House and garage positioning on property (orientation)

Hello everyone,

we have already read a lot through the forum, but now we would also like to directly gather your feedback tailored to us.

Plot:

- 707sqm according to the land register
- 17.5m wide and 39.5m long (does not fit mathematically, but is stated like this in the exposé)
- §34 buildability
- fenced with access on the right

Existing structures on the plot:

- solid small 1.5-family house including garage
- ready for demolition

New house:

- two-story city villa
- 9x9m
- with a later large gate garage or double carport with two parking spaces in front

Cadastral map:

- No. 12
- oriented to the north
- existing house is shown in dark
- garage is shown lighter
- street is marked in white

Situation:

We have reserved a plot that meets all our requirements except for the orientation. This would be a North-East-South orientation.

For the plot details, we first assume the width and length figures, especially the width.

We have the situation that there is still an existing house on the plot, which will be demolished. Theoretically, a new house can also be built on this spot, according to inquiries at the building authority, since §34 applies and some houses on the street were built sometimes "in front," sometimes "in back." The problem with building on the east side of the plot, where the existing house now stands, is the high cost factor. According to initial research, extensive soil compaction must be carried out, reports, etc. That runs into the tens of thousands, which we cannot and do not want to manage.

Therefore, the alternative is to place the house in the west, i.e., by the street with an appropriate distance. This also has the advantage that the house shields the garden. Viewed like this, we would then have a North-East-South orientation. Although rather East and North-South each sideways. On Sonnenverlauf.de it can be seen that the sun would be on the terrace until about 1 p.m. and then not for the rest of the day, or only out of the shadow cast by the house on the rear plot. We also considered extending the terrace around, but for that the plot would not be wide enough, considering a later garage.

Viewed from the street, the driveway is on the right, where the garage to be demolished still stands. Here, too, was our consideration to later build a large gate garage or a large carport for two parking spaces as a boundary construction with about 5m distance to the gate so that cars can still park in front. However, this opens up the next "problem" that the garage would then be on the south side, and as soon as the sun shifts more directly to the west, it also casts a shadow. Therefore, we might have to plan the house so that it stands a bit further into the plot, e.g., starting where the garage ends? You can often see that.

First considerations: 17.5m plot width. Distance to the neighbor remains 14.5m. The house is 9m wide, so we have 5.5m to the other neighbor. With boundary construction, the garage/carport could be built there later. Are 5.5m at all realistic or too small? Actually rather too small, right?

We need your assessment on orientation and interior design here, please. The house floor plan corresponds to our ideas, but we are uncertain to what extent the layout makes sense with regard to the orientation.

As you can see, we have many questions and so far have not really found an answer for ourselves. Sorry for the wall of text, but you should now have all available information.

Maybe some of you have ideas or suggestions for ideal use and design.

Many, many thanks in advance!

The floor plan does not seem to work dimension-wise. See the width of the shower toilet, guest room door, etc. I also do not see any space for a bed in the bedroom. The orientation is not correct. In short: first the plot, then the house design. There is no sugarcoating "but we have..." In this respect: draw in the building area and sketch where rooms could go. There are enough posts about this, including one pinned by me. Otherwise, please let the architect _do it_.

The alignment is not correct, that is true. That is what I am concerned about. Maybe I wanted to do too much right from the start. We first have to plan the plot, and we would like input here. What positioning options do you see?

Mark the building envelope

No way. It's §34.

From the street side, the driveway is on the right

And moving it to the left isn’t possible? You don’t even have a sidewalk, or is the tree a problem.

The ... next "problem" is that the garage would then be on the south side and ... it also casts a shadow.

But it’s at most 3m high. The shadow issue is then quite limited. If instead of three, you only plan windows and doors on two sides of the living room, the overhang wouldn’t be particularly large either.

What positioning options do you see?

House 5m parallel to the street, entrance facing the street, no north window in the living room, double garage 5.90m x 9.00m with 9.5m distance to the street on the north boundary.

17.5m lot width

17.9m seems more plausible to me given the area specification.

Thank you very much for the feedback!

And moving it to the left is not possible? You don't even have a sidewalk, or is the tree a problem.

Extremely unfavorable, since the property is fenced including the driveway and gate in the fence. The fence is also attached with a kind of stone foundation. So this would be very labor-intensive.

17.9m seems more plausible to me given the area specification.

In case of doubt, the width fits and the length is longer. We probably have to unpack a protractor on site and measure. Until the proper survey, it is definitely too late for these plans.

House 5m parallel to the street, entrance to the street, north window in the living room gone, double garage 5.90m x 9.00m with 9.5m distance to the street on the north boundary.

Sorry, maybe I’m missing something, but what exactly do you mean? The garage then further north behind the house as a boundary building? So the house 5m away from the street and then 5.90m (garage width) from the neighbor? Assuming the driveway would be on the left (as seen from the street)? Yes, that would then be ideal, that’s true. Only the not insignificant costs for fence renewal would arise. Alternatively, maybe a winding path from the current driveway to the garage north/left. Hmm!

Until the proper survey, it is definitely too late for these plans.

Go to the land registry office and ask about the plot width. They will then check the survey sketch, and if there are no exceptional circumstances, you will have the width accurate to the centimeter. Alternatively, send an email to the land registry office requesting the cadastral map with the boundary lengths. However, this is subject to a fee (I estimate about 50€).

The garage then further north behind the house by boundary development?

Yes.

So the house 5m away from the street and then 5.90m (garage width) from the neighbor? Provided the driveway would be on the left (as seen from the street)?

Yes.

Alternatively maybe a winding path from the current driveway to the garage north/left.

No. Better with 6m length to the south. If the southern living room window is removed, only about 1.5m would remain.