Our floor plan design for an affordable house

I would be bothered by the laundry room being close to the living area in the floor plan. When the washing machine or dryer is running, you constantly hear it on the couch. The open office area is also not ideal; if there is a computer and printer there and maybe some paperwork or an open package on the desk, it might look untidy. Also, in the evening someone might want to spend time on the PC while the other wants to watch TV, so they disturb each other. My children have often prepared presentations and printed things on the PC in the office, and you are not undisturbed right next door. How is the stairway supposed to be planned, will there be an open space under the stairs from the office?
Upstairs there is hardly any storage space; we have a large closet in the hallway upstairs with a vacuum cleaner and other cleaning supplies/bathroom items for the upper floor. When the children grow older, twice as many “Beautyartikel” for the bathroom will be added, all those things need to be accommodated somewhere as well.

Best regards
Sabine

The spacious hallway on the upper floor feels open, bright, and friendly. I agree with the OP on that. But Kaho's concerns are not unfounded. The ground floor is open – I also like that, we have it too. However, with 3 people, you already need places to retreat – even more with 4. Where should the man of the house go when the women's coffee chat is happening on the ground floor? Where to calmly make phone calls while the family is playing a game at the dining table? We now have a second room with a TV, sofa, and play area. You don't always want to just flop down on the bed. Wouldn't an additional 3 sqm in the parents' area be good to create a seating area or to lay out the yoga mat?

Maybe you should also fairly mention that your open space is indeed bigger, but now feels too cramped to you. Your piano hardly has any space, and you are very bothered by many things that you attribute to the lack of space, for example around the dining area.

Our open space is at most minimally larger (about 1 m² or so). I am only talking about the living/dining area now. It only feels cramped to me because of the piano. But I don’t see that with the OP. I am also missing the measurements to be able to say more precisely (how big is the window etc., how wide/deep is the room anyway?)

And yes, as a tip, I can say to think carefully and draw to scale exactly how the table should be placed and whether the walking paths around it (i.e. access to the terrace, space between wall/sofa/kitchen) work, also when someone is sitting at the table (and not always sitting right by it). We have our sliding door (2.6 m wide) by the dining table and have realized afterward that it is not so easy to position the table so that you can also comfortably use the sliding door. That was not so obvious to us on the plan beforehand either. So always draw it in exactly, maybe also try live in the old apartment.


P.S. We are now seriously considering removing the piano to create a freer area there. We also don’t like that everything stands against the wall, especially with the piano, that stands out.

First of all: I find 12 sqm quite acceptable if the space fits the house. It would only be out of the question if the house is over 200 sqm and the children are comparatively neglected.

And there is nothing to criticize. Thrifty is thrifty.-- Just courage. Keep it up. Don’t be discouraged. K.

I do hope that the OP manages with the money and the EL. But you don’t have to sugarcoat any fancy Pinterest corners here, especially when the living space is taken over, it will certainly look quite different due to lack of planning than in glossy magazines. Thriftiness also has a lot to do with planning. Closing your eyes, even if you currently do it differently, is not good.

The open home office area isn't so great either; if there is a computer and printer there and maybe paperwork or an opened package on the desk, it might look untidy.

But Kaho’s concerns are not without merit. The ground floor is open – I also like that, we have it too. However, with 3 people it definitely needs places to retreat – with 4 even more.

Which brings us back to the beginning of this whole discussion...

I don’t want to overestimate the corridor discussion either. My main point is to view and evaluate the OP’s, in my opinion, romantically idealized ideas of this corridor corner a bit more realistically.

It is never, nowhere, never used as a reading nook or any other “cozy” corner, not asked for or even considered. The use is limited to wardrobe, storage, bookcases (without wanting to sit there), place for raising plants, or just as a hallway.

Phew, you are so right!
We have a gallery, it could actually be cozy, with the attic and west window… but we are certainly not spending time there. It’s a passage room. My husband set up his home office there a year ago; he looked so lost sitting there… honestly, I also disliked walking behind his back there… which is why we rearranged our office on the ground floor so that we both have a place there.
It’s a pity: the gallery has space… but it is used… and now comes the thing: for the vacuum cleaner, my sports bag, a plant sits there and sometimes the laundry to be ironed, and often the clutter that should go downstairs or comes up from downstairs and is then stored there because we don’t know where to put it (e.g. manuals, discarded things, etc.) A piece of furniture that is good for nothing anymore also stands there.
At the moment I do my morning workout there when the house is otherwise empty. But I certainly don’t do planks or the morning greeting when people are coming through. THAT’s just not possible!

P.S. We are now seriously considering removing the piano to create a freer area there. We also don’t like that everything stands against the wall, especially the piano that stands out.

That is honest as well.
Our concerns don’t just come out of whimsy, they are all based on experience!
how old are your children again??????

And just because you don’t know what emergency water is for , doesn’t mean that the list is irrelevant for you.

That's also honest for a change.
Our concerns do not come out of whim or fancy; these are all experiential values!
how old are your children again??????

Yes, you have to be that honest sometimes. Of course, you can't know everything in advance, can't imagine everything either, and sometimes needs change.
We don't have any (yet), maybe someday. The rooms are definitely already there anyway

And yet, I cannot take these experiences, which run through all your floor plan critiques, seriously. Because anyone who wants to avoid everything needs a soundproof palace: Often mentioned: where should the jackets go? Well, an extra wardrobe is great, but it costs expensive square meters; those who save have, like us, 5 hooks on the wall. That's it. Nothing more. And if that’s not enough, we put jackets on the guest sofa or in the utility room. And we often have visitors, and it is often not enough. Also a classic: you hear alternately "the dryer," "the child," "the flush"..... Yes, that’s how it is. You hear each other. I hear the dishwasher in the living room in the evening. So what... Silent Night is a beautiful song on 12/24, but it is not a life goal for many. Often criticized: lack of zoning—walking paths—you see each other, you bother each other. Yes, exactly, it is right when parents notice who is visiting and how many. And it is right that teenagers would like to do as they please, but it is the adults' job to set boundaries, even if it hurts. And otherwise, you just see each other when you live together. Building a retreat for everyone—that's Schlossallee, but some people also build Badstrasse. And to the OP: with your budget, you’ll have to go back with the red pen, I bet. But that has to come from the head and heart itself when the prices lie on the table. And yes, there is still something to do... the floor-to-ceiling windows with railing at the bottom, less open below, is structurally simpler and cheaper... we shall see. K.