Floor plan single-family house approx. 300 sqm, plot 780 sqm

1. Regarding the lighting of the center of the house, it is planned to install a larger glass element on the street side (i.e. the west side) of the building in the middle of the roof. To the left and right of it, two dormers are to be created, which are also visible in the design. The glass element would then supply the entire airspace and thus the center of the house with light – according to the architect, the light incidence from this glass element in the roof would be about 8 times higher than that of a normal vertical window. Opinions from the forum are very welcome!

With all due respect, this is utterly ridiculous architect fantasy. So how is the light supposed to get into the living space? Is one of the children's rooms for Einstein Junior who researches light curvature, or does it work like back in the Blues Brothers?
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Seriously, if the west is already the street side, you should at least save the south. And if I were to do something with a light element on the west side, then for a nice, private roof terrace, loggia, or just google Velux roof balcony. That also has practical use for drinking sundowners or as a play area for the kids instead of wasted air-show-off space.

Speaking of, 95 sqm open space plus 20 sqm entrance hall (and another 20 sqm air space above), especially since these hall-like non-divisions don’t feel generous but intimidating. And then without sunlight – really no way. You waste far too much space where you don’t need it, and where it even feels unlivable, and then this:

Anyway: on this topic I notice that the toilet doesn’t work; it is not accessible under the concrete block ;)

Moreover, the children's bathroom is way too small. A guest must (if the ground floor office is to be used as a guest room) go through the hallway to the bathroom. The garages don’t work. Obsessive symmetry, statics, and light have already been mentioned.

If it absolutely has to be large and expensive, then think more towards an angled house with different functional areas. That way you can also better use the depth of the plot. How is the house north of you? The footprint looks interesting.

Will there still be answers to the questions posed to you?

I have acquaintances who live in a very similar house. It is just a bit bigger and has one more floor.

They also have two 3-meter garages attached to the house on the left and right - also with a driveway gate. Unfortunately, their cars fit the house, so they are quite large. Now they always park IN FRONT of the garages because it is so cumbersome to get in and out, and the passage to the house is also on the left garage like yours. But there the car is right up against the house wall.

Like you, they have a huge pompous entrance hall with a massive chandelier. It looks impressive, but they say it causes enormous noise development here (stone stairs, stone floor, smooth walls) and they would not build it that way again. Also, the hall takes up a lot of space, so the rooms adjoining on the left and right are rather narrow.

They also only have windows facing the garden at the front in the open-plan room, but to the west, and the open-plan room is very deep like yours. It is really (!) very dark in their house and they have now retrofitted indirect lighting on the ceilings everywhere so that it’s not so noticeable.

Dear forum members!

Thank you very much for the feedback on the draft here in the forum. Based on this, I have pushed the planning forward again with the architect. You can find the current status attached. The following additions I will still pass on to the architect for the next draft:

[*]Add a large window area at the top right in the living room
[*]Arrange the TV differently (rotate 90 degrees clockwise and then attach it to the wall below)
[*]Continuous garage door on the left side
[*]To consider: Small window or skylight for the TV area (then there would be an additional independent seating area, for example, if you want some peace from the children)
[*]To consider: Raise the wall between the work and TV area a bit upwards
[*]To consider: Glass roof over the balcony!? (Consideration: it is not noticeable from below and would improve the brightness of the entrance area)

Briefly regarding the questions raised:

-Orientation of the house: The building plot is relatively clearly defined by the development plan, namely 14 meters wide and 15 meters deep. It is not allowed to build deeper, which is why ideas like an angled house are difficult to implement. All houses on the street are oriented east/west. Rotating the house 90 degrees to the south side does not make sense in my opinion because then you would have no garden in front of the living room but would instead look directly at the neighbor's garage on the right. I understand the objections that an orientation to the south is generally preferable, but unfortunately I also have to keep the realities of the property in mind.

-Double garage on the north side: With a 6 meter wide double garage, the house would only be allowed to be 11 meters wide instead of 14 meters, because the 3 meter setback must still be maintained on the south side. Considerable space would therefore be lost. Is the slightly better lighting really worth such a significant loss of space? I would be interested in your opinion!

-Guest room: This is to be built in the basement. The study on the ground floor is therefore not planned as a guest room.

-Garages: These are now wider than previously planned and should hopefully provide sufficient space for getting in and out.

I would very much appreciate your feedback!

I would really appreciate your feedback!

It should be well known by now that lack of dimensions is not appreciated here. By the way, there are rumors that someone once symmetrically mirrored themselves to death. Two load-bearing walls are shown above, the left one of which has no counterpart on the ground floor. In the garage on the left side of the plan, you can only get out comfortably if the car is parked backwards or is right-hand drive.

Dear forum members!

Thank you very much for the feedback on the draft here in the forum. On this basis, I have pushed the planning forward once again with the architect. You can find the current status in the attachment. The following additions I will give to the architect for the next draft:

[*]Add a large window area at the top right in the living room [*]Arrange the TV differently (rotate 90 degrees clockwise and then attach it to the wall below) [*]Continuous garage door on the left side [*]To consider: small window or skylight for the TV area (then there would be an additional independent seating area here, for example if you want some quiet away from the children) [*]To consider: raise the wall between the work and TV area a bit higher [*]To consider: glass roof over the balcony!? (Consideration: would not be visible from below and would improve the brightness of the entrance area)

Briefly addressing the raised questions:

-House orientation: The building envelope is relatively clearly defined by the development plan, namely 14 meters wide and 15 meters deep. It may not be built deeper, which is why ideas like an angled house are difficult to realize. All houses on the street are oriented east/west. Rotating the house 90 degrees to the south side makes no sense in my view, because then you would have no garden in front of the living room but would instead look directly at the neighbor’s garage on the right. I understand the objections that a southern orientation is generally preferable, but unfortunately I also have to keep in mind the realities of the plot.

-Double garage on the north side: With a 6-meter wide double garage, the house would only be allowed to be 11 meters wide instead of 14 meters, since the 3-meter distance zone must still be maintained on the south side. So a significant amount of space would be lost. Is the somewhat better lighting really worth such a significant loss of space? I would be interested in your opinions!

-Guest room: This is to be installed in the basement. The study on the ground floor is therefore not planned as a guest room.

-Garages: These are now wider than previously planned and should hopefully offer sufficient space for getting in and out.

I would be very happy to receive your feedback!

Hello, I came across your post when I was searching for east-facing gardens :) Have you already started building? Have you stuck to the plans? We are currently planning a very similar house with an east garden and the street on the west side. I would appreciate hearing about your experiences.