Single-family house orientation garden and terrace: south or west?

Hello.

I am asking for your advice on the basic planning of the ground floor; it is about the orientation of the garden and the terrace, whether the south side or the west side of the house is better.

At first, it should not be about the rest of the house, which will then be adjusted; nevertheless, here are the key data.


Development plan/restrictions
Plot size 814m²
Slight north slope
Site occupancy index 0.4
Floor space index 0.7
Building window, building line, and boundary: see pictures
Edge development
Number of parking spaces: large double garage (for 2 cars, bicycles, etc.)
Number of floors: basement and ground floor
Roof shape: gable roof, pitch 30°, ridge direction is east-west as specified by the building window, but that could probably be different.
Style: normal
Maximum heights/limitations: none


Client requirements
Basement, floors: Due to the slope, there is a basement, which on the north side has 2 large rooms, each with a large window
Number of people, ages: 4 people, 44, 42, 13 and 14
Conservative construction method
Open kitchen
Number of dining seats 6-8
Fireplace: none
Music/stereo wall, large TV on sideboard or on the wall

House design
Who is the planner: own design
Preferred heating technology: district heating 100% regenerative

Level access from the garage is explicitly desired, all necessary rooms (sleeping, bathroom, office) should be on the level of the ground floor. The children will get a large room each on the north side in the basement with proper windows without light shafts and a shared private bathroom in the basement.

An upper floor is probably excluded for cost reasons. The north slope is there, with a 2m height difference across the entire plot, inside the house it is about 1m; the terrain on the north side will be adjusted accordingly. A slight departure from the building window will probably be tolerated.


I have been working on this for a while now and still am not sure whether the living room and terrace should be on the south side or on the west side of the house.


If the terrace is on the west side, I still have sun there at noon and in the evening, but the "chocolate side" of the house is not so visible from the street. Also, I am not quite sure whether the living room is well placed on the west side.


What is your opinion, or what would you change and why?


All plans are "oriented north," my own sketches are slightly rotated, as otherwise, I cannot draw them.


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Many thanks


Regards Ralf

I would plan the terrace to the west/north, especially if you have an unobstructed view in that direction. In my opinion, the south-facing terrace is overrated; in summer no one wants to sit there voluntarily.

Why don’t you place the house by the street and create a nice garden at the back? It is accessible both from the basement and the ground floor (e.g. raised terrace).

Children's room in the basement with a north-facing window, but they're thinking about the terrace.. Exactly my humor.

You just can't help yourself, opening a new thread for every single facet of thinking about the same construction project all the time [hheh].

Is this an April Fool’s joke?
“Presumably,” “probably”… costs not in view and the trip to the building authority hasn’t been made yet.

So either two small families, or one large one spread over 2 floors.

One upper floor is probably ruled out for cost reasons. The north slope is just there, and there is a 2m height difference across the entire property,

I had a feeling that the one asking here didn’t even know who or what the house is actually being built for – sometimes for 2 small families, then for himself and something “foreign,” now the slope is actually being taken into account – but that’s about a larger family?!

Now a staircase in a stairwell is being used here, which dates back to the times of the 2-family house but also has nothing to do with family life with children. The dark apartment hallway is really bad, but that has already been criticized back and forth.

I’ve been messing around for a while now

I did that as a teenager too – even if only my setup was used as a pass, there is still the insight that at some point as an adult, you should know your limits.

and ypg:

I really appreciate your expertise, but somehow we don’t seem to click. Please provide meaningful suggestions for changes and not just always say "against".

I specifically asked for only actual questions to be answered here, namely the orientation of the living room and the terrace with all their pros and cons.

In the other topics, garages and parking spaces were discussed, quote "cars are naked sleepers", but if someone wants a garage, then you have to accept that, so this should only be about the actual question here.

The north slope is just the way it is, and we have to accept that. And also the limited budget and the fact that I probably need a basement.

I also cannot place the house outside of the building window at the front by the street and block the view of the other two houses, that certainly doesn’t work. At least I was verbally assured that a slight departure from the building window to the north is possible.

An entrance through the garage is explicitly desired, and that necessarily means that this entrance ends somewhere in a stairwell, since there is no utility room on the ground floor.

The district heating comes directly from the southwest and cannot be routed around the house, so the basement is necessary because I cannot also have a utility/heating room on the southwest side.

Some acquaintances also have such a configuration with a slight slope with living spaces in the basement with a large window; I have to accept that.

The classic single-family house looks different, that’s clear to me.

So I kindly ask for pertinent answers, gladly without considering old topics, which have unfortunately become confusing due to exactly such discussions.

Regards