Hello everyone,
I have been a quiet reader of this forum for several months now and, naturally, I have been thinking about building a house. During this time, I have gathered quite a bit of information and would like to start by expressing a big thank you.
I had actually hoped that quietly reading would be enough since there are many members here and an active exchange of ideas. Unfortunately, I am not making progress with my planning because my requirements (and those of my partner) differ quite a bit from the majority, especially concerning space and project size.
I hope you can help me.
First, a little about us:
We are a young couple, both just 30, planning to build a house in a few years. If everything goes as planned, we want to start in 3-4 years. Our planning might seem a bit early, especially since prices are constantly changing (unfortunately not in favor of builders), but I like to plan ahead and have really enjoyed the process over the past few months. Currently, we are working in the hospitality industry in Switzerland to save up equity because we earn significantly more here. Unfortunately, my partner wants to leave Switzerland within 2 years at the latest to be closer to her family again, so after that, our saving potential will be quite limited. By that time, we expect to have saved around €120,000 of equity but will only be able to save a maximum of €10,000 per year after leaving Switzerland.
We have been living in small apartments ranging from 25m² to 35m² (270 to 375 sq ft) for the past 5 years and are naturally longing for more space in the future. However, we are still quite modest when it comes to this. We have spent months planning back and forth and agree that we don’t want more than a maximum of 100m² (1,080 sq ft). We definitely do not want children and are absolutely sure about that. We actually only need about 70-80m² (750 to 860 sq ft), but I want to stay flexible and therefore plan for an extra 10-20m² (100 to 215 sq ft).
Our garden should not be too large either, since we are not the type to invest much time in maintenance. A simple garage or a carport for one car would be sufficient. This might all sound like we want to save as much as possible everywhere, but that is only partly true. Everyone wants to spend as little as possible, and despite having a reasonably solid amount of equity, the fact remains that a large loan will not be an option in the future. However, we think it makes more sense not to invest in space we are sure we won’t need but rather in better quality finishes and fittings.
I know from this forum that the price per square meter increases significantly with smaller houses because many costs are fixed regardless of project size. Therefore, I have generously calculated €1,900 per square meter (€176 per sq ft). I would like a one-and-a-half-story house with a ground floor of about 50-60m² (540 to 645 sq ft) and a finished attic of about 25m² (270 sq ft), giving a total of about 85-95m² (915 to 1,025 sq ft).
I want the ground floor to be very open, with a living room of about 22m² (235 sq ft) and a kitchen with a dining area of about 14-16m² (150 to 170 sq ft). I also have in mind about 7m² (75 sq ft) for a utility room, with the rest consisting of the staircase, entrance area, and a small guest toilet. On the upper floor, there should be a bedroom of about 10m² (110 sq ft), a bathroom of about 8m² (85 sq ft) with a shower only, no bathtub, and the remaining space allocated to closets and storage. Speaking of storage: in case that question comes up, we are very minimalist and don't accumulate many things. We are confident that despite the lack of a basement, we won’t need much space. Over the years, we have always kept very few belongings and regularly did large decluttering.
What is disadvantageous for the price, but something I’d like: I don’t like most of the floor plans I have seen. I prefer a simple, square design without many corners or angles, but would like relatively large windows that reach down to the floor. Regarding the roof shape, I actually prefer a flat roof or a shed roof, although I have often read that these tend to be more expensive and problematic in terms of sealing. If the price difference is really that high, a gable roof would also be fine. I would accept the sloping ceilings upstairs.
Since I need significantly less living space upstairs than on the ground floor, I would also like a small open space (void) over the living room. However, if this has a strong negative impact on the price, I can do without it.
I haven’t given much thought to heating and technical systems yet, but underfloor heating on the ground floor would be desirable, and an active ventilation system sounds interesting. The question is whether the roughly €10,000 average price I found would still fit into our budget.
Since we will have no heirs and want to build this home for ourselves, it would be interesting regarding energy what really makes sense in the long term over the next 40-50 years at a reasonable price-performance ratio. I don’t want the worst insulation and energy rating, but I also don’t think it needs to be a full passive house, as I’ve read here that many measures only pay off after 30-40 years. So a middle ground probably makes the most sense. I hope I’ve explained this clearly enough, though it might seem a bit confusing.
Here is a rough overview of all the data I have tried to put together with the knowledge I’ve gathered so far:
Plot of land: Not yet acquired, prices in the area we want to move to are about €65,000 to €85,000, fully serviced.
Desired size: 85-95m² (915 to 1,025 sq ft)
Preferences: Simple design, no basement, small garden, carport or simple garage, not the cheapest finishes
Equity: About €120,000
Future saving potential: About €900 per month
Own work contribution: Practically none, no skilled tradespeople in our circle and we’re not handy.
Estimated costs by me:
House: About €160,000 - 170,000
Land: About €75,000
Foundation slab: About €15,000?
Additional building costs: About €30,000?
Contingency buffer: €15,000?
Total roughly €300,000.
Is my estimation roughly correct? Or have I overlooked something essential?
The €300,000 would also be roughly our upper limit. I think the small size, simple square design, low space requirement, and modest landscaping speak in favor of a good price. On the other hand, the individual wishes, especially probably many floor-to-ceiling windows, open plan design, possibly the void, and an active ventilation system, speak against it.
I am sure I have missed some things and hope for your help with a relatively realistic cost estimate, saving potential, and other details I might have overlooked.
Thank you very much in advance, and sorry for the long text.
I have been a quiet reader of this forum for several months now and, naturally, I have been thinking about building a house. During this time, I have gathered quite a bit of information and would like to start by expressing a big thank you.
I had actually hoped that quietly reading would be enough since there are many members here and an active exchange of ideas. Unfortunately, I am not making progress with my planning because my requirements (and those of my partner) differ quite a bit from the majority, especially concerning space and project size.
I hope you can help me.
First, a little about us:
We are a young couple, both just 30, planning to build a house in a few years. If everything goes as planned, we want to start in 3-4 years. Our planning might seem a bit early, especially since prices are constantly changing (unfortunately not in favor of builders), but I like to plan ahead and have really enjoyed the process over the past few months. Currently, we are working in the hospitality industry in Switzerland to save up equity because we earn significantly more here. Unfortunately, my partner wants to leave Switzerland within 2 years at the latest to be closer to her family again, so after that, our saving potential will be quite limited. By that time, we expect to have saved around €120,000 of equity but will only be able to save a maximum of €10,000 per year after leaving Switzerland.
We have been living in small apartments ranging from 25m² to 35m² (270 to 375 sq ft) for the past 5 years and are naturally longing for more space in the future. However, we are still quite modest when it comes to this. We have spent months planning back and forth and agree that we don’t want more than a maximum of 100m² (1,080 sq ft). We definitely do not want children and are absolutely sure about that. We actually only need about 70-80m² (750 to 860 sq ft), but I want to stay flexible and therefore plan for an extra 10-20m² (100 to 215 sq ft).
Our garden should not be too large either, since we are not the type to invest much time in maintenance. A simple garage or a carport for one car would be sufficient. This might all sound like we want to save as much as possible everywhere, but that is only partly true. Everyone wants to spend as little as possible, and despite having a reasonably solid amount of equity, the fact remains that a large loan will not be an option in the future. However, we think it makes more sense not to invest in space we are sure we won’t need but rather in better quality finishes and fittings.
I know from this forum that the price per square meter increases significantly with smaller houses because many costs are fixed regardless of project size. Therefore, I have generously calculated €1,900 per square meter (€176 per sq ft). I would like a one-and-a-half-story house with a ground floor of about 50-60m² (540 to 645 sq ft) and a finished attic of about 25m² (270 sq ft), giving a total of about 85-95m² (915 to 1,025 sq ft).
I want the ground floor to be very open, with a living room of about 22m² (235 sq ft) and a kitchen with a dining area of about 14-16m² (150 to 170 sq ft). I also have in mind about 7m² (75 sq ft) for a utility room, with the rest consisting of the staircase, entrance area, and a small guest toilet. On the upper floor, there should be a bedroom of about 10m² (110 sq ft), a bathroom of about 8m² (85 sq ft) with a shower only, no bathtub, and the remaining space allocated to closets and storage. Speaking of storage: in case that question comes up, we are very minimalist and don't accumulate many things. We are confident that despite the lack of a basement, we won’t need much space. Over the years, we have always kept very few belongings and regularly did large decluttering.
What is disadvantageous for the price, but something I’d like: I don’t like most of the floor plans I have seen. I prefer a simple, square design without many corners or angles, but would like relatively large windows that reach down to the floor. Regarding the roof shape, I actually prefer a flat roof or a shed roof, although I have often read that these tend to be more expensive and problematic in terms of sealing. If the price difference is really that high, a gable roof would also be fine. I would accept the sloping ceilings upstairs.
Since I need significantly less living space upstairs than on the ground floor, I would also like a small open space (void) over the living room. However, if this has a strong negative impact on the price, I can do without it.
I haven’t given much thought to heating and technical systems yet, but underfloor heating on the ground floor would be desirable, and an active ventilation system sounds interesting. The question is whether the roughly €10,000 average price I found would still fit into our budget.
Since we will have no heirs and want to build this home for ourselves, it would be interesting regarding energy what really makes sense in the long term over the next 40-50 years at a reasonable price-performance ratio. I don’t want the worst insulation and energy rating, but I also don’t think it needs to be a full passive house, as I’ve read here that many measures only pay off after 30-40 years. So a middle ground probably makes the most sense. I hope I’ve explained this clearly enough, though it might seem a bit confusing.
Here is a rough overview of all the data I have tried to put together with the knowledge I’ve gathered so far:
Plot of land: Not yet acquired, prices in the area we want to move to are about €65,000 to €85,000, fully serviced.
Desired size: 85-95m² (915 to 1,025 sq ft)
Preferences: Simple design, no basement, small garden, carport or simple garage, not the cheapest finishes
Equity: About €120,000
Future saving potential: About €900 per month
Own work contribution: Practically none, no skilled tradespeople in our circle and we’re not handy.
Estimated costs by me:
House: About €160,000 - 170,000
Land: About €75,000
Foundation slab: About €15,000?
Additional building costs: About €30,000?
Contingency buffer: €15,000?
Total roughly €300,000.
Is my estimation roughly correct? Or have I overlooked something essential?
The €300,000 would also be roughly our upper limit. I think the small size, simple square design, low space requirement, and modest landscaping speak in favor of a good price. On the other hand, the individual wishes, especially probably many floor-to-ceiling windows, open plan design, possibly the void, and an active ventilation system, speak against it.
I am sure I have missed some things and hope for your help with a relatively realistic cost estimate, saving potential, and other details I might have overlooked.
Thank you very much in advance, and sorry for the long text.
So, I finally finished work and can jot down a few new thoughts here.
As mentioned before, I actually prefer the idea of a bungalow much more than my original plan, provided it doesn’t significantly increase the costs.
I have now loosely budgeted an additional €20,000 (about $22,000), so I’d rather save a bit longer. Since it won’t really start for another 2-3 years at the earliest, the whole project will definitely continue to develop. However, financially, I don’t consider much more feasible. As I said, once we leave Switzerland, our income will return to a very average level and, in the long run, will most likely not exceed a solid €3,000 net per month (about $3,300). I expect our standard of living to increase slightly as we get older, even though we have been quite modest in recent years.
A monthly repayment of around €1,000 (about $1,100) will probably be the maximum mortgage payment in the future, and I would prefer not to be paying off the loan for the rest of my life—you never know what else might happen.
In the next few days, I will continue working on the floor plan (like most people, I have probably already designed and discarded a dozen versions) and hopefully be able to present it soon.
The next big question is about the building method. As mentioned, I like a “cubist” style with a lot of glass. Most houses I find online in this style that I like seem to be concrete-based (which many forum members criticize here for price-performance and less optimal insulation properties), or I often see a lot of glass apparently held together by a metal frame (honestly, I haven’t found much information on this type yet).
The most cost-effective would probably be traditional solid construction, masonry on masonry, and there are certainly ways to make it look less “classic.”
What is your assessment of the planned building type if we are looking at a bungalow of approx. 95-110 m² (about 1,020-1,185 sq ft)?
Prefabricated wall elements are probably out of the question for such a customized design, or am I mistaken?
Thank you very much in advance.
As mentioned before, I actually prefer the idea of a bungalow much more than my original plan, provided it doesn’t significantly increase the costs.
I have now loosely budgeted an additional €20,000 (about $22,000), so I’d rather save a bit longer. Since it won’t really start for another 2-3 years at the earliest, the whole project will definitely continue to develop. However, financially, I don’t consider much more feasible. As I said, once we leave Switzerland, our income will return to a very average level and, in the long run, will most likely not exceed a solid €3,000 net per month (about $3,300). I expect our standard of living to increase slightly as we get older, even though we have been quite modest in recent years.
A monthly repayment of around €1,000 (about $1,100) will probably be the maximum mortgage payment in the future, and I would prefer not to be paying off the loan for the rest of my life—you never know what else might happen.
In the next few days, I will continue working on the floor plan (like most people, I have probably already designed and discarded a dozen versions) and hopefully be able to present it soon.
The next big question is about the building method. As mentioned, I like a “cubist” style with a lot of glass. Most houses I find online in this style that I like seem to be concrete-based (which many forum members criticize here for price-performance and less optimal insulation properties), or I often see a lot of glass apparently held together by a metal frame (honestly, I haven’t found much information on this type yet).
The most cost-effective would probably be traditional solid construction, masonry on masonry, and there are certainly ways to make it look less “classic.”
What is your assessment of the planned building type if we are looking at a bungalow of approx. 95-110 m² (about 1,020-1,185 sq ft)?
Prefabricated wall elements are probably out of the question for such a customized design, or am I mistaken?
Thank you very much in advance.
The challenge with floor plan designs is that depending on the plot, completely different ideas and room arrangements can emerge. Additionally, there may be very different requirements from the building regulations or planning permission. And the plot itself may not even be available yet. Will the area where you want to build the house be mostly flat, or could it be a sloped site?
Certainly, having a floor plan prepared is a good starting point. This way, your ideas, wishes, and concepts are documented on paper, which makes things easier later on. However, be prepared that due to the plot of land, the orientation of the house, or the local building regulations (building permit / planning permission), you will probably need to revise your plans. Or you might get lucky, and it fits right away ;-)
Basically, you first need to decide what you want. A custom design by an architect or a developer (solid construction or timber frame). There is no one-size-fits-all advice here; this is a decision everyone must make for themselves.
From my gut feeling, for a bungalow with many windows, I would personally choose an architect who can create something in solid construction. But there are real experts in this forum who can give you better advice :-)
Basically, you first need to decide what you want. A custom design by an architect or a developer (solid construction or timber frame). There is no one-size-fits-all advice here; this is a decision everyone must make for themselves.
From my gut feeling, for a bungalow with many windows, I would personally choose an architect who can create something in solid construction. But there are real experts in this forum who can give you better advice :-)
Be careful with price references in this forum if the profile location is Austria and the construction site is the same.
Austria has very different legal requirements, which can lead to significantly different building costs.
For example, Austria applies a 20% VAT, and labor costs are likely higher due to, as far as I know, legally mandated 13th and 14th monthly salaries, as well as local taxes. No one here is familiar with the Austrian building regulations. Additionally, ancillary building costs could be in completely different ranges.
At least on the German side, the price of 1500-1600€ or, as in your case, 1900€, should include the foundation slab.
Austria has very different legal requirements, which can lead to significantly different building costs.
For example, Austria applies a 20% VAT, and labor costs are likely higher due to, as far as I know, legally mandated 13th and 14th monthly salaries, as well as local taxes. No one here is familiar with the Austrian building regulations. Additionally, ancillary building costs could be in completely different ranges.
At least on the German side, the price of 1500-1600€ or, as in your case, 1900€, should include the foundation slab.
Thank you for the responses,
I don’t think I will be able to plan much further ahead at this stage. I will continue to pursue working with an architect, as that seems to be the most sensible option. They should know what to focus on, and as a layperson, it’s certain that some points in the planning will be overlooked, no matter how well prepared you are.
And the objection that a suitable plot of land can quickly throw the plans out the window is of course something I hadn’t considered beforehand.
The plots in our desired area are mostly flat, as it is quite a lowland region, but who knows how it looks individually there.
To avoid any misunderstandings: My last place of residence and work at the time of registration was in Lower Austria, but the house construction is planned in a rural area of North Rhine-Westphalia, so everything is fine in that respect. Sorry for not making that clear earlier.
Now I definitely have some reference points with which I can continue planning. I fear that I will need to save up equity for at least another year, as I’d rather be prepared for everything. I will continue researching, but the timeframe is still too long to make concrete plans.
At least now, thanks to you, I have an idea of how realistic my project is and remain determined to do everything I can to make our dream of a small home a reality soon.
One more thing, which is probably very hard to answer, but can I get a rough idea of how an architect’s fees might affect costs for the planned size? It’s not just paying the person themselves, but such planning probably triggers a chain reaction since many things will have to be custom-designed individually. I’m only looking for a rough estimate, as I understand this market is large and certainly open-ended, but perhaps there is an approximate range based on the planned project size and my rather limited budget.
Thank you all very much. As things become more concrete, I will likely start asking questions more actively again.
I don’t think I will be able to plan much further ahead at this stage. I will continue to pursue working with an architect, as that seems to be the most sensible option. They should know what to focus on, and as a layperson, it’s certain that some points in the planning will be overlooked, no matter how well prepared you are.
And the objection that a suitable plot of land can quickly throw the plans out the window is of course something I hadn’t considered beforehand.
The plots in our desired area are mostly flat, as it is quite a lowland region, but who knows how it looks individually there.
To avoid any misunderstandings: My last place of residence and work at the time of registration was in Lower Austria, but the house construction is planned in a rural area of North Rhine-Westphalia, so everything is fine in that respect. Sorry for not making that clear earlier.
Now I definitely have some reference points with which I can continue planning. I fear that I will need to save up equity for at least another year, as I’d rather be prepared for everything. I will continue researching, but the timeframe is still too long to make concrete plans.
At least now, thanks to you, I have an idea of how realistic my project is and remain determined to do everything I can to make our dream of a small home a reality soon.
One more thing, which is probably very hard to answer, but can I get a rough idea of how an architect’s fees might affect costs for the planned size? It’s not just paying the person themselves, but such planning probably triggers a chain reaction since many things will have to be custom-designed individually. I’m only looking for a rough estimate, as I understand this market is large and certainly open-ended, but perhaps there is an approximate range based on the planned project size and my rather limited budget.
Thank you all very much. As things become more concrete, I will likely start asking questions more actively again.
D655321 schrieb:
One more thing, which is probably very difficult to answer, but can anyone give a rough estimate of how an architect affects the costs for the planned size? It’s not just paying the person themself, but such planning likely triggers a chain reaction, since much more will presumably need to be custom designed.If you choose the all-inclusive package, expect around 10-12% of the total budget for the house plus (possibly the garage).
An architect will provide a detailed breakdown based on HOAI (official fee structure for architects), but there is some flexibility (a range).
You can also exclude certain service phases. It’s helpful to get a fixed-price offer. Otherwise, it can happen (and usually does) that your project becomes more expensive. I believe Bauexperte mentioned that an architect can charge up to 20% of the additional costs again.
Where in NRW is the building planned? Approximate location. 🙂
PS: We would choose an architect again at any time, even though we are still at a very early stage.
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