselves against clients' wishes, they design what is possible but would not want to live in themselves, and there are architects who take on employment because they are not good enough to exist as freelancers. Here it may be the case that he has been designing for a construction company for some time and has lost all independence, as the company itself wants to keep the planning and construction project simple and cost-effective. That's how it is, and it is not something to be judged negatively. If you cover half the property with usable surface and want to walk every day through a cellar replacement room, i.e., a junk room with an adjoining pantry, which is also oriented towards the best and most suitable garden side, then go ahead. And I think I speak for many when I say that's not exactly what one wants for their own house, for which they pay a lot of money. The hallway too: it is divided into two parts or there are two parallel hallways to the junk room route... meanwhile, the kitchen is tiny and does not even offer enough tall cabinet space. The "open pass-through pantry" also does not provide any storage space for freshly baked cake. The junk room will have to serve that purpose. More likely is that the pantry will be used as a wardrobe closet, since no closet depth is planned in the hallway itself. The idea of the utility room on the upper floor probably stems from this, and I rather see that one got a bit "tangled" with the idea, see also the technology on the upper floor: should the craftsmen constantly walk through your private zone? -> Bedroom: with 3.69 meters minus plaster and door frame, 2.9 meters remain for bed and nightstands... I wouldn’t want to sleep by the door either. With a mattress length of 2 meters, the bed is about 220 cm long, leaving approximately 70 cm passage space next to the bed. Yesterday it was only the bathroom that could have been straightened out, as the space was still quite generous. But when you look at it all in its entirety, I would simply say: start over with a new approach, give the room facing the garden a residential use, create a proper kitchen layout and a spacious hallway, and give the bay window a width that manages to provide space and not just space for a dining table/marriage bed. Everything that you like, in my eyes, has not succeeded. The roof is the least of the evils; you barely even notice it.

Are all the (one-sided) negative comments justified and understandable?

I don't know if that would be ypg's reasoning, but for me definitely understandable:

Kitchen quite small, narrow dining area, oversized living area, staircase where you no longer want it, bedroom is not one

Kitchen: square U is very inefficient, there are almost more corners than cabinet/work surface. Dining area: The doors on the glass walls already almost hit the chairs in the drawing. Staircase: For the size of the house, does the stair foot really have to be right at the front door? It tends to be dirtier there (especially with children) and every time you use the stairs you carry the dirt into the apartment or upstairs. The space taken up by the staircase and hallway on the ground floor is actually huge. Bedroom: practically no space around the bed, more like a sleeping chamber. Also unnecessary given the size of the house...