Looking for a photorealistic 3D house planner program

@everyone: One thing before I want to address your answers chronologically. I want to sincerely thank you all. Contrary to my fears, there were no stupid remarks like "take a pencil because it’s cheap." On the contrary, people here really make an effort to provide constructive suggestions, which is very commendable because it’s rare!

What I unfortunately completely forgot to mention in my task or question is the request not to argue J!!!

Honestly, it is just difficult to find a wording where everyone can "look into my head" and understand the same thing. So misunderstandings are preprogrammed ... it’s just human and (unfortunately) completely normal. The written word always leaves a lot of room for interpretation and can easily be misunderstood. However, I can certainly understand you both if I know your very contrasting backgrounds (photography vs. research). So please don’t quarrel, there is no reason for that, and in a way, you both are right from your respective perspectives ... only these are not the same as the other person’s.

The misunderstandings are also preprogrammed because nowadays increasingly ridiculous regulations are coming up. I’m not allowed to photograph my children at school and daycare ... on the internet there are tens of thousands of pages with pedophilic content. I’m not allowed to film my front door for data protection reasons ... the burglars who have already visited us 11 times in the last 2 years are happy about that. People also praise such great data protection ... evil kids just hacked my wife’s Amazon account and bought quite lavishly at her expense. Hysterical activism invents more and more stupid rules and disenfranchises the citizen, which helps no one. If I were allowed to upload pictures here or name the quite different companies whose pictures I like, my question would be clearer. Apart from inserting links ... what else is forbidden???

So now to your answers:

: I probably need a head height warning less, especially since the drafts will ultimately be checked and implemented by a construction company and their architects. Hopefully they would notice gross planning errors.

@MIA_San_MIA: Home.by.me/de/ looks promising at first, especially since it is non-binding and even free.

@jansen: Yes, true, I had already uploaded my request once, I actually also got a reply by mail. However, my thread disappeared without a trace or comment. I definitely did not insert any advertising or links. I only used the word Arcon, but that probably shouldn’t be the reason since others also use companies and product names here. Without that, we could here only talk about the weather J

: No, my account was not deleted, only the post, and as said, without warning or obvious violations ... no idea why L

@rupson: SweetHome3D basically goes in the right direction but looks very artificial like a seek-and-find game ... so it’s not what I’m looking for. cadvilla comes closer to my wishes. At least judging by pictures of Cadvilla on Google.

Regarding foam boards ... true, already tried (made of cardboard) and was not very fruitful.

About the architect: An acquaintance whose wife is an architect estimated the fee in the five-digit range (rough estimate). Since he presumably knows the prices well and understands my requirements, I believe him that my needs would quickly reach such dimensions. The acquaintance also explained to me why I can’t expect much from a house company X other than moving walls or changing the position of windows. According to him, general contractors only budget a very low amount for their contracted architect. This architect then has little desire to waste much time for the small amount of under €1,000, which is understandable. These architects therefore mostly only do structural calculations and other strictly necessary things. That’s why these architects have little experience and knowledge in free planning. I, on the other hand, define a real architect rather as an artist and consultant.

: You mention and praise the further development of Arcon. Unfortunately, this name is very vague. There is talk of Arcon+, Arcon with version number xy, Arcon with a year ... sometimes it’s called Arcon Professional, then again Arcon Eleco, one can buy or rent it … all very confusing. Also, cadvilla mentioned by rupson somehow relates to Arcon ... Apparently the term is not a protected product name and is used freely by anyone L. Apparently there is also a new version that can produce fancy 3D visualizations. Despite intensive searching, I have not found it yet.

@rupson: You mean regarding ypg’s statement that one has to buy five-digit programs for what I want "nope." Unfortunately, ypg cannot name it either. Do you know it if you answer no?

@rupson (I’m not sure if the OP means photorealism the way you understand it): Very true, that’s a subjective perspective! Therefore, I have to ask again if I may name companies whose virtual drafts I like? Then one would know where my standard lies J

@dear ypg: I did not criticize Arcon. My knowledge of Arcon is only frozen from over 10 years ago at version 6.51 or 4.1 or also 2003. The latest version is supposedly from 2017 and the version number is confusingly 6.30 ... *I don’t understand that!*

Arcon was a product of mb Software, which eventually went bankrupt. VA Software bought the Arcon software and distributes it under different names. Just google Arcon on Wiki. I have the feeling that many purchasing programs refer to this product, meaning: always a different program, but Arcon is inside. The market is very confusing, with imitators everywhere. This Arcon +6... also new again. I don't know if it is a revised version. The + stands, by the way, for Professional, without plus is a slimmed-down version You can post photos here with source references, no links! No advertising!

Thank you for the prompt response. That’s something you can work with. Then I’ll take these two pictures of a stairwell from Massa Haus. Here a virtual stair railing was covered with completely different textures... sometimes light and sometimes dark, and it already gives a completely different feeling. I could simulate something like that, for example, with the egg-laying-wool-milk-sow program.

For an overall view, I want to upload this picture of Kampa. By that, I mean quite realistic photorealism. For example, you can see shadows, which are important for the subjective perception. And yes, you can clearly see at the transitions that the background is never really behind the house.

Using the Kampa picture, I would like to describe my wishes. On the front of the extension, some kind of cladding panels (made of ceramic?) are attached. But you can just as well work with horizontally running wooden panels, which gives the whole thing a completely different appearance. Or you use natural stone like gray slate ... Nowadays, so much is possible. But if the construction company does not point this out to me, I will regret at the end not having known that such things exist. And even if ... what does it look like in reality? That's why I'm looking for THE program with which I can change everything at will with one click and be inspired in the selection menus thanks to different surfaces.

Back to the online solution Home.by.me ... Thank you @ MIA_San_MIA but unfortunately, it quickly costs money if you need additional points. They also sometimes cost around €50-60 each and I can’t estimate how many of these point units I would need ... That will surely add up to four-digit amounts in no time. I prefer to buy and then have the full scope. Otherwise, the operation of Home.by.me is quick and intuitive to learn.