Plans: Part 2

A few weeks after feeding back to the builders about the first plans, we were called back to the office to have a look at version 2. We were a little nervous given that the first set had been quite different to what we had expected and we had suggested quite a lot of changes. Nevertheless, we were pretty excited to see what they had come up with.

The new plans were revealed and the changes were instantly apparent. The house overall was much more spacious and we could see at a glance that it now contained all the elements that we had initially requested (although of course the quotation had also increased by quite a lot!).

Perhaps the most striking difference was the remodeled parking area, rotated 90 degrees and now big enough to accommodate two cars with a large concrete retaining wall surrounding it in place of the original stone. The previous space had been barely enough for one car and parking would have been tricky. This particular modification came with an eye-watering price-tag due, in part, to the very expensive cost of groundwork in Japan.

After some initial reluctance, we started to come around to the idea for two main reasons. Firstly, the original stone wall was not in wonderful condition and would likely be even more expensive to repair or replace at a later stage, until which point parking would be severely compromised. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, this was an opportunity to invest in the land itself as opposed to the property that sits on top. We were pretty sure that one of the main reasons we got this land for such a good price was the problems presented by this wall and so any money invested in alleviating this problem would likely see at least a partial return when/if we sell. The same cannot be said of money invested in the property which, in Japan, will depreciate in value as it gets older.

The solution is kind of a half-way between leaving things as they were and removing all of the stone retaining wall. It involves incorporating this new concrete retaining wall into the foundations of the house in order to leave the three-stepped stone part to the west untouched (and therefore to reduce the cost). We were actually rather keen on keeping this anyway as we like the character, if not the impractical nature, of the large stone steps.

Elsewhere downstairs, the kids’ bedroom has been expanded and no longer has access to the outside which gives us some more garden/lawn space. The entrance to this room is also better and it can easily be split into two separate rooms in the future if needed using various configurations of wardrobe and wall.

The laundry room, although open to the corridor, is now much bigger with enough space for the washing machine, cabinets and an ironing area. The small bathroom has been moved to the south-east corner to accommodate this. The stairs have gone from a straight layout to a U-shaped alternative.

The master bedroom is similar to how it was before but the attached walk-in-closet has almost doubled in size. Some of this increase has come from an overall increase in the footprint of the building but some has also been claimed back from the original large square storage area that was too large for our needs. The adjacent study is a much more prominent room now with easily enough space for two computers, bookshelves and a small sitting area with coffee table.

Upstairs, the layout has changed just a little with the introduction of a proper-sized pantry and the toilet moving to the north. I think this is one of the reasons why the staircase has changed shape. The Japanese room has been made considerably bigger and everything has moved outwards to give us more space. The new plans have generated about another 25% more floor space upstairs.

Finally, the whole house has been raised to increase its overall height so that the roof balcony views over the house in front will be much better protected in the event that a new taller house is built there. Raising the house also means that access to the roof balcony can be made much easier, although a full height door will probably remain out of reach. The ceilings throughout the house will be a little higher too, which should add to the sense of space.

Overall, we were pretty delighted with these new plans. We were seriously impressed with the speed and efficiency with which they were put together and how closely the builders had listened to our revised brief. This was much, much closer to the house we had in mind when we started out on this project. There were and still are countless decisions and alterations to be made but we felt as if we’d finally managed to draw together all the elements we wanted into the design and could begin to focus on the detail.

Here are the plans!