Hello everyone,
My husband and I have been looking for a plot of land or a house for some time now. Since the market here – Cologne – is quite tight and we want to live in a specific area, it will most likely be an existing property. The buildings in our preferred neighborhood mostly date from the 1960s to 1970s.
When buying, we want to hire an expert, preferably someone with experience in renovations, including planning the refurbishment (heating, electrical, plumbing, water pipes, etc.). Right now, I’m considering where to find the best expert for this. The Yellow Pages is always an option, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable relying solely on that, as the quality varies a lot. When a house comes onto the market here, you often have to act quickly. So I would like to start searching in advance.
I have also looked at the Building Owners’ Protection Association (Bauherren-Schutzbund); does anyone have experience with them?
Or is it possible to get a recommendation from the financing bank?
We are not planning an energy-efficient renovation, so KfW consultants are not an option for us.
Does anyone have any tips?
My husband and I have been looking for a plot of land or a house for some time now. Since the market here – Cologne – is quite tight and we want to live in a specific area, it will most likely be an existing property. The buildings in our preferred neighborhood mostly date from the 1960s to 1970s.
When buying, we want to hire an expert, preferably someone with experience in renovations, including planning the refurbishment (heating, electrical, plumbing, water pipes, etc.). Right now, I’m considering where to find the best expert for this. The Yellow Pages is always an option, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable relying solely on that, as the quality varies a lot. When a house comes onto the market here, you often have to act quickly. So I would like to start searching in advance.
I have also looked at the Building Owners’ Protection Association (Bauherren-Schutzbund); does anyone have experience with them?
Or is it possible to get a recommendation from the financing bank?
We are not planning an energy-efficient renovation, so KfW consultants are not an option for us.
Does anyone have any tips?
After submitting, I also realized that the way I phrased the question was somewhat awkward and sounded a bit like “apply to me.” 😉
However, I’ve made some progress already.
@ Bauexperte: Thanks, I wasn’t familiar with two of the three associations; I had somehow grouped them all under one name. It’s also good to hear that the idea involving the bank isn’t entirely off.
I’ll just start by requesting preliminary consultation appointments, hoping that the responses will at least help my gut feeling 🙂
@ Will: A good point that first property inspections can be arranged on short notice. I was already wondering how to coordinate that.
We are looking on the right bank of the river, in Dellbrück, Dünnwald, Höhenhaus, and Brück.
We’re currently trying to convince a community of heirs that selling is better than renting 😀
I will definitely be back here with many questions 🙂
However, I’ve made some progress already.
@ Bauexperte: Thanks, I wasn’t familiar with two of the three associations; I had somehow grouped them all under one name. It’s also good to hear that the idea involving the bank isn’t entirely off.
I’ll just start by requesting preliminary consultation appointments, hoping that the responses will at least help my gut feeling 🙂
@ Will: A good point that first property inspections can be arranged on short notice. I was already wondering how to coordinate that.
We are looking on the right bank of the river, in Dellbrück, Dünnwald, Höhenhaus, and Brück.
We’re currently trying to convince a community of heirs that selling is better than renting 😀
I will definitely be back here with many questions 🙂
B
Bauexperte11 Jul 2016 17:36Zugvogel schrieb:
Dellbrück, Dünnwald, Höhenhaus, Brück.Very nice area!Zugvogel schrieb:
And currently trying to convince a community of heirs that selling is better than renting 😀Oh wow – good luck with that; not an easy task 🙄Best regards, Bauexperte