Single-family house as a terraced middle house on a slope - design

Hello,

I have been following and reading threads of this kind here attentively for quite some time. Now that we have found a plot and will also be buying it (the transfer will take place in November), the planning begins.

It is a plot on a south-facing slope which is narrow (13.6m) and about 37m long. The special feature here is that the actual access (official address) is on the north side, which is only reachable via a walkway (stairs only!). On the “bottom” south side there is a residential street from which we plan to access and also use the plot approximately 95% of the time. Therefore, 2 entrances are planned, 1x ground floor in the north and 1x basement in the south.

We have now received the first draft this week from the architect and were shocked by the size of 180 sqm living space + about 31 sqm usable area, due to the wide construction from east to west at 13.6m but naturally not arbitrarily reducible in depth.

Development plan/restrictions:

Size of the plot: approx. 500 sqm
Slope: Yes, south slope
Construction according to §34 BauG

In the east, there has already been a house since the 80s which is built up to the property boundary (no encumbrances in the land register), because row houses were planned there back then.

The restriction is therefore “closed” construction from property boundary to property boundary. An “open” construction is possible, but then we would have to keep a distance of about 5-6m to the west due to setback areas calculated by a formula with the number of floors, etc. (I do not know it exactly), which would lead to a house width of 6-7m, so it is uninteresting. On the west side the neighboring plot is not yet developed and nothing is planned as far as we know. Therefore no windows to the east and west.

Orientation: Front door in the north on the ground floor and in the south in the basement
Maximum heights/limits: Ground floor max 1 story (bungalow), therefore basement to the south with living rooms and terrace, to the north with utility cellar.

Client's requirements:
Roof shape: Gable roof, here we have to align with the house in the east, which is at about 22% (exact measurement will be done later)
Number of floors: 2 – as mentioned above, basement with living rooms to the south
Number of people, age: 3 (38, 36, 3), no further children planned

Space requirements on ground floor, basement: We wanted a maximum of 150 sqm living space.

Office: Home office, 4 days per week for me
Kitchen: open kitchen, living/dining area as one large space

WC/Bathroom: Full bathroom on the ground floor with shower and tub. In the basement WC with small shower.

Balcony: If possible over the entire width, but that leads to darkening of the basement where possibly too little light would then be available?
Garage, carport: at least 2, 1x garage, 1 carport

Other wishes/special features/daily routine:

Unobstructed view to the south over a wide distance from living/dining room on the ground floor, bedroom, children’s room, guest room in the basement. Since our son is still very small at 3 years old, we want to plan the sleeping rooms on one level. Office in the ground floor to the south, maybe later as a children’s room and I will move to the basement.
Bathroom with window on the ground floor.

Since the “path” in the north is only accessible via stairs (not wheelchair accessible), we are planning 2 entrances. In the north because that will be the official address, postmen etc. will all use this path. In the south from the residential street we are planning a path from the carport through the garden to the basement entrance in the south.

House design:
Who is the planning from: Architect
What do you particularly like?
Open bright living-dining area up to the kitchen, linear rooms, terrace would be covered by balcony

What do you not like?
Somewhat large (currently 180 sqm living space + 31 sqm cellar, desired would be 150 sqm), bathroom with slanted door, but we have not found another idea either.
We actually like the fireplace in the position, but we fear it wastes a lot of space.

Price estimate according to architect/planner: 350,000 – 400,000
Preferred heating technology: heat pump (no gas available, no pellets desired due to space saving)

If you have to do without, which details/extensions can you do without: large rooms, smaller office and children’s room, living/dining area can also be smaller, smaller hallway
Which can you not do without: separate WC/bathroom, garage, office, large technical room in the basement since only 2 utility cellar rooms to the north are possible (planned with KNX bus resulting in many switch cabinets and building technology)

What do the experts think about the layout and plan, is there still room to save living space so that it does not become so large? We like the layout of the rooms, but perhaps there are also mistakes in our thinking that we have not yet considered.

I hope I have listed all details for now, if I have forgotten something please let me know and I will try to add it of course.

For whom will the entrance in the north and the entrance in the south be? Which entrance will the visitors use??? You?

And at first glance, do you always want to pass by the entrance in the north to get to the main bath?

Presumably, everything we use ourselves and our visits will come from the south, as the access road in the south is the usual way to reach us.

I have attached a picture of the surroundings. The sidewalk basically runs around the 2 houses to the east and the house to the west. We don't want to impose that on ourselves or others by having to walk it every time.

Bathroom: No, it makes little sense after your objection, as you would always have to go through the hallway to get to the toilet on the ground floor or to bathe/shower.

If it were up to me, I wouldn't want any entrance in the north at all, but here the architect advised against it because he knows the city’s building authority, and it won’t be approved that way. Also, it is difficult to have the only entrance on the south as the only house on that path.

Then the north entrance would be the postal address :) and could be neglected for the floor plan. That means: in the basement a proper corridor with a wardrobe in the south and upstairs then a "side door" ;) I would then also classically place the kitchen and dining area towards the south garden, and as a basement room, i.e. to the north, the living room. Sounds strange to you... but you should definitely reconsider it.

When I only read your introduction text, I immediately thought of a parking space under the ground floor. That reduces the floor area of the basement but entails some additional costs regarding insulation. On the contrary, there is a savings in floor space. I would definitely bring this up to see if it would be approved as a terraced middle house.

Regards

I wouldn't put the bedroom right next to the technical room. Or does it not make any noise there for you?

We had already inquired about the idea of a garage "in the house" with the building authority before purchasing the plot, and they told us it would not be approved. After much consideration, we discarded the idea again because we would lose a lot of garden due to the driveway extending to the house, etc.

Because I did not read it that way from your text, you would therefore indeed plan the main living area (kitchen, dining/living) in the basement? Or still on the ground floor but swapped, meaning kitchen/dining to the south and living in the north of the ground floor?

A heat pump is planned, probably air source, which is located outside the house. We would install a controlled residential ventilation system in the attic. We expect the most "noise" from these two components. I do not expect the control cabinet, technology/relays in the room to be a sleep disturbance since most relays are switched when no one is sleeping anyway. Am I making a mistake in thinking this?