Floor plan of a single-family house on the south slope, upper floor renovation can wait

Hello everyone,

I have been following here for quite some time and would now like to use your input for our planning.

Briefly about the situation: We plan to build the house step by step, doing a lot of work ourselves since practically the entire family consists of various craftsmen. The plans are the first draft from our architect, but there are quite a few things we don’t like or some explicitly requested points that have not yet been implemented.

Development plan/restrictions
Size of the plot 518m² (approx. 18m x approx. 29m)
Slope south-facing slope, 2m incline over 29m, access only from the south
Site coverage ratio 0.4
Floor area ratio
Building window, building line and boundary 18x14.5 (see file for more details)
Edge development garage
Number of parking spaces 2 & double garage
Number of storeys
Roof shape gable roof 30-38°
Style classic
Orientation east-west
Maximum heights/limits ridge height south side 3.5m / ridge height valley side 8.5m / facade height 7.5
Further specifications

Requirements of the builders
Style, roof shape, building type classic, gable roof, rectangular floor plan (no bay windows)
Basement, floors due to the slope, a basement is forced (?) otherwise actually prefer none.
"UG" (basement level), ground floor, attic floor (only shell condition)
Number of persons, age she 26, he 27, 2 children planned
Space requirements on ground and upper floors UG/basement: 2 children’s rooms, bathroom, technical room, storage room, office with
space for 2 desks & sofa bed
ground floor: living/dining room, kitchen with pantry, bathroom, guest WC,
bedroom, dressing room, utility room
upper floor: only prepare for possible later conversion
Office: family use or home office? family use, occasionally home office (5-10 times per year)
Overnight guests per year negligible
Open or closed architecture rather closed, but kitchen/living/dining room open
Conservative or modern style open to both, probably rather conservative
Open kitchen, kitchen island open kitchen with counter as visual separation
Number of dining seats standard 6 with option up to 12
Fireplace water-bearing tiled stove
Music/stereo wall
Balcony, roof terrace terrace preferably on the double garage,
small terrace in front of children’s rooms in basement

Garage, carport double garage with direct entrance to the house
Kitchen garden, greenhouse
Further wishes/special features definite requirement: main entrance must be on the level of
the living room (ground floor), not in the basement

House draft
Who made the planning:
- planner from a construction company
- architect architect
- do-it-yourself by you
What do you particularly like?
What do you not like?
Price estimate according to architect/planner: pending
Personal price limit for the house: 320,000-350,000
Preferred heating technology: still open, definitely underfloor heating supported by
tiled stove

What I do not like about the architect’s plan:

Ground floor:
Utility room in the basement -> must be on the ground floor
Tiled stove not planned
Kitchen somewhat small
Pantry awkwardly cut (freezer should also fit in)
Dressing room too small for 2 persons (?)

Basement:
The corridor from the entrance - must come from the garage
Children’s rooms & office too narrow and elongated
Both children’s rooms somewhat too small
Office too large
Bathroom in the north only with light well - would complete excavation be possible here? Otherwise to the east on the outer wall?

I have not made my own plans, I really find it difficult with the slope. I would like to come to the next meeting with the architect with concrete suggestions about what I want to do differently and where/how. We don’t want to finish the upper floor for now (actually never), since we don’t like rooms with sloping ceilings and would like to save the costs for finishing by using the possibilities in the basement.

Can you help me further, with new ideas or input on what might still be completely forgotten?

Many thanks in advance for your feedback

Hello, I would personally reconsider the following: * The hallway is spacious, but the wardrobe is a bit small. It might make sense to remove the pantry, enlarge the kitchen a bit (integrate freezer and supplies), use the entire wall as a wardrobe (baby car seat, sports gear, school backpacks, etc... you will still have all that) – but then what would be missing is storage space on the ground floor for vacuum cleaner, household stuff, etc. Maybe a small cleaning cupboard could be integrated into the wardrobe. * I would personally prefer the WC window on the north side, because 1. it is away from the entrance and 2. it does not block natural light in front of the mirror – whether this harmonizes with the exterior view would have to be checked by the architect. * I do not think the dining area at the main passage to the living/kitchen area and in front of the TV is well designed. In general, the cooking/dining/living area is very limited with less than 10m, which of course is due to the terrace and boundary distances. * Access to the bedroom "only" through the living area is not nice either. It can also be noisy if someone goes to bed early or is ill, etc. Toddlers on a different floor, separated by a door to the stairwell (distance), would not work for me. One often has to get to the children at night and currently only hears them through a baby monitor. Coming to the parents from toddler age is only possible via the stairs, through the living area... There is no alternative to at least temporarily accommodate the children on the same floor until they are older. * I personally find a double washbasin for 2 people unnecessary. * I often find a direct access from the garage into the house unnecessary. But with this sloping plot and the main door on the ground floor (only accessible via stairs) or the narrow, space-wasting second entrance (without wardrobe), I would find the direct access very sensible – for that, remove the second entrance and give the small children’s rooms more space! * The office is very large, the children’s rooms are small. Overall, the basement is poorly designed – looks as if the architect ran out of ideas. I would try placing the study on the ground floor and the parents’ area in the basement. Possibly by assigning the garage’s storage room to the house and putting a basement under the balcony or possibly by finishing the attic. On the ground floor, I would try a different/more practical layout of the cooking/dining/living area.

What I just remembered. Do you still have a larger garden behind the house on the north side? If yes, then I would miss the connection of the living spaces to the actual garden!

Hello Milkie,

thank you very much for your detailed reply!

*Yes, there is a garden behind the house on the north side, but how big it will ultimately be still depends on the house
I also feel that the connection from the living spaces to the garden is missing. However, in the current plan we do have the beautiful view into the valley.. Actually, I had imagined the living room extending across the entire width of the house, with a terrace corner to the north. Simply to have a seating area there to include the garden a bit.

*The cloakroom is indeed very small, considering what still needs to be stored there. Maybe some storage space can also be gained on the wall under the stairs.

*What we consciously want is the bedroom & bathroom & dressing room on the ground floor. The children are not here yet, and they will not live in the house forever. That is why we want the ground floor to be an independent living unit. My husband and I each had our (children’s) rooms on a different floor than the parents, that was planned intentionally. The stairs are not really a "stairwell" but are only separated by the living room or children’s room doors.

*WC window on the north side is actually better, will definitely be implemented

*I also don’t find the entire living/dining concept really successful. I would also rather look out to the nice corner glazing, instead of placing my sofa in front of it so that everything is reflected on the TV..

If you make the entrance from the garage into the house (which we want), the stairs at the diagonally completely opposite end of the house is somehow inconvenient, isn’t it?
The garage could theoretically also be on the other side of the house, then you would still have sun in the office & children’s room in the evening downstairs. However, the terrace on the garage would no longer be possible, and neither would the entrance on the right side...

What speaks against the office in the attic? Do you have to reach a certain height or could you simply make a small attic studio there? Or is it possible to expose a hillside side in the basement for a window?

I would also be bothered by the long way from the entrance to the kitchen. You have to walk around the pudding there, although it could be much more direct, namely where the wardrobe is planned. Have a new design made that structures the living room and reduces this cellar entrance corridor.