Building a house is often mentioned in conjunction with family planning. However, the wants and needs for your living situation have changed significantly in recent years. Many couples today want to remain childless and singles increasingly want to live an independent life within their own four walls. A single-family home offers enough space for one or two people and has similar benefits to a single-family home. Anyone who wants to build a detached house benefits from various advantages and disadvantages. Here you can find an overview of the most important things about this type of house.
What is a single house?
A detached house, similar to a single-family home, is a freestanding building. Typically the single house has a small living area of 70 m22 bus 100 m2 – which means enough space for a single person or a couple without children. It can be built as a single-storey bungalow or as a multi-storey house with storage room under the roof and basement. If there is enough free space inside the property, with the single house it is possible to create a garden or even a swimming pool.
Build a single house – dIt has advantages and disadvantages
Like all types of housing, the single house also has obvious advantages and disadvantages. These depend, among other things, on your personal preferences, your financial possibilities and your lifestyle. Before you decide to build a detached house, you should carefully consider the following aspects to determine whether the detached house is right for you.
Advantages of a single house
- Ownership instead of rent or lease: Probably the most obvious advantage of building a detached house is that you become the owner of the land and the house. Instead of paying rent or leasing, invest in your property and build long-term sustainable capital.
- Affordable price: Detached homes can often be more affordable than townhouses or luxury villas. If you build a single house you also have the opportunity to enter the real estate market.
- Relatively short construction times: Compared to complex construction projects, such as large single-family or multi-family homes, single-family homes are generally faster to build. This significantly reduces the waiting time before the move.
- Detached house: A detached house offers the privacy of a detached building. You don’t have to worry about noisy neighbors or shared walls, allowing for a quieter life.
- Manageable maintenance costs: Because detached homes are generally more compact than detached homes, maintenance costs are often more manageable. Fewer square meters also mean less space to maintain.
- The type of energy supply can be implemented as desired: As an owner you have the freedom to design the energy supply of your single-family house according to your wishes. You can install solar panels, choose eco-friendly heating and cooling systems, and take other energy efficiency measures.
- Possibility of individual adjustments: A single house can be designed in every aspect according to your preferences. You can adapt and implement the floor plan and interior design according to your individual ideas.
- Construction as a bungalow or multi-storey building: Another advantage of the single-family house concept is the flexibility in terms of design. You can choose a single-storey bungalow if you want to live without barriers, or a multi-storey building if you need additional space.

Disadvantages of a single house
- Limited living space: Detached homes are generally more compact than larger residential buildings, meaning that available living space is limited. This can cause space issues, especially if you need a lot of space for various activities.
- Limited storage space: With limited living space often comes limited storage space. It can be difficult to find enough storage space, which can make your home look cluttered.
- Basement not always possible: In some regions or on some properties it is not always possible to add a basement to the individual house due to geographical conditions or local regulations. This can limit your options for storing and using additional living space.
- Adequately sized plots are often not available: It can be difficult to find a suitable plot of land in the desired location and size to build a detached house. In desirable residential areas, land is often expensive and limited, which limits choices.
Rötzer tip: Are you interested in other types of houses? In our blog post “Types of houses and their advantages” you will find information on single-family houses, city villas, etc.
Single house floor plan – perfectly adapted to your needs
How you design your single home floor plan is up to you. Everything is possible, from individual layouts to completely open designs without dividing walls. The layout of the rooms can therefore satisfy your needs even with a small living space. It’s best to create a sketch of your dream house and draw the rooms you imagine for your home.
Rötzer tip: Floor plan planning can be challenging. In our blog post “Design a House Floor Plan: With These Tips the Planning Will Work!” You will find useful suggestions on how to best approach planning.
Building a single house: here’s what you should pay attention to
Although a detached house is smaller than other new buildings, you need to pay the same amount of attention when planning the construction. Take your time and consider the following:
- Secure financing: If you want to build a house as a single person, you should strongly consider that you will bear the financial burden alone. Even if your income is quite high, banks usually offer more unfavorable conditions and higher interest rates to singles. Make sure you are financially secure.
- Infrastructure: The correct location of the property is essential when building a house. There should be good transport links and shopping opportunities in the area. Find out if there is medical care, a hospital or social facilities nearby, in case they become relevant in the future.
- Attention to accessibility: A house is always an investment for life. With a view to the future, age-appropriate construction is also important. Make sure your home is designed barrier-free or can later be adapted accordingly.
- Consider growing options: What appears to be perfectly suited to your current needs during construction may not necessarily be sufficient later. For this reason you should keep the possibilities of an extension open, for example by aligning the house accordingly with the property.
- Don’t build unnecessarily small: Don’t plan too sparingly. Even if a house generally involves high costs, you don’t have to think frugally. In the long run, you will benefit from having the space you really need.
Rötzer tip: It doesn’t matter whether they are singles or families: a house always involves additional costs. Our blog post “Additional Home Costs: These Operating Costs Will Be Charged to You After the Home is Built!” informs you about the most important elements.
For further reading
Would you like to make your single house like a bungalow? In our article “Five advantages of a bungalow – The rebirth of a construction method” you will find all the basic information on this type of house.
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