ᐅ Building an End-Terrace House as a Self-Managed Project with a General Contractor
Created on: 27 May 2019 10:48
G
goalkeeper
Hello everyone,
some of you might have already followed one of my threads about us having to or being allowed to build our end-terrace house on our own responsibility – depending on how you look at it. This means that we are buying an end-terrace plot (215 sqm (2315 sq ft)) in a new development area in the Rhein-Neckar district and will be building on it ourselves – but in coordination with our two terrace neighbors.
The municipality, which sold the plots through a local resident model, ideally wanted applicants to apply as a complete housing group with several families and then build accordingly with a general contractor, construction manager, or architect. Of course, that didn’t really work out, so now there are only individual applicants and also homeowners.
After we were awarded the plot, the addresses of the other terrace neighbors were shared to discuss certain matters, such as roof style, whether or not to have a basement, etc. It was immediately clear that everyone preferred to do their own thing. However, we were still able to agree that the housing group will have a gable roof with a pitch of 35 to 40 degrees (within this 5-degree range).
As the end house, we will build without a basement, while the middle house and the other end house will have basements. This obviously presents a challenge as we would have to make a deep foundation or simply skip it, and the middle house would have to support us, as we will start construction first. The current agreement with the middle house is that we will build a deeper foundation at his expense, as supporting our house later on would be considerably more expensive for him.
We are currently close to signing with the construction manager, the notarization appointment for the plot is at the end of June, and we hope to start construction in the fall of this year. Meanwhile, several other freely planned housing groups are being built around us, which might get in the way with their cranes.
I will document the progress here from time to time – such a self-planned terraced house doesn’t come along very often.
some of you might have already followed one of my threads about us having to or being allowed to build our end-terrace house on our own responsibility – depending on how you look at it. This means that we are buying an end-terrace plot (215 sqm (2315 sq ft)) in a new development area in the Rhein-Neckar district and will be building on it ourselves – but in coordination with our two terrace neighbors.
The municipality, which sold the plots through a local resident model, ideally wanted applicants to apply as a complete housing group with several families and then build accordingly with a general contractor, construction manager, or architect. Of course, that didn’t really work out, so now there are only individual applicants and also homeowners.
After we were awarded the plot, the addresses of the other terrace neighbors were shared to discuss certain matters, such as roof style, whether or not to have a basement, etc. It was immediately clear that everyone preferred to do their own thing. However, we were still able to agree that the housing group will have a gable roof with a pitch of 35 to 40 degrees (within this 5-degree range).
As the end house, we will build without a basement, while the middle house and the other end house will have basements. This obviously presents a challenge as we would have to make a deep foundation or simply skip it, and the middle house would have to support us, as we will start construction first. The current agreement with the middle house is that we will build a deeper foundation at his expense, as supporting our house later on would be considerably more expensive for him.
We are currently close to signing with the construction manager, the notarization appointment for the plot is at the end of June, and we hope to start construction in the fall of this year. Meanwhile, several other freely planned housing groups are being built around us, which might get in the way with their cranes.
I will document the progress here from time to time – such a self-planned terraced house doesn’t come along very often.
G
goalkeeper3 Aug 2019 09:15kaho674 schrieb:
You can’t really use the topsoil for backfilling anyway.
I’d go for the basement. It’s practically already there. 2.40m (7 ft 10 in) strip foundations = ideal basement height. You can leave it unfinished at first. Then you only pay for the stairs, the floor, and the essential supporting columns, right? Have some empty conduits installed going down... If you suddenly come into some money, you’ll be happy; otherwise, it serves as storage space for relatively little additional cost.We will have it calculated. However, that quickly adds another 30-40k, since we would also move our equipment from the attic (top floor) to the basement – but then the attic has to be finished to a higher standard, which causes additional expenses. We have planned a contingency, but not 60k, which is roughly the total cost of the basement with the extra work.
goalkeeper schrieb:
However, that quickly adds up to an additional 30,000-40,000, since we would be moving our technical equipment from the attic to the basement – but the attic would then need to be finished to a higher standard, which causes further extra costs. We have included a buffer – but not 60,000, which is roughly what the basement with additional work will cost in total.Moving the technical systems downstairs would be nice. But the attic wouldn’t get more expensive because of that, would it?! Unless you give up what I consider the unnecessary dormer and save the money for the additional slab.G
goalkeeper3 Aug 2019 09:48kaho674 schrieb:
Putting the technical installations downstairs would be nice. But the attic doesn’t get more expensive because of that, right? Unless you skip the, in my opinion, unnecessary dormer and save the cost of the additional foundation slab. Alternative roof windows also cost money – and the dormer costs only around $7,000, so the savings wouldn’t be significant.
We could remove the mechanical ventilation system – that costs about $15,000. Then we would save some money.
Removing the dormer and the controlled residential ventilation system basically turns it into almost a basement.
You can’t really calculate the costs the same way as at the beginning. Basically, you HAVE to build the basement. The money for the walls and the structural support is gone either way. Filling it with gravel now to avoid electrical outlets is almost silly. Yes, okay, you still need a staircase—but it doesn’t have to be a fancy one like the others. A foundation slab or a floor above will be added. Okay, that also needs to be paid for. Other than that, I don’t see any major extra expenses. No one is forcing you to lay tiles down there, to build walls, or to install a lighting system. And if you want, you can do those things later.
You can’t really calculate the costs the same way as at the beginning. Basically, you HAVE to build the basement. The money for the walls and the structural support is gone either way. Filling it with gravel now to avoid electrical outlets is almost silly. Yes, okay, you still need a staircase—but it doesn’t have to be a fancy one like the others. A foundation slab or a floor above will be added. Okay, that also needs to be paid for. Other than that, I don’t see any major extra expenses. No one is forcing you to lay tiles down there, to build walls, or to install a lighting system. And if you want, you can do those things later.
G
goalkeeper3 Aug 2019 15:03kaho674 schrieb:
Dormer gone and mechanical ventilation removed – it’s almost like a basement now.
You can’t really calculate the costs like at the beginning anymore. Basically, you HAVE to build the basement. The money spent on the walls and structural engineering is already gone anyway. Filling it with gravel now so you don’t need electrical outlets is almost ridiculous. Sure, you still need a staircase – but it doesn’t have to be a luxurious one like the others. A slab or a ceiling will be added. Okay, that also has to be paid for. Otherwise, I don’t see any major additional expenses now. No one is forcing you to install tiles, put up walls, or set up a lighting system down there. And if you get the chance, you can always do those things later. If only it were always as simple as you describe...
G
goalkeeper7 Aug 2019 11:33kaho674 schrieb:
Removing the dormer and controlled residential ventilation – it’s almost like having a basement.
You can’t really calculate the same way you did at the beginning. Basically, YOU HAVE to build the basement. The money for the walls and structural engineering is lost anyway. Filling it with gravel now just so you don’t need electrical outlets is almost foolish. Yes, okay, you still need stairs – but they don’t have to be as extravagant as the others. There’s also the slab or ceiling to consider, which also needs to be paid for. Otherwise, I don’t see any major additional costs. No one is forcing you to install tiles, build walls, or set up lighting down there. And if it suits you, you can always do those things later. To revisit your idea of a stripped-down basement: what can actually be left out if the basement is used solely for storage and as a utility room?
Do I absolutely need a screed and underfloor heating? Is it necessary to construct interior walls? How does this comply with energy-saving regulations? Wouldn’t the basement’s cold then rise to the upper floors on cold days?
What are your thoughts?
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