Single-family house with flat roof and 367 sqm living area

I think split-level with that budget could be absolutely amazing.... I'm totally into it and glad to have built that way. It's just a great sense of space.

Your television royal box really impressed me a lot, although the sauna is hot on its heels. I'm still undecided whether split level would really be the royal way here; the height profile of the property would need to be described in more detail for that.

Thank you very much for your comments. I am really impressed by how many and how well-founded contributions you have made in a short time.

I will try to summarize the points raised and our thoughts on them:

Requirements for the architect

[*
I don't know if we found the right balance here. Ultimately, the architect's design differs significantly from our own ideas. In this respect, I actually don't think that we limited the architect's creativity here. Of course, certain restrictions arise from the building envelope, the location of the plot, and the desired rooms, but I think that is always the case.



Placement of the house on the plot


[*] suggested making better use of the plot (longer driveway, etc.). Unfortunately, the building envelope does not cooperate here. The building envelope starts at 5 m distance from the street and then has a depth of 15-16 m (we used 15 m).



Surrounding buildings


[*]All with the same building envelope
[*]Plots all have a similar length and width as ours
[*]Modern houses with flat roofs but also classic roofs



Block with 360sqm


[*]We have dubbed it our “little block”
[*]It's true, of course, the architecture is simple, without large projections or recesses. But we don’t find that bad.
[*]Do we need 360sqm? Of course not. But with our room concept, we actually find it quite harmonious, and I don’t think any room is excessively large.



South view – oversized, flat, too high


[*] : The house has three floors on the south side. That naturally makes the house appear taller. The setback on the upper floor or roof terrace counters this – as you say.



Living room/dining room/kitchen not on the same level as the garden


[*]A very central point of discussion among you with the suggestion to move these rooms to the basement. We also considered it but ultimately decided against it:
[LIST]
[*]“Lighting” would be limited, since large windows would only be possible to the south; excavations to get light from west and east would not be a sensible option considering the plot height
[*]Filling in a terrace on the ground floor with an additional staircase to the garden is also difficult (building authority) and would at least partially prevent lighting of the basement on the south side
[*]Therefore, the solution with a small covered terrace “for table and grill” on the ground floor in front of the living room and an outside staircase leading to the large terrace in the basement or into the garden. The staircase was very important to us as a connection to the garden.


[*] : Thank you for your design. Impressive how you “just conjured it up”. Excavation on the west side, however, is not an option for us (then you would have 3 m of neighbor’s plot, which is over 2 m higher).
[*] : Terrace to the west is not an option from our point of view, the plot is too narrow for that.

Split-level as an architecturally attractive alternative

[*
That is certainly so, as shown by matte1987's example. But for us, too many stairs up/down.



North side: problem of the lower height of the garage


[*] : Thank you for your suggestion. We had also already thought about an additional support. Definitely a solution we will discuss with our architect.



Only one bathroom in the basement


[*]This topic came up repeatedly:
[LIST]
[*]No shower for the pool
[*]No separate bathroom for guests
[*]Fitness room without shower


[*]Our considerations were:


[*]No bathrooms that are only rarely used
[*]Pool has an outdoor shower, otherwise everyone can use “their bathroom”
[*]Fitness room without sauna (we don't want one) does not need its own shower, here too everyone can use “their bathroom”
[*]When we have guests, they use the bathroom in the basement


[*]Since we can easily accommodate a bathroom in the wine cellar (the wine cellar would then move to the small cellar), we are reconsidering this.

Requirements for the au-pair area

[*]Au-pair is for us a “temporary family member”
[*]We currently have an au-pair and don’t want to miss this anymore
[*]From our point of view, au-pair needs a separate room and their own bathroom but not necessarily a separate apartment (our au-pair does not have this now either)
[*]Size of au-pair vs. guest room: we will take another look at whether we shift the wall here in favor of the au-pair room

Shared terrace for children’s room and bedroom

[*]We see no problem here: all windows have exterior blinds, so privacy is guaranteed

Size of dining room

[*]Dining room is 5.63 m wide. A dining table for 8 people should fit in there.

Pharmacy cabinet for shoes blocks the doors

[*] : Thank you for the hint, we will find another solution.

Stairs are not a sufficient connection to the garden. Once and never again

I thought it was going to be a huge piece and then I see that only a 6-seater table fits in the dining room.

There’s easily room for an 8-seater table

Thank you very much for your draft. Impressive how you just “whipped it up” like that. Excavation on the west side, however, is not an option for us as mentioned (then you would have a neighbor’s plot after 3m, which would be over 2m higher)

What excavations? The amateur program doesn’t provide for anything else... basically to be carried out as your architect plans.

That is certainly the case, as the example from matte1987 shows. But for us, too many stairs up/down

There are no more steps than you are currently planning... just more comfortable to walk because it is shorter with “landings”

We don’t see a problem there:

...

Briefly I wondered what you wanted from the forum now, if (almost) everything is already fixed.
Then I looked:

Where we are still uncertain

[*]Air conditioning: Do we need it?

Yes, given your flood of sunlight from the south window: yes!

What can still be designed better and why?

See the discussion! Unfortunately, you don’t engage with it.

and have already been able to clarify one thing or another for myself.

Something like that is of course not very productive for a forum, when you “clarify something for yourself.” In hindsight, remarks like that annoy me more than the lack of inquiry or curiosity towards me about what my draft’s floor plan might look like. But I can live with it, as it is not a friend’s or acquaintance’s house and I have my own appreciation for designing something pleasant within a restricted building envelope with conditions.

The staircase is not an adequate connection to the garden. Once and never again

Haydee says it: a house with an insufficient connection from inside to outside, which makes living in the house worthwhile, is in many eyes not worth building. It is a pity about the plot, which seems quite nice due to missing information (questions are still open).

Does the 34er specify a building envelope?