ᐅ Fill or Basement Construction?

Hi @ all,

we have reserved a plot of land in Lampertheim (Hessen).

It has an area of 428 sqm (4605 sq ft).

Previously, there was a scrapyard/recycling center on the site, so the city has now excavated the entire area by approximately 1.80 m (6 feet). This means it would first need to be filled up again by about 1.80 m (6 feet). The road is almost finished.

The question now is, which would be more cost-effective: this filling or perhaps building a basement?

We want to build with a prefab house manufacturer, and the house will have external dimensions of about 9 x 11 m (30 x 36 ft), so approximately 140–150 sqm (1500–1600 sq ft) of living space.

What would the approximate costs be for such filling? Or for a finished basement?

Thanks and regards,
Sven

Do you want a basement? Bringing in fill dirt isn’t that expensive…
Have you had the soil tested – or do you have proof that the ground is clean?

305er schrieb:
Hi @ all,

we have reserved a plot of land in Lampertheim (Hesse).

It has an area of 428 m² (4609 ft²).

Previously, there was a scrap dealer/recycling center on the site, so the city has now excavated the entire area to an estimated depth of 1.80 m (5.9 ft). In other words, it needs to be filled back up by about 1.80 m (5.9 ft). The road is almost finished.

The question now is, which would be more cost-effective for me: this filling work or perhaps building a basement?

We plan to build with a prefabricated house manufacturer, and the house will have exterior dimensions of approximately 9 x 11 m (30 x 36 ft), so about 140–150 m² (1500–1615 ft²) of living space.

What would be the approximate costs for such a land fill? Or for a finished basement?

Thanks and regards,
Sven

Where you come from, houses without basements aren't considered proper houses.

Where I come from, houses are simply unaffordable. At least not for that reason, which is why we have now reserved this plot of land in Hesse and in this little village.
But that has nothing to do with the topic here.

I don’t think the size of the hole should influence your decision... neither the savings from going down to the basement nor the extra costs for avoiding it are significant enough to determine whether you build one or not.
What I’m more interested in is whether the soil is still bearing load.

Hi, I’m not sure if the ground is stable, so if we decide to buy it, a soil surveyor would need to check it first. The size of the excavation can also have an impact, as according to a few reports it can quickly cost up to 25,000€ (about $27,000 USD), which can really disrupt your financing plans. In theory, it shouldn’t be a problem, but it’s not necessarily something you want—such an amount for something that might not even be needed.