Floor plan design for city villa with 168 sqm - Who has ideas?

I tried to take your suggestions to heart and put myself in the hands of an architect.

... at first reading, it sounds as if a freely chosen architect is meant. On the other hand, I read about "signed for a city villa" and about concrete 143 or 168 sqm. That then sounds more like "the builder is already decided," and accordingly the planner submitting the plans works for the builder rather than an (owner-client-oriented) architect in the classical sense (?)

I like the children’s room in the first draft the least because of its difficult divisibility; in my opinion, that also commits a later homeowner to a single child, a minus point for the resale value.

If this is about a base model from a provider, where practically only wall shifting is discussed, it would seem practical to introduce that provider’s standard design as a starting point here in the discussion.

And, regarding the child: don’t forget, they also grow up. Having 30 sqm but on the upper floor is probably less great than a bit smaller but with a separate entrance (and: if the child moves away to study, rentable as a granny flat).

Many thanks for the numerous contributions and tips! That was much more than I expected.

Construction company, floor plan design: The company is Team Massivhaus. They offer free floor plan planning. I quote from the construction description: "The floor plan layout can be changed free of charge according to the wishes of the builders. The scope of services here applies to the house type, living area, equipment, tile area, number of rooms, and the number and type of windows of the respective catalog house used as the basis for calculation."
You can also change the exterior dimensions of the house as long as you roughly reach the living area from the catalog (otherwise it costs extra per sqm). However, it is better to leave these as they are. Otherwise, it gets even more complicated.

Architect, planning meeting: At the beginning, you have a planning meeting with an architect where the desired floor plan is roughly discussed. Then the draftsmen develop the further designs until you decide on one. At the end, an architect takes another look. That’s how I understood it after reading building blogs and forums.

Commissioning your own architect: From various blog and forum posts I learned after signing the contract that there were always "challenges" in designing the floor plan. A draftsman simply has a different area of responsibility than an architect. Therefore, I had a longer consultation with a freelance architect I commissioned. He did a lot of drawing and also gave good tips on the arrangement of the rooms.

First of all, many thanks again for the many hints and suggestions:

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Zoning Dining/Living room: Yes, it looks tight with the table. I have created an adjusted floor plan. I want to look out into the garden from the sofa (or a later large seating area). So the couch must be placed in the niche at the bottom. Unfortunately, this leaves no large areas for cabinets in the living room. I have now drawn two single-leaf patio doors to go outside. The middle double door remains closed and the table is moved in front of it. Between the doors, I still have about one meter of floor space on each side. That’s how I imagine it as a layman. Is this nonsense or could it work like that? Or should the table be moved further toward the kitchen?

Storage room in the dressing area: I had hoped that I could place a few cupboards in the upper corridor (about 1.40 m wide up to the stairs). Storage space would also be available in the study. I initially left it like that upstairs. I like the hidden cupboards in the study and living room (wall between the two rooms), and I would then have to change this. But a door and a window can be quickly drawn in. I need to ask what an additional room costs. I think about 1200 euros. It’s all a matter of cost.

Swap of WC and utility room: The architect also suggested that. I have drawn it in. However, I see some disadvantages. The door to the utility room is further up. A car is supposed to be parked there later. It will be a bit tighter carrying things inside if I have to squeeze past the car every time. Or I make the carport wider. A more decisive disadvantage for me would be the potential noise nuisance in the kitchen and living room from the utility room. I have read some negative things regarding ventilation, the gas boiler, and the aerated concrete walls. That’s why I wanted the WC in between. Or I let the wall to the kitchen be built with calcium silicate bricks at extra cost.

Town villa with two entrance doors and granny flat: The idea is great. But I think it will fail due to our budget and also the chosen construction company.

Retirement: I can’t see the future. But I don’t want to keep running in the hamster wheel until I drop dead at 70 years old.

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Boring house, size: For us, the house type had the best price-performance ratio. Don’t worry, the town villa will not be just one of many in the area. The plot is in a village where there are almost only older classic single-family houses. The company offers several town villas (from 130 to 195 sqm). You can also easily enlarge them for an extra charge. We liked the SV170-1 with 168 sqm best.

Study on the ground floor: Sure, your mentioned advantages of moving the study to the ground floor can’t be denied! We will keep an eye on it. I only need a computer for work. I could also work on the ground floor. But I think I can only decide after working upstairs for a few months. If I don’t like it, I will move one floor down. You can always swap the rooms later. I also wanted to put some exercise equipment in the room. It’s supposed to be my room, so it doesn’t need to be that big otherwise. I don’t receive clients at home.

Children’s room: Thanks for the detailed description. Honestly, I don’t know if our daughter prefers to play in the living room or in her own room. She is only 1.5 years old now. I don’t find another bathroom sensible. We have two bathrooms in the house for three people. That should be enough. But maybe in ten years I will be proven wrong. We are seriously thinking about including the piping for a later kitchen upstairs on the extra cost list. Let’s see what that costs. I have already drawn in another door. So, later the large room can be partitioned, and the child can already have two entrances to the room.

Dressing room: see above

Build fast or have time: We could go through as many floor plans with the draftsman as we want. Each change probably takes about one week (according to what I have read, sometimes considerably longer). However, the price guarantee is only 12 months. Moreover, from October we will pay standby interest on 100,000 euros (250 euros per month).

"Become free!": That is very beautifully written. It fits not only for house building but also for all other challenges in life.

: Thanks for the tips on children’s room size. I want to provide our child with as much space as possible. Maybe she will have a hobby that needs space. You can always partition off something later.

Living room with 2 doors into the garden: As absolute laymen, we thought to have terraces with corresponding accesses both to the east and the south. On the south side, it could also be a single-leaf door. But I don’t know if we would then run into trouble with KfW55. The more window area we have to the south, the better. I should ask about that.

Window with transom in the kitchen: Many thanks, noted. If there is a normal window there (instead of a door), we will have such a window installed.

1 child or more: It stays at one child.

: Sorry that it was a bit confusing regarding the company and the architect in my writing. My above explanations should shed light in the dark.

Basic model:

Later division of the children's room: I am working on it.

What does TM build with? With aerated concrete or Poroton? A tip: Don't plan a door-to-door salesman entrance for yourself, but use the entrance hall, even with shopping bags. Thanks for your feedback – it's becoming rarer that the posts by the OP are acknowledged! Brief regards

Have you ever had a rough estimate done for a house? Because with the base price of 155k€ for 170sqm on the website, I’m a bit puzzled. That’s simply 55k€ less than the base price of similar houses we have been offered by various GUs. In the end, after complete customization, it added another 60k€ for us. That just feels like too little money, there’s still a lot to add on. If you already have a rough figure, all good, otherwise I would have it calculated again so you don’t get a surprise later.

We are now seriously considering including the lines for a future kitchen in the upstairs floor in the extra cost list.

I think that is nonsense, as it would create a small "second living unit" that would then be "trapped," i.e., have no separate entrance. In my opinion, this is exactly the ideal type of "neither fish nor fowl."

Window with transom in the kitchen: Thank you, noted. If there will be a regular window there (instead of a door), we will have such a window installed.

Windows whose opening does not require you to first clear pot plants from the windowsill are also pleasant in other places.

One child or more: It remains one child.

As I said: even if you want to build your house for your whole life, I would not completely ignore the resale value for future buyers. Having "only one child's room" as a negative point is roughly interchangeable in importance with "no basement" or "no room on the property for a second garage." Ask a real estate agent how often this is the decisive factor why an otherwise ready buyer prefers to keep looking.

So I build for myself and my own demands. Not for posterity or potential buyers...