ᐅ Homebuilding Forum – Would You Choose to Buy or Build a House Again?
Created on: 11 Dec 2015 11:09
X
xycrazy
Hello,
we are about to sign the contract with the developer but have started seriously reconsidering whether we should go through with it.
We negotiated for 8 months and were quite sure about it. However, towards the end, some issues arose regarding the contract and other matters, which we managed to resolve.
It now looks like we would be paying a third of our net income to the bank for 22 years. I think we can afford it. But when you are used to paying monthly rent of about €800-900 (divided by 2), this is quite a different level.
With a house, it’s not just the loan payments; there are ongoing maintenance costs as well. From what we’ve read, this is roughly €2-3 per m² (about 0.2-0.3 per sq ft) per month. So that’s another €400-500 per month. And, of course, there is much more work involved too.
Admittedly, this is stressing us out quite a bit, especially my partner. She is worried about the heavy financial burden each month. Is that justified?
We don’t want to live just for the house; we want to go on vacations, avoid problems with children, and so on. As I said, the current situation is manageable, but we wonder if we might be underestimating the costs.
So here’s my question to the community: looking back at everything you know now about loans, maintenance costs, upkeep, and so forth, would you buy or build a house again?
If yes, why? If not, why not? I’m really interested to hear your thoughts! And were there any surprises—positive or negative—that you didn’t expect?
Regards
we are about to sign the contract with the developer but have started seriously reconsidering whether we should go through with it.
We negotiated for 8 months and were quite sure about it. However, towards the end, some issues arose regarding the contract and other matters, which we managed to resolve.
It now looks like we would be paying a third of our net income to the bank for 22 years. I think we can afford it. But when you are used to paying monthly rent of about €800-900 (divided by 2), this is quite a different level.
With a house, it’s not just the loan payments; there are ongoing maintenance costs as well. From what we’ve read, this is roughly €2-3 per m² (about 0.2-0.3 per sq ft) per month. So that’s another €400-500 per month. And, of course, there is much more work involved too.
Admittedly, this is stressing us out quite a bit, especially my partner. She is worried about the heavy financial burden each month. Is that justified?
We don’t want to live just for the house; we want to go on vacations, avoid problems with children, and so on. As I said, the current situation is manageable, but we wonder if we might be underestimating the costs.
So here’s my question to the community: looking back at everything you know now about loans, maintenance costs, upkeep, and so forth, would you buy or build a house again?
If yes, why? If not, why not? I’m really interested to hear your thoughts! And were there any surprises—positive or negative—that you didn’t expect?
Regards
H
Hansdampft12 Dec 2015 12:18@T21150
What went wrong here? How could my post be misunderstood like that? Where was I being "cheeky" or "arrogant"? You probably felt offended because, in your opinion, I didn’t place Velbert correctly. You might be right about that. But that wasn’t the point. You can see from the other forum members' comments that your reaction is completely exaggerated.
What went wrong here? How could my post be misunderstood like that? Where was I being "cheeky" or "arrogant"? You probably felt offended because, in your opinion, I didn’t place Velbert correctly. You might be right about that. But that wasn’t the point. You can see from the other forum members' comments that your reaction is completely exaggerated.
Dear Tomtom, dear Tego,
thank you for your contributions.
First of all: I am not easily offended.
Personally, I consider it inappropriate and poor conduct to accuse others of being out of touch with reality. I may have many flaws, but being disconnected from reality is certainly not one of them. In the style that mostly dominates this forum, this user, for example, could have simply stated that they do not share my opinion or claim. Instead, the discussion immediately became personal. I do not accept that, except in cases where people know me personally and then accuse me of misconduct.
Furthermore, the conversation was about the purely emotional question of whether one would build again. The original poster then asked, during the course of the thread, what percentage of net income others allocate to their building projects. A percentage of net income emerged that was familiar to me—not only from my own experience but also from about 20 other builders I know personally who have built within the last three years. Naturally, the size (cost) of a building project varies depending on location, region, size, financing conditions, and many other factors. Of course, Velbert is more affordable than Düsseldorf. And I am also aware of prices around the Frankfurt/Main region, as well as in southern Germany, where I also know “recent” builders.
I also did not say a single word in my posts about whether building a house is financially worthwhile purely in terms of financial metrics (such as return on investment, return on assets, etc.). I will say this now: Most likely, it is not, although exceptions may prove otherwise. However, that was not the topic here at all.
I merely expressed an opinion, which was neither unrealistic nor is it: up to what limit such a project can be done (fairly) “worry-free.” One can agree with this opinion or disagree without resorting to personal attacks, which, as mentioned, the user demonstrably did.
For these reasons, I clearly stand by my opinion from last night regarding the topic and the user’s behavior toward me.
Thorsten
thank you for your contributions.
First of all: I am not easily offended.
Personally, I consider it inappropriate and poor conduct to accuse others of being out of touch with reality. I may have many flaws, but being disconnected from reality is certainly not one of them. In the style that mostly dominates this forum, this user, for example, could have simply stated that they do not share my opinion or claim. Instead, the discussion immediately became personal. I do not accept that, except in cases where people know me personally and then accuse me of misconduct.
Furthermore, the conversation was about the purely emotional question of whether one would build again. The original poster then asked, during the course of the thread, what percentage of net income others allocate to their building projects. A percentage of net income emerged that was familiar to me—not only from my own experience but also from about 20 other builders I know personally who have built within the last three years. Naturally, the size (cost) of a building project varies depending on location, region, size, financing conditions, and many other factors. Of course, Velbert is more affordable than Düsseldorf. And I am also aware of prices around the Frankfurt/Main region, as well as in southern Germany, where I also know “recent” builders.
I also did not say a single word in my posts about whether building a house is financially worthwhile purely in terms of financial metrics (such as return on investment, return on assets, etc.). I will say this now: Most likely, it is not, although exceptions may prove otherwise. However, that was not the topic here at all.
I merely expressed an opinion, which was neither unrealistic nor is it: up to what limit such a project can be done (fairly) “worry-free.” One can agree with this opinion or disagree without resorting to personal attacks, which, as mentioned, the user demonstrably did.
For these reasons, I clearly stand by my opinion from last night regarding the topic and the user’s behavior toward me.
Thorsten
H
Hansdampft12 Dec 2015 14:19Even if you ignore me: You should separate the person from the content. When I say that a claim you made is unrealistic, I am referring to the content of that claim, not that you as a person are unrealistic.
EveundGerd12 Dec 2015 14:20Back to the topic
We owned a used house built in 1964 for almost 17 years.
When the house became too big for us, we sold it and built a new one.
We would invest in a home again anytime.
Our equity in the new construction project is just under 65%. The monthly loan payment is 25% of the household income.
However, this will not be our retirement residence. That is planned as a small bungalow on the coast.
For us, the investment was definitely worthwhile! Our lives have changed: as a family, we are closer again, and maintaining the property takes far less time than before = more free time!
Comfort level in the new house: 100%
The open floor plan has made it much cozier.
Conclusion: Buy when it fits. Build again anytime!
We owned a used house built in 1964 for almost 17 years.
When the house became too big for us, we sold it and built a new one.
We would invest in a home again anytime.
Our equity in the new construction project is just under 65%. The monthly loan payment is 25% of the household income.
However, this will not be our retirement residence. That is planned as a small bungalow on the coast.
For us, the investment was definitely worthwhile! Our lives have changed: as a family, we are closer again, and maintaining the property takes far less time than before = more free time!
Comfort level in the new house: 100%
The open floor plan has made it much cozier.
Conclusion: Buy when it fits. Build again anytime!
We have only been living in our modest 135 m2 (1450 sq ft) house since March 15 and, of course, we are paying a bit more than the previous 710-dollar washing machine for our old 4-room apartment. But it’s worth it to us. It feels good to have something for the future instead of taking the money to the bank and barely earning any interest. The KfW funding for families was also a great help. In times of such favorable interest rates, I believe this is the best thing a family father can do.
But of course, anyone who has done the calculations knows it won’t be easy later on.
I think it’s normal to feel nervous just before signing.
I wish you all the best and hope you’ve made a good decision...
Just yesterday, I was talking about this with my wife, and we concluded that if we ever became very wealthy, we would keep the house rather than building a bigger one. We only have about 240 m2 (2600 sq ft) of garden, but once the kids have moved out, it will definitely be enough for our retirement!
But of course, anyone who has done the calculations knows it won’t be easy later on.
I think it’s normal to feel nervous just before signing.
I wish you all the best and hope you’ve made a good decision...
Just yesterday, I was talking about this with my wife, and we concluded that if we ever became very wealthy, we would keep the house rather than building a bigger one. We only have about 240 m2 (2600 sq ft) of garden, but once the kids have moved out, it will definitely be enough for our retirement!