House renovation/Loft conversion/What is allowed? From when can a loft conversion begin?

Good day forum, I am a newbie in the (H-)expansion sector and looking for information. We would like to expand our house. That means we actually want to convert the attic into usable space. Now we have obtained the development plans from the city to see what is allowed and what is not. In the documents there is the following sentence: "For two or more story buildings, the maximum permissible roof pitch is 30°. An attic conversion is not permitted." Question 1: How is an attic conversion defined? Question 2: Our current roof measures 20° roof pitch. If we increase to the allowed 30°, we would already have enough floor space to make the floor habitable. Would we be allowed to do that? I hope someone here can help me. We are at a loss. Thank you. LittleBee and family

Hello. We have 2 floors + a basement. And that’s exactly why I’m asking. Because I don’t know what "Dachgeschossausbau" means in this context. To put it bluntly: If we comply with height and angle specifications externally, then the city shouldn't care whether we store boxes there or have our bed set up. Or am I wrong?

Or rather, what makes the attic a "Dachgeschossausbau"? Insulation? Windows? Laminate flooring and partitioned walls? Because the space is currently usable indirectly as well. For boxes and stuff. However, the height is too low to really make it a habitable area. Do you understand what I mean?

Hello,

We would like to extend our house. That means we actually want to convert the attic into usable space. Now we have obtained the development plans from the city to see what is allowed and what is not.

The documents contain the following sentence: "For two- or more-story buildings, the maximum permissible roof pitch is 30°. An attic conversion is not allowed."

We have 2 stories + basement. And that's exactly why I'm asking. Because I don't know what "attic conversion" means in this case. Simply put: If we comply externally with the height and angle specifications, then the city should not care whether we are storing boxes there or have our bed. Or not? Or what makes the attic an attic conversion? Insulation? Windows? Laminate flooring and added walls? Because the space is indirectly usable now anyway. Just for boxes and the like.
Question 1: How is an attic conversion defined?

Attic conversion refers to the entire space in the attic that is usable for residential purposes. According to the development plan, this is not allowed for you and the multi-story buildings also built in your residential area. I assume you live in 2 full stories, that is, without sloping ceilings on the upper floor?

You would be surprised what the municipality does care about

Question 2: Our current roof measures 20° pitch. If we increased it to the allowed 30°, we would already have enough floor area to make the story habitable. Would we be allowed to do that?

I hope someone here can help me. We are at a loss. Thank you.

I think raising the roof pitch afterward should not be a problem; however, this requires approval from the authorities. The question is whether it is worthwhile, since 20° is completely sufficient for storing decorations and the like.

Unfortunately, you do not mention when the development plan is from, nor if there are already single-family houses nearby your house that use the attic for residential purposes. Before getting your hopes up, you should go to the building planning office responsible for you and present your wishes there. The responsible clerk will be able to tell you immediately, based on current municipal decisions, whether you are allowed to convert the attic or not.

Rhenish regards

Hello! We currently occupy only one floor of the house. The second floor is also assigned to family members. Hence our wish to expand the house upwards.

The building plan is very recent. We received it this week, so I assume it complies with the current regulations.

We have a few multi-story houses in the area. Some of them with attic conversions. However, I do not know to what extent the additions were made legally. There are also high-rise buildings very close to us.

We are currently gathering information on whether our plan is feasible or not. Unfortunately, we are complete laypersons when it comes to such regulations. Hence my questions.

Changing the roof pitch for storage space is pointless. That was only an idea to make the attic usable without visually altering the exterior. Because 30 degrees would be allowed. And I cannot understand why the city should be interested in what we do with the interior now. Can you explain that to me?

We will definitely inquire at the office. I just want to improve my understanding and knowledge beforehand to possibly have alternatives in mind. Therefore my question here in the forum.

Thank you!

Why does the city care? Well, because the city does not want 200 sqm of living space in a single-family house, resulting in many parties living in one house, like in your case. Why not? Because infrastructure and urban planning might not allow it?! For example, parking spaces, etc. If your plan is new, you will very likely not get approval. If only you had it sent to you this week, but the plan is 20 years old, you might have a chance. The urban development may have turned in your favor?! Only if your neighbors have legally converted the attic could it be approved for you. Illegal constructions usually do not create building rights for the surroundings. The high-rise buildings near you will probably have a different development plan. You cannot draw any conclusions for your construction pit from that!

Thank you for the response. But we want to combine the expansion with the one apartment, meaning to enlarge the apartment. We are and will remain 2 parties in the house.

I know there have probably been some building applications in recent years that were rejected. If that is the case for us, then unfortunately the plan is dead. Without approval, I would never do anything there. But I still hope that there is a loophole. After all, we just want to create 2-3 rooms. No dormers, no raised knee walls, no other changes. Just a roof pitch increase to the permitted extent!

Well. We will call the building authority on Monday and get information.