ᐅ Always running behind schedule so far...

T21150 schrieb:
A possible approach with many risks. Often, you don’t really know what you’re buying. Your financing must be arranged beforehand.

It can be cheaper, but as with everything in life: such things involve risks.

I would involve experts beforehand here.

That’s how I acquired my condominium.

However, I knew what I was buying because the bank had the apartment shown through a real estate agent. Additionally, the apartment was vacant. If you bid on something where the owner still lives there and might not leave willingly, that would have been too risky for me.

Financing does not necessarily have to be secured beforehand. I had a check issued from my savings for the deposit required for bidding, which was 10% of the market value.

W. Pickartz schrieb:

Real estate agents are indeed dispensable and usually do not contribute anything substantial to property transactions ... the really interesting properties are directly offered to clients already registered with the agents.

Personally, I don’t think much of real estate agents.
But in the quoted part, there is a bit of a contradiction in the argument.

For listed properties, there are actually two main providers.
1. The seller themselves. If they have a property that is good and is likely to sell quickly at the desired price – AND they also have time for a few viewings – then self-marketing is worthwhile for them. Why should they incur additional costs if they can avoid them?
2. The real estate agent: If the seller does not have the time or inclination to handle it themselves, they hire an agent.
2a) For good properties, @w.pickartz is correct: these often go to pre-registered buyers that the agent has saved on their client list. This way, the agent can often close a deal quickly on desirable properties.
2b) All the leftover properties, which are harder to sell, are offered through the agent. Immediately, the song by "die Prinzen" comes to mind: “Spoiled food, overpriced.”

Point 2a) possibly makes it interesting for you to get in touch with an agent. However, if you come across a property you want through an agent (even if it’s just the address or an online listing) and then handle everything else yourself, as far as I know, you still have to pay their commission.

I would also recommend that you take another close look at new builds. Especially when the market for resale properties is thoroughly covered, you often get offered low-quality properties at high prices (plus subsequent high modernization costs), making a new build more worthwhile in the end.
After searching for 3 years in the resale market, we decided to go for a new build.

It can indeed be sensible to purchase a property that is ready for demolition in a truly good or interesting location and build new on the site. This way, for example, you are more likely to obtain a single plot on the outskirts of a town, close to an established community, and avoid the usual new single-family housing developments. Renovating, modernizing, and converting existing properties usually involves costs at least comparable to those of a new build of similar size and volume.

However, in this case, demolition costs must be taken into account, as well as the demolition or retaining wall required for adjacent buildings and deep foundations. The legal and planning situation of the plot must also be considered, which should ideally be advantageous for future construction. Therefore, even in such cases, it is advisable to consult an expert who can assess the situation from all these perspectives.

W. Pickartz schrieb:
It can indeed make sense to purchase a property ready for demolition in a really good or interesting location and build new on the site. This way, for example, you can often acquire a single plot on the outskirts of a village, close to an established community, and avoid the typical new single-family home developments.

That’s exactly what a good friend of mine did in southern Germany. Of course, after careful evaluation, including obtaining quotes for demolition and disposal, and so on. It was quite some work. When selling the plot (with the old house on it), the demolition-ready house was *not* factored into the price – practically just the land was valued. So the deal was fair.

Everything worked out perfectly in the end. And the demolition wasn’t as bad as expected – especially in terms of costs relative to the entire project.

Just last weekend, I happened to see a similar offer in the window of a real estate agent. House: ready for demolition, but the plot was fine, and the price for 900 sqm (9700 sq ft) of land was good too!

The problem is that currently houses are being offered which are economically not feasible to renovate, yet the selling prices are still so high that demolishing them is too expensive.

tbb76 schrieb:
The problem is that currently houses are being offered that are economically not really worth renovating, yet their sale prices are still high enough that demolition is too expensive.

Yes, if you walk around with open eyes and take a look, you’re often quite surprised at what’s being put on the market. Built decades ago, energy performance is appalling, and the only things that are high are the purchase price and the expected renovation costs.