Floor plan design for KfW 40 single-family house in a developed residential area with fully finished basement

You can't do anything with pretty but false drawings. If there is a height difference of one and a half meters, the terrain should not be depicted as completely flat in the elevation drawings (or if it is to be brought into this condition, it costs many excavator buckets full of money; and possibly the terrain modeling itself becomes a structure - including spacing requirements). These are the typical major sloppinesses of discount architects who basically just want to paint their clients primarily agreeable pseudo-professional pictures. Then five and a half meters distance in front of the garage or from the street including or excluding the unexplained four meters mentioned at the beginning? - with light courts that are only light shafts in the floor plans, it goes on. It is really pointless to fidget with a T in the bathroom. Instead of mostly double images, I would have preferred that the plot contains height points and that the drawings could be viewed in another tab so that one could look at them once scaled. With at least two otherwise helpful respondents, the pause button has already been successfully pressed. I again join in the doubts about the two-story requirement.

You can’t do anything with pretty but false drawings. If there is a height difference of one and a half meters, then the terrain should not be shown as completely flat in the elevation drawings (or if it is to be brought into that condition, it will cost many excavator buckets full of money; and possibly the terrain modeling itself becomes a structure—including distance requirements). These are the typical coarse sloppiness of discount architects who basically just want to paint their clients primarily approvable pseudo-professional pictures. Then five and a half meters distance in front of the garage or from the street including or excluding the unexplained four meters mentioned at the beginning? — it continues with light courts that in the floor plans are only light shafts. It is really pointless to fiddle around with a T in the bathroom. Instead of mostly double images, I would have preferred the property to have contained height points and the drawings to be viewable in another tab, so that you could look at them once scaled. With at least two otherwise helpful respondents, the pause button has already been successfully pressed. I join the doubts about the two-story requirement again.

Thanks for your messages. I will try to work through them then ;) So the whole thing is a preliminary draft—things like light courts have not been “drawn” yet, but are in our heads. Currently, the surveyor is measuring the property exactly. The 1.5 m is an estimate from me. With the data, the architect will then embed the house into the property. My plan would also not be to completely level it out but to work somewhat with the slope, as well as let the basement “stick out” about 1 m “out of the ground” in order to a) not have to level so much, b) give the lower living rooms in the basement more light, c) not have to dig out so much and save on a lifting system in the basement. Since there are no height restrictions and this has also been done with 2 neighbors, this should not be a problem. Or do you see problems, except for the accessibility of the front door over a few steps? The two full stories are mandatory—this was also confirmed to me by the building authority itself. The technical room is that large because it is supposed to house the utility room, storage room, and technical equipment in one. We have that in our current rented semi-detached house and get along well with it. We also have the playroom now and it is used frequently. For my husband, space was important and I actually designed the rooms so that our furniture fits (therefore relatively few floor-to-ceiling windows so that furniture can be placed under the windows). We don’t want to do without the basement because if the children are small, it may still accommodate an au pair and by separating basement/upper floor one has a bit more privacy and the children’s playroom can be realized. That the house can be realized for about €500,000 is based on two offers from two prefabricated house providers based on timber frame construction. As already said, I find the comment on the hallway great—it needs to be revised. I made the pantry as small as possible because I think we will only line one wall with shelves and hardly need space to move around. I was able to talk my husband out of the kitchen island again based on your comments ;) my favorite is a U-shape. For the bathroom on the upper floor, I have no solution so far, as mentioned. The living area is not intended for two chill areas (at least not now), but even here, toys from the children will probably go into one corner. The children’s rooms are designed that large because we currently have about 14 sqm per child and we want to give the children more space. Our bedroom is “that long” because we have two 1.40 m beds side by side. The bathrooms are small—true. We oriented ourselves to the square meters we currently have. I would have liked to give the whole thing a little more as well, but the architect pointed out the statics and load-bearing walls, so all three levels are divided into thirds. The idea of putting the parents in the basement from the start and the children on the upper floor I find also super interesting—we will think about it some more. The 5.35 actually slipped past me—it seems to have been lost in one of the revisions, since it was still in at the beginning. Sorry also for the double number of pictures. For some reason, I could no longer delete them. Thanks for your input!!

That the house can be realized for around €500,000 is based on two offers that were submitted by two prefabricated house providers based on timber frame construction.

If they say so, it’s probably true........unless this objection is justified. It’s only €220,000, but apparently this possible difference causes

I counted about 80 sqm on the ground floor. Across three floors that’s 240 sqm, and at €3,000/sqm for standard living space we’re at €720,000.

You didn’t receive an "offer," but a completely non-binding estimate that no one will ever take responsibility for – except you.
240 sqm for €500,000 – just name these providers, their doors would be battered down if that were the case and you still want to build KfW40.....
We built KfW40 and therefore I know at least a bit about it.

That the house can be realized with around €500,000 is based on two offers submitted by two prefabricated house providers on the basis of timber frame construction.

May I ask if that is with or without a basement? Without a basement, the calculation would make complete sense. The basement cannot be constructed in timber frame construction. Prefabricated house providers offer from the top edge of the base plate or with a basement.

If they say so, it’s probably true........unless this objection is justified. It’s only €220,000 but apparently this possible difference

.. then I also see the difference even without a basement.
A house simply costs, sqm costs, whether underground, above ground, in Flensburg, Meppen or Passau. Small fluctuations are always possible, but not by a third.
We can only mention it.

Things like light wells have not yet been “painted”

Yes, on average it is included.

My plan would also not be to completely compensate,

Why should it be, then the location of the light well makes no sense.

Or do you see problems, apart from access to the front door over a few steps.

Why should the front door have steps?

My husband valued spaciousness and I actually designed the rooms so that our furniture fits (therefore relatively few floor-to-ceiling windows in order to place furniture under the windows).

Actually, you achieve spaciousness by having floor-to-ceiling windows. Parapets protect and reduce visual spaciousness.

possibly still accommodate an au pair

Oops.. in my opinion, that changes quite a lot.

The living area is not intended for two chill zones (at least not right now), but here, too, children’s toys will probably go into one corner.

Here too? Then the kids have their actual rooms, a playroom and the living room to spread out in.. for those who like that?

I would also have liked to give the whole thing a bit more, but the architect pointed out the statics and load-bearing walls, so all three levels are divided into thirds.

I thought it would be timber frame? In the upper floor, only the roof, for example, is then supported by 2-3 studs, as far as I know.

The technical room is so large because it is supposed to be a utility room, storage room, and technical room all in one. We have this in our current rented semi-detached house and manage well with it. We also have the playroom now and it is used frequently.

Even if the form actually fits - I would still be subtly cautious here. Depending on the technology, which could be different here than in the previous house, utility rooms are sometimes significantly warmer and therefore not as suitable as storage space.

That the house can be realized for around €500,000 is based on two offers from two prefabricated house suppliers based on timber frame construction.

Unfortunately, I am quite sure that both the basement and additional building costs will still be added. Anything else would surprise me greatly.

(Also: Check whether timber frame construction is really the best option for the plot.)

I made the pantry as small as possible because I think we will only fill one wall with shelves and hardly need space to move around.

Rooms should also remain functional in everyday life. The anticipated lack of space to move around will likely make it an unloved junk room.

So the whole thing is a preliminary draft – things like halos of light have not yet been “painted,” but are in our heads. Currently, the surveyor is measuring the property precisely. The 1.5m is an estimate from me. With the data, the architect will then embed the house into the property.

No, this is not a preliminary draft! – apparently, such a thing does not exist here (which, in my opinion, is a serious mistake). A preliminary draft is not simply a "like it but not quite" draft, but an independent maturity phase of the design development. It takes place in service phase 2; fundamental matters such as dealing with the topographical and legal realities of the property must absolutely precede it, must therefore already be completed before drawing can begin.
In this context, by the way, you should mention the development plan (without link!), e.g. "Posemuckel No. 123 ‘Karl-Ranseier Settlement’."
A preliminary draft translates a qualified spatial program into a volume-faithful building mass and can in no way be worked out without having first successfully and conclusively discussed the conditions of the property and the framework of the development law.
Impatiently starting to sketch before these essential homework assignments are completed is childishly naive Sims house dreaming and a waste of time and fees!

To later then spend a lot of money adapting the site to the fantasy house that is not measured by reality, one would not need an architect paid for an individual design. I suspect that an artist here, formally called an architect without quotation marks, acts as a "quotation mark architect." Such " " architects regularly only provide the first half of the game (service phases 1 to 4 or 1 to 3), have decidedly too little or no experience with the second half, and like to issue cost estimates that were outdated at the beginning of their studies already. One should actually speak here of hopes instead of estimates.

When their "designs" have then been "finalized" (which by no means means a serious readiness for construction, but merely the internal marital consensus that it is liked now), then the offers from home manufacturers or other general contractors reveal that (the tuition for the artist could have been saved and) the house must now unfortunately be smaller for budget reasons and therefore completely redesigned again. A poor building permit draftsman is then supposed to try again to carry over the spirit of the "like it now" design. From Yvonne, Katja, Kerstin and : what do you actually do professionally? One regularly sees well-thought-out proposals here, without the discount architects being even slightly ashamed at least once!

I was able to talk my husband out of the kitchen island again after your comments. My favorite is a U-shape.

Even if the cohabiting husband, as Frau Jahnke so nicely puts it, "lives indoors," the most weighty word should still belong to the one who usually performs the lion’s share of kitchen work.