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Illexchubby15 Sep 2017 13:06Hello dear forum,
my fiancée (27) and I (30) have decided to start a new construction project next year. Completion and moving in is planned for 2019. Currently, we are thinking about the best way to approach the whole process.
A few details…
- After our initial meeting with the house bank, a total budget of around 420,000€ (including our equity) is feasible for us.
- A plot of land measuring 750 m² (8,073 sq ft) is currently reserved and would cost us 83,100€ (including notary and land transfer tax).
- The plot has a slight slope with about 2 m (6.5 ft) drop over 30 m (98 ft) length.
That’s the rough outline of our project so far. At the moment, we are considering whether to build a timber frame or solid construction, whether to work with an architect or a general contractor (GC)... (the classic questions). Our current preference is a solid house, which we want to realize with a local architect and building companies. Possibly also a GC who has architects on staff. We have heard several times that there are many advantages to working with a company that offers a complete package. (?)
Now, we want to figure out how much house we can afford with the estimated budget of 420,000€. Our wish is a single-family house, one and a half stories, gable roof with a dormer, around 160 m² (1,722 sq ft), without a basement, with a large double garage that also offers storage space for bicycles, a small workshop, etc.
I would roughly allocate another 20,000€ for the garage and 25,000€ for the driveway and garden landscaping. This would leave about 291,900€ for the house itself.
I have read in many posts here about costs given in €/m². It is often recommended to calculate with an amount between 1,800€ and 2,000€ /m² for a “standard” finish. If I divide our remaining budget by the desired 160 m², I get a little over 1,800€, so we would be at the lower end. I understand that this is just a rough guideline, but what exactly is this estimate based on? Does it include interior fittings, kitchen, heating, etc.? Foundation slab? Terrace? Additional building costs?
Since we really like the building plot and its location, we are fairly fixed on that. Our main concern now is to find out whether our budget matches our plans. What do you think, is 160 m² achievable? Do we perhaps need a basement due to the slope?
Thank you very much in advance for your opinions.
Best regards, Dennis
my fiancée (27) and I (30) have decided to start a new construction project next year. Completion and moving in is planned for 2019. Currently, we are thinking about the best way to approach the whole process.
A few details…
- After our initial meeting with the house bank, a total budget of around 420,000€ (including our equity) is feasible for us.
- A plot of land measuring 750 m² (8,073 sq ft) is currently reserved and would cost us 83,100€ (including notary and land transfer tax).
- The plot has a slight slope with about 2 m (6.5 ft) drop over 30 m (98 ft) length.
That’s the rough outline of our project so far. At the moment, we are considering whether to build a timber frame or solid construction, whether to work with an architect or a general contractor (GC)... (the classic questions). Our current preference is a solid house, which we want to realize with a local architect and building companies. Possibly also a GC who has architects on staff. We have heard several times that there are many advantages to working with a company that offers a complete package. (?)
Now, we want to figure out how much house we can afford with the estimated budget of 420,000€. Our wish is a single-family house, one and a half stories, gable roof with a dormer, around 160 m² (1,722 sq ft), without a basement, with a large double garage that also offers storage space for bicycles, a small workshop, etc.
I would roughly allocate another 20,000€ for the garage and 25,000€ for the driveway and garden landscaping. This would leave about 291,900€ for the house itself.
I have read in many posts here about costs given in €/m². It is often recommended to calculate with an amount between 1,800€ and 2,000€ /m² for a “standard” finish. If I divide our remaining budget by the desired 160 m², I get a little over 1,800€, so we would be at the lower end. I understand that this is just a rough guideline, but what exactly is this estimate based on? Does it include interior fittings, kitchen, heating, etc.? Foundation slab? Terrace? Additional building costs?
Since we really like the building plot and its location, we are fairly fixed on that. Our main concern now is to find out whether our budget matches our plans. What do you think, is 160 m² achievable? Do we perhaps need a basement due to the slope?
Thank you very much in advance for your opinions.
Best regards, Dennis
markus270315 Sep 2017 13:39With that slope, you will definitely have a clearly visible incline in the terrain. We have a 1.5m (5 feet) difference over approximately the same length, which we managed to solve quite well with some ideas.
The €1,800 per square meter (€/sqm) actually refers only to the house itself, so it does not include additional construction costs or fittings. For you, that would mean €288,000 just for the house. You can find plenty of information about additional construction costs in the forum.
However, due to the slope, you should plan a substantial buffer for foundation costs. I would roughly estimate a minimum of €15,000.
The €1,800 per square meter (€/sqm) actually refers only to the house itself, so it does not include additional construction costs or fittings. For you, that would mean €288,000 just for the house. You can find plenty of information about additional construction costs in the forum.
However, due to the slope, you should plan a substantial buffer for foundation costs. I would roughly estimate a minimum of €15,000.
We are also building on a sloped site. The plot is about 3 m (10 feet) high across a width of 22 m (72 feet).
Our architect said we either spend €30,000 on raising the ground level or €60,000 on building with a basement.
So the idea to reduce the size of the house makes sense. It may sound odd at first, but we didn’t lose any living space because the utility room was removed. In addition, we gained 50 m² (540 sq ft) of usable space for €30,000 more.
The general contractor we originally planned to work with never suggested this and even tried to mislead us with incorrect information (they claimed the ground raising would only cost €7,000).
Let’s take a look at your numbers:
+ €420,000 budget
- €83,000 land
- €40,000 additional construction costs
- €30,000 double garage (sorry, you can forget about the €20,000 figure)
- €10,000 extra for ground raising due to slope
- €15,000 landscaping (only the essentials)
- €10,000 upgrades for better fittings
= €232,000 for the house
That comes to €1,450 per m² (approximately $135 per sq ft). That will be really tough.
Our architect said we either spend €30,000 on raising the ground level or €60,000 on building with a basement.
So the idea to reduce the size of the house makes sense. It may sound odd at first, but we didn’t lose any living space because the utility room was removed. In addition, we gained 50 m² (540 sq ft) of usable space for €30,000 more.
The general contractor we originally planned to work with never suggested this and even tried to mislead us with incorrect information (they claimed the ground raising would only cost €7,000).
Let’s take a look at your numbers:
+ €420,000 budget
- €83,000 land
- €40,000 additional construction costs
- €30,000 double garage (sorry, you can forget about the €20,000 figure)
- €10,000 extra for ground raising due to slope
- €15,000 landscaping (only the essentials)
- €10,000 upgrades for better fittings
= €232,000 for the house
That comes to €1,450 per m² (approximately $135 per sq ft). That will be really tough.
I
Illexchubby24 Sep 2017 11:13Hello everyone,
First of all, sorry for the late reply and thank you for your contributions...
Sounds very interesting. What ideas did you have, or how did you finally implement it?
At the moment, we are thinking of a terrace on the south side, which would then lead down to the garden via stairs.
Are the ancillary building costs really that high? We are buying our land directly from the municipality, so no agent fees etc. The land transfer and notary fees are already included in the €83k.
Your example does make sense in that with “only” €30k extra costs you would get a basement. But you have to have that money first.
Best regards,
Dennis
First of all, sorry for the late reply and thank you for your contributions...
markus2703 schrieb:
With this slope, you will definitely have a clearly visible incline on your land. We have 1.5m (5 feet) over roughly the same length, but managed it quite well with some ideas.
Sounds very interesting. What ideas did you have, or how did you finally implement it?
At the moment, we are thinking of a terrace on the south side, which would then lead down to the garden via stairs.
Zaba12 schrieb:
Let’s look at your numbers,
+ €420k budget
- €83k land
- €40k ancillary building costs
- €30k double garage (Sorry, you can forget the €20k)
- €10k additional backfilling due to slope
- €15k landscaping (just the essentials)
- €10k specification upgrades for better fittings
= €232k for the house
Are the ancillary building costs really that high? We are buying our land directly from the municipality, so no agent fees etc. The land transfer and notary fees are already included in the €83k.
Your example does make sense in that with “only” €30k extra costs you would get a basement. But you have to have that money first.
Best regards,
Dennis
T
toxicmolotof24 Sep 2017 11:33Zaba12 schrieb:
- €30,000 (around $32,000) for a double garage (Sorry, forget about the €20,000 (around $21,000))Come on, a double garage as a precast reinforced concrete garage, 6 x 6 m (20 x 20 ft) with two sectional doors could actually work. It would be a basic standard with a touch of style.
Illexchubby schrieb:
Are the additional construction costs really that high? Yes, they will be. Around €40,000 (about $43,000) is a reasonable average. It might end up only being €30,000 (around $32,000), but there have also been cases reaching €60,000 (about $64,000). This budget category includes everything that was otherwise forgotten and is not included in the building specification. And that can be quite a lot.
Illexchubby schrieb:
Our wish is a single-family house, 1.5 stories, gable roof, dormer, approximately 160m² (1,722 sq ft), without a basement, with a large double garage that also provides storage space for bicycles, a small workshop, and more.Try placing that on a sloped lot of your quality.
First comes the plot, then the idea of the house.
For sloped lots, I always recommend working with an architect!
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