ᐅ Is an architect really that expensive?

You are probably right; that was also the reason for a construction supervisor (GÜ) in our case. However, we were both glad to have understanding managers who allowed us to visit the construction site for an hour or two to discuss details with the tradespeople or handle unforeseen situations. We had the phone numbers of every tradesperson; mine was even scratched into the fresh wall plaster with a pencil.

My husband went out to buy parts that the tradespeople needed but were missing... in short, we were the main points of contact on the construction site.

Not to mention the energy consultants (EL) who kept us constantly tied down at the site...

Sebastian79 schrieb:
Well, the quality simply can’t be compared right away – you only see the differences after years or even decades.

There are recognized technical standards and DIN norms. Manufacturers provide detailed instructions on how their products should be installed. In the end, the same tradespeople build both the large architect-designed house with projections, bay windows, and turrets as well as the 120 sqm (1,292 sq ft) house.

ypg schrieb:
Apparently, according to Grym, the one who builds the cheapest house wins...

There are justified differences, but there are also huge discrepancies that cannot be reasonably explained within normal parameters. In the end, everyone is just cooking with water. State of the art is state of the art.

Since your arguments seem to come down to the same point, here is a question for both of you: What are the main factors that justify a price of about 2,000 EUR/sqm (186 USD/sq ft) compared to 1,280 EUR/sqm (119 USD/sq ft)? For a living area of 167 sqm (1,798 sq ft), that is a difference of around 120,000 EUR (about 111,800 USD) in price.

Good evening,

Grym schrieb:

Since your arguments basically lead to the same point, a question for both of you: What are the main factors that justify a price of around 2,000 EUR/sqm compared to 1,280 EUR/sqm? For 167 sqm (1800 sq ft) of living space, that’s a difference of about 120,000 EUR.

I’ll answer … unsolicited

In my opinion, you are focusing “only” on the price and will certainly fall victim to your own mindset in the end; you wouldn’t be the first, and definitely not the last. What you seem to ignore – based on what I’ve read in your posts (not all, honesty, I often find it too exhausting) – is taking price differences by federal state into account. Sebastian is building in NRW, Yvonne built in Harburg; Stefan hired an architect and Yvonne used a general contractor. So, these scenarios are not comparable to yours.

You will be building in the Dresden area; prices are still relatively low there, whether you choose a general contractor or an architect. If you are absolutely convinced that you have made the right choice for yourself: that’s good. You should avoid justifying your path by comparing it to someone else’s experience, and also avoid arguing just for the sake of “being right.”

Regards, Bauexperte

I don’t just look at the price; otherwise, I would have built with the Polish company (strictly according to the construction specification, without extras) or with the people from Simmern. On the contrary, I have actually dealt with almost every trade by now and surely have some extra requests here and there that most homeowners don’t usually have (electric roller shutters, mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, and if a heat pump is used, then only with a hygienic buffer tank). For other things, I don’t see real advantages (wood-aluminum windows instead of uPVC, engobed clay roof tiles instead of coated concrete roof tiles, any other render instead of gypsum render, especially if you have mechanical ventilation in terms of humidity control). But even if I opted for all these, the price would not increase by more than 100 EUR/sqm (about 10.70 USD/sqft). For example, the engobed clay roof tiles in anthracite would cost me about 15 EUR/sqm (about 1.60 USD/sqft) extra at the fixed price contractor.

That’s why my question is: Have I possibly overlooked something particularly expensive, or how does one arrive at 2,000 EUR/sqm (about 215 USD/sqft)? The more I talk to companies and the more I inform myself, the more I tend to think that, apart from especially luxurious bathroom products or basic heating and ventilation systems (air-to-air heat pump or gas without mechanical ventilation as the cheapest option; ground-source heat pump and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery as the most expensive option), the equipment of houses differs only marginally.

Grym schrieb:

I don’t just look at the price, otherwise I would build with the Polish company (strictly according to the scope of work without extras, of course) or with the people from Simmern.

Poland is part of the EU; the subsidiaries of the Deutsche Fertighaus Holding are comparable to current Polish standards.

Grym schrieb:

On the contrary, by now I have basically dealt with almost every trade.

That is probably also the reason why you haven’t made a decision yet.

Grym schrieb:

and surely also here and there additional wishes that you don’t usually find among the majority of homebuilders (electric roller shutters, controlled residential ventilation, if heat pump then only with a hygienic buffer tank),

So far, completely normal, as part of almost every consultation; at least mine.

Grym schrieb:

for other things I don’t see any real advantages (wood-aluminum windows instead of uPVC, engobed clay roof tiles instead of coated concrete tiles, some other plaster instead of gypsum plaster, if you already have controlled residential ventilation for humidity regulation),

Then I don’t understand why you are dealing with these? In the price range you are in, the above items definitely don’t belong in the standard scope of work.

Grym schrieb:

… only marginal differences.

No. For example, one has only a 20mm (0.8 inch) slab, another has 180mm (7 inch) insulation in the roof. Another installs the sanitary rough-in in the slab as well as in the floor ceilings; yet another saves money on a 7-chamber window system or skips filling the ceiling joints/painting the roof soffits. I could extend this list with many more points.

What ultimately counts is the following: what operating costs does a homeowner have based on their choice of builder? Nothing more, nothing less; a supposedly higher quality tile selection or sanitary fixtures is the smallest additional cost involved.

Regards, Bauexperte

... And last but not least, a functional house design that inspires the desire to live there without any restrictive compromises