Hello!
For almost two years now, I have been considering having a small pavilion in our garden converted internally and rented out as an apartment to a student or similar, in order to partially cover the maintenance costs of the property. The biggest question for me is how to carry out such a project in a financially viable way. I have already spoken with two architects who have very different estimates for the total cost (70,000 and 120,000). I also spoke with a small construction company that could handle the entire interior conversion (cost estimate around 50,000, but excluding architectural services).
The dilemma I’m facing is that I need an architect for the change of use application (the pavilion is currently not registered as living space but as a garden shed; the garden area is also classified as open land) as well as for the preliminary building inquiry (the pavilion’s exterior is protected as a historic monument, but a window is to be installed). The architect would of course oversee the entire construction, which would increase the costs. On the other hand, the renovation work could also be carried out independently by the construction company mentioned (likely at a significantly lower price). One of the architects said that due to the relatively minor modifications, hiring an architect might hardly be worthwhile.
To give a clearer picture, here are some key facts about the pavilion and the planned work.
Key data:
- Floor area 18m² (194 sq ft), the attic is also to be converted (about another 12m² (129 sq ft) of space)
- Connected to electricity, gas, water supply and drainage
- Exterior protected as a historic monument
- Located in an open land area
- Immediately adjacent to the road or property boundary
- Parking space installation possible
Planned work:
- Installation of bathroom and kitchenette
- Conversion of the attic as a second living level (for a bed)
- Installation of an additional window
- Installation of a heating system (gas boiler)
- Insulation (planned exemption from energy saving regulations due to disproportionately high costs)
My question is, which option would be the most cost-effective? For example, does it make sense to hire an architect only to handle all the formalities, and then, once the building permit / planning permission is approved, switch to a construction company and leave the architect out?
I look forward to any input!
Best regards, Tom
For almost two years now, I have been considering having a small pavilion in our garden converted internally and rented out as an apartment to a student or similar, in order to partially cover the maintenance costs of the property. The biggest question for me is how to carry out such a project in a financially viable way. I have already spoken with two architects who have very different estimates for the total cost (70,000 and 120,000). I also spoke with a small construction company that could handle the entire interior conversion (cost estimate around 50,000, but excluding architectural services).
The dilemma I’m facing is that I need an architect for the change of use application (the pavilion is currently not registered as living space but as a garden shed; the garden area is also classified as open land) as well as for the preliminary building inquiry (the pavilion’s exterior is protected as a historic monument, but a window is to be installed). The architect would of course oversee the entire construction, which would increase the costs. On the other hand, the renovation work could also be carried out independently by the construction company mentioned (likely at a significantly lower price). One of the architects said that due to the relatively minor modifications, hiring an architect might hardly be worthwhile.
To give a clearer picture, here are some key facts about the pavilion and the planned work.
Key data:
- Floor area 18m² (194 sq ft), the attic is also to be converted (about another 12m² (129 sq ft) of space)
- Connected to electricity, gas, water supply and drainage
- Exterior protected as a historic monument
- Located in an open land area
- Immediately adjacent to the road or property boundary
- Parking space installation possible
Planned work:
- Installation of bathroom and kitchenette
- Conversion of the attic as a second living level (for a bed)
- Installation of an additional window
- Installation of a heating system (gas boiler)
- Insulation (planned exemption from energy saving regulations due to disproportionately high costs)
My question is, which option would be the most cost-effective? For example, does it make sense to hire an architect only to handle all the formalities, and then, once the building permit / planning permission is approved, switch to a construction company and leave the architect out?
I look forward to any input!
Best regards, Tom
T
Tomtom19846 Nov 2018 23:20So 20€/sqm (approximately $21/sq ft) is actually not unusual at all for Heidelberg, if you take a look at the listings, even for one-bedroom apartments. And the pavilion is very nice, detached, plus there is a part of the garden that the tenant can use privately, not visible from outside, great location, etc. However, I want to take your points into account and initially calculate with rental income of 500€.
Tomtom1984 schrieb:
to partly cover the maintenance costs of the property.It all goes toward the mortgage anyway...
Tomtom1984 schrieb:
Footprint 18m2 (194 sq ft), with the attic also planned to be converted (adding about 12m2 (129 sq ft) of space)Isn’t there a minimum size requirement for a rentable unit?
Anyway, from an energy efficiency standpoint, does this make sense?
Tomtom1984 schrieb:
Since our property is located in one of the most popular parts of the city, on the edge of the forest, and also very central (1.5m (0.9 miles) to the city center), I (and the local architects) expect rent to be around 500-600 euros.Since when does a student count as being on the forest edge? The money has to come from somewhere...
N
nordanney7 Nov 2018 08:21Tomtom1984 schrieb:
So 20€/sqm is actually not that unusual for HeidelbergQuickly looked it up: typical student apartments (usually furnished): 25sqm (270 sq ft) rooms for about 350€ rent excluding utilities, and apartments around 30sqm (320 sq ft) for about 450€.You really have to compete with that—just because it's near the forest. Why would I choose that location if I can get something similar elsewhere (maybe more central)? But it’s hard to assess without more location details.
N
nordanney7 Nov 2018 08:23Oh yes, do you need financing or are you paying from your own equity? Since you want to reduce the costs for the house/land, I assume you are taking out a loan; otherwise, you probably wouldn’t be dealing with this. What is the situation with the bank? A small loan (subordinated in the land register?) can be quite expensive and significantly reduces your return, even with a rent of 500€ per month.
T
Tomtom19847 Nov 2018 13:43Thanks again for your assessments regarding the achievable rent. €500 is really realistic here; I am already renting parts of the main house to students and have a pretty good idea of what people are willing to pay. I don’t think it makes much sense to justify the rent price further now, because as nordanney already said, it’s difficult for outsiders to judge without location information.
So, going back to my original question, what do you think: is there a way to reduce the architect’s share of the project costs? Or is it possible to carry out the change of use application and preliminary building inquiry with the architect involved, and then proceed without them once approval is obtained?
Oh, and here are the answers to the questions:
I have €30,000 (30k) in equity and would need to take out a loan of €45,000 (45k). So far, no loans have been taken out on the house or land.
What do you mean by that?
So, going back to my original question, what do you think: is there a way to reduce the architect’s share of the project costs? Or is it possible to carry out the change of use application and preliminary building inquiry with the architect involved, and then proceed without them once approval is obtained?
Oh, and here are the answers to the questions:
nordanney schrieb:
By the way, do you need to finance this or pay from equity? What’s the situation with the bank? Such a small loan (subordinate in the land register?) really costs money and significantly lowers your return, even with €500 rent.
I have €30,000 (30k) in equity and would need to take out a loan of €45,000 (45k). So far, no loans have been taken out on the house or land.
ypg schrieb:
Anyway. It’s not energy-efficient, right?
What do you mean by that?
M
Mottenhausen7 Nov 2018 14:54Tomtom1984 schrieb:
What do you think, is there a way to reduce the architect’s involvement in the project, or is it possible to handle the change of use application and building pre-application with an architect and then proceed without them after approval?Sure. If the approval is not granted, the architect’s work ends exactly at that point. It just needs to be clear from the start what you are hiring them for and how they will be compensated.