Suggestions for the floor plan

Hello everyone,

I would like to present our current planning of our house and would like to hear/read ideas about it

Development plan/Restrictions
Plot size: 436 m²
Slope: no, flat
Floor area ratio: 0.4
Floor space index: n.a.
Building window, building line and boundary: free on the plot, only 3m distance
Edge development
Number of parking spaces: 2 parking spaces
Number of floors: 2 full floors
Roof shape: everything allowed from 20°
Style: free
Orientation:
Maximum heights/limits: 11m
further specifications

Requirements of the builders
Style, roof shape, building type: classic, gable roof (45°)
Basement, floors: basement, ground floor, upper floor
Number of people, age: 36, 35, 2.5 (person 2 is planned and desired)
Room requirements on GF, UF: see floor plan
Office: family use or home office? Home office (work from home)
Overnight guests per year: approx. 15-20
Open or closed architecture: relatively open
Conservative or modern construction: modern?
Open kitchen, cooking island: open kitchen, no island
Number of dining seats: 6-8
Fireplace: later
Music/stereo wall:
Balcony, roof terrace: no
Garage, carport: yes, only the type is unclear. Possibly single carport that will be expanded to a garage
Utility garden, greenhouse: classic tomato and strawberry bed
Further wishes/special features/daily routine: due to home office, spatial separation is absolutely necessary. My wife sometimes works night shifts, so it is also necessary to be able to sleep during the day

House design
Who is the planner: "off the shelf", own ideas
What do you especially like? the 4 rooms on the upper floor, the open living/dining/kitchen area
What do you not like? the current floor plan upstairs
Price estimate according to architect/planner:
Personal price limit for the house, incl. equipment:
Preferred heating technology: currently air-water heat pump, but not fixed

If you have to do without, on which details/extensions
- can you do without: garage/carport
- cannot do without: basement, home office, pantry

In our own planning, we have planned the doors to the office and bathroom on the GF to be 1 m wide to create barrier-free accessibility.
In the living room, we are still unsure about the large window front.

For the UF we will soon receive another floor plan (from a show house) that we like much better.

I am very curious what you think of our GF planning and if there are any suggestions for upstairs.
If you have questions about the notes, just ask.

Best regards
Robin

2 things that caught my attention or that I don't quite understand:

At first glance, you have a lot of traffic area (hallway) on the ground floor. I would still try to use every cm sensibly. What sense does it make, for example, to place the stairs around a corner? Why not plan them in the entrance area? You can also plan cleverly there, for example if you don't want to see the stairs when you come in through the door.

Why on earth have a pantry attached to the kitchen? You are planning with a basement, right? Adding a pantry that is more nonsensical. With a width of 120 cm you can only use one side. Imagine getting rid of this corridor and simply planning 1-2 tall cabinets in the kitchen. The current design, among other things, makes the lower corner in the kitchen pointless, door hinge and access to the pantry. If you cancel the pantry, for example, and place the door in the middle, you could use the entire right wall for the kitchen and get more storage space with 2 tall cabinets than the current pantry.

It is always sensible to orient the floor plans as they will be positioned on the plot. Otherwise, at least draw a north arrow, etc. I assume the site plan is oriented to north. Also, sometimes draw in the terrace.

However, I can already state that the access to the pantry ruins good placement options in the kitchen, and that brings us to the next point: it’s best to always hint at some furniture in the floor plans. We don’t know you and have no idea how you imagine it. And often ideas and floor plans don’t match, which you can then recognize much better.

Dimensioning the floor plans, including the modified ones, is also useful.

Regarding the floors... 2 full storeys and then a 45° gable roof? That will be very tall and also doesn’t fit with the floor plan of the upper floor. Is the resulting attic supposed to be used?

What do you want now? Open or closed kitchen? In both alternatives, the kitchen unit is not sufficient or does not meet the standards of a single-family house. Accessibility for what purpose? The AZ on the ground floor is too small for a bedroom for two. Where is the guest supposed to shower? I would therefore swap guest and office, or even move the guest with bathroom downstairs – the children will eventually love the living space in the basement. I am missing storage rooms on the ground floor and upper floor, everything is very conservative but not necessarily practical. An exit to the strawberries from the kitchen is missing. The staircase is not appropriate for the house either, rather a comfortable staircase with a landing should be there. SK is too narrow. A lot of guest entertaining through two doors and the hallway would also not be practical. Bedroom without adequate closet space and then next to the children's room... The entire upper floor is not developed. Kitchen and dining to the north, hardly any windows in the south and the staircase as well as pantry ... ???

Why on earth a pantry next to the kitchen? You are planning a basement, right? Adding a pantry is even more pointless. With 120 cm width you can only use one side. Just imagine this corridor gone and simply plan 1-2 tall cabinets in the kitchen. The current design makes, among other things, the lower corner in the kitchen useless, door hinge and access to the pantry. If you cancel the pantry, for example, and place the door centrally, you could use the entire right wall for the kitchen and gain more storage with 2 tall cabinets than the current pantry.

I will install the kitchen tomorrow; then it will become clear. Before that, it makes little sense to talk about pointlessness.

It is always sensible to orient the floor plans as they will lie on the property. Otherwise, at least draw a north arrow, etc. I assume the site plan is oriented north. Also, draw the terrace.

Um, yes, I actually forgot that. North of the property lies in the curve. I was actually looking for another plan but couldn’t find it in my documents. The bay window of the house points upwards on the plan; therefore, the house entrance is planned to the right on the plan.

I can already say that the access to the pantry ruins good layout options in the kitchen, and that brings us to the next point: it is best to also hint a bit of the furnishing in the floor plans. We don’t know you and don’t know how you envision it. And often, ideas and floor plans don’t match, which can then be recognized much better.

Also useful is the dimensioning of the floor plans, including the modified ones.

I promise to improve here and will add the dimensions in the individual floor plan. Likewise, I will draw the kitchen as we planned it.

Regarding the floors… 2 full floors and then a 45° gable roof? That will be very tall and doesn’t fit the upper floor’s floor plan. Is the resulting attic also meant to be used?

Misunderstanding! The 2 full floors refer at first to what is permitted. We are planning 1.5 floors (where the upper floor counts as a full floor here). There will still be an attic with a height of about 2.20 m in the middle.

What do you want now? Open or closed kitchen? In both alternatives, the kitchen row is not sufficient or does not suit a detached house.

As written above, I will "update" the kitchen tomorrow. Then we can discuss whether it meets the needs of a detached house or not. The dimensioned floor plan is the original; the one without is our idea, so open.

The room in the ground floor is too small for a bedroom for two

The room measures about 12 m², which is easily enough for a bedroom.

Where should the guest shower? I would swap guest and office, if not even relocate the guest with bathroom downstairs — the children will eventually love the living possibility in the basement.

a) the basement is not a living basement
b) the guest is welcome to use our bathroom, that is the case today and will not change
c) as mentioned above, the guest room is meant to be spatially separated from the children’s rooms

I miss storage rooms on the ground floor and upper floor, everything is very conservative but not necessarily practical.

Not for me, but I think everyone has their own preferences. I am gladly open to practical tips and suggestions.

Exit to the strawberries from the kitchen is missing.

Since we haven’t talked about where the strawberries will go, there is no missing exit. Originally, there were two floor-to-ceiling windows in the kitchen, but we do not want them.

The stairs are not appropriate for the house, rather a comfortable landing staircase would be better there.

I would like a bit more explanation here. Why are the stairs not appropriate for the house?

The pantry is too narrow.

The pantry is already virtually furnished and is not too narrow. A sliding door will be installed, and that will fit then.

A lot of guest hosting through two doors and hallway would also not be practical.

Honestly, I don’t understand that. The idea of the second kitchen door is that one does not always have to walk all the way around through the living room, e.g., when carrying groceries.

Bedroom without adequate closet space next to children’s rooms… The whole upper floor is not mature.

As mentioned above, there will soon be another floor plan that is better and more thought out.

Kitchen and dining facing north, hardly any windows to the south and the staircase as well as pantry

Kitchen/dining faces northwest. A double casement window will be installed in the staircase. There is deliberately no further window in the sofa corner.

Thanks already for your feedback!

Then first do your homework and post a draft that can also be discussed. Dimensioning and _Aktualität_

Too few points: why a shower on the ground floor if the guest is supposed to use the family bathroom? And is the guest allowed to get older and more demanding? I wouldn’t want to share a bathroom anymore, at least not in a 4-person household.
If you plan barrier-free access on the ground floor, then probably to possibly set up a bedroom there: but that doesn’t work in 12 sqm with one room in which 3 walls are occupied by doors and windows, and no closet space is available!
And who will get your cleaning supplies from the basement every day?

Such a thread gives me reason to consider whether I will even share my experiences anymore.