Help with the floor plan for a semi-detached house - Which entrance is more practical?

Hello,

we are new here and are currently planning our house construction. We have bought a plot for a semi-detached house, facing southwest. On the attached plan it is number 17. Now we have the following problem: The plot is accessed from the south, i.e. our street and also the driveway to the garage are in the south. The small street that runs past the plot on the west side is only a bike and footpath, so it is not drivable. Now we are wondering where to place the entrance to the house. Since it is a semi-detached house, the entrance cannot be on the east side, which would be our favorite. Normally, the entrance would be placed on the north side so that there is a nice garden in the southwest. But if the entrance is on the north, you have to walk through the garden or around the outside over the bike path from the garage to the entrance. We are spontaneously wondering whether people would actually do that or just walk through the garden... We have now also drawn an entrance on the south side, but many say that you don't put an entrance in the south because that is the nicest side of the house. An architect suggested the west as the entrance, but then I would really ruin the terrace and the evening sun..... Maybe you could give us some tips, that would be really great, I am already despairing. :confused:

Thank you in advance.

P.S: In the attachment you can see the development plan, plot no. 17 is ours. The other attachment is a self-drawn floor plan, on the left is the ground floor and on the right the upper floor can be seen.

Now we have the following problem: .... Normally you would place the entrance to the north, so that you have a nice garden in the southwest. ..... but many say that you don’t put the entrance in the south, because that is the most beautiful side of the house.

Don’t pay attention to what others define as "normal." My colleague is looking at our shell construction, standing in the utility room on the ground floor and says: so the washing machine goes here. I say: No, I wash upstairs. She: why upstairs? I: because that’s where the laundry is generated. She confused: but you wash downstairs in the utility room. I: Why? She: That’s how it’s done. I: who says that?

It doesn’t matter at all where you place the front door: visitors will take the short way, namely from the street through the garden to the terrace. I speak from experience. I once installed a combination lock on our garden gate... the first visitor then left again because it was locked. Therefore, I would leave the entrance where it is. Then in the evening you have your garden to the west. Maybe enlarge a south-facing window in the living area. You can separate the entrance from the private area with a wall or hedge, and the situation allows you to structure the garden more livelily. I might move the garage a bit... check or ask about where it could/might be allowed to stand in the development plan.

The most beautiful side of the house is always the entrance area for me, which should welcome guests as well as myself every day. Because I see it at least twice a day, the garden side less so in winter. In the garden you move around, so there are many beautiful impressions. It’s best to build 2 or 3 terraces!

So I see no reason to despair.

... but of course if everyone says you just shouldn’t have your entrance in the south,...

If someone takes the trouble to generally devalue something... or consider it a no-go...

Of course we all want the optimum, but each of us has to make compromises. Your future neighbors will not have a west-facing terrace/west-facing windows, which I personally find more annoying.
The next among your friends criticizes the semi-detached house itself: "I would never want to live so close to someone..."

Good luck!

.... I didn’t understand the thing about the slope...

Since it is a semi-detached house, the entrance cannot be on the east side, which would be our preferred option.

Not generally correct! It depends on the regulations of your development plan. If the houses have to be built with the same design and the neighbor submits their application with the entrance on the south, you must do the same. But if there are no regulations, why shouldn't you be allowed to have the entrance on the west? There are several semi-detached houses that have the entrance in the northwest, where guests walk along the terrace and the house to get to the entrance.
There might be something in the development plan regulations, or you can call the building authority and ask if you can also place the entrance on the west (your neighbor on the east).

Don't pay attention to what others define as "normal." My colleague looks at our raw building state, stands in the utility room on the ground floor and says: so the washing machine will go here. Me: No, I wash upstairs. She: why upstairs? Me: because the laundry is generated upstairs. She *confused*: but people wash downstairs in the utility room. Me: Why? She: That's how it's done. Me: who says that?

It's the same for us We have a utility room downstairs for building services, supplies, and storage space as well as a second utility room upstairs for the washing machine, dryer, and drying rack. We call the room "laundry logistics center."

Why carry the laundry twice through the house to wash it? The laundry is generated directly by the bathroom and bedroom and should also be "processed" there.

Not generally correct! It depends on your development plan's statute. If the houses are to be built with the same profile and the neighbor before you submits their application with a southern entrance, you must do the same. But if there are no regulations, why shouldn't you be allowed to place the entrance in the west? There are some semi-detached houses that have the entrance in the northwest, where guests walk along the terrace and the house up to the entrance.
Something might be stated in the development plan's statute, or you can call the building authority and ask whether you can also situate the entrance in the west (your neighbor in the east).

Hi wastl,
Thanks for the answer, but I wrote that we cannot put the entrance in the EAST, which would be our preference.
We do not have a neighbor yet, as the plot is only allocated to locals who meet the criteria, and that may take some time. So we can build the house however we want.