ᐅ Builder of Solid Construction Homes or Architect During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Hello everyone,

We are about to start building a house (rural area, Schleswig-Holstein, 60 km (37 miles) from Hamburg) and are uncertain about how to proceed due to the coronavirus crisis:

Option 1: Turnkey with a solid construction company Massivhausanbieter Viebrockhaus, because – as we assume –:
- more financially stable/crisis-proof as a large company, lower risk of insolvency
- own sample display centers with likely on-site material storage
- own trades/construction crews (no cross-border workers who currently cannot cross the border)
- relatively short construction period

Option 2: local architect/construction manager who uses local tradespeople, because:
- has known many trades in our region for decades
- very good reputation/experience
- can adapt plans more flexibly in case of illness/material shortages (has several framers, carpenters, electricians, etc. available)
- feels personally committed to the construction project

What do you think, which option would be your favorite and why?

Thank you very much for your opinions, advice, and tips!

If you have no idea, then go for the turnkey option! Locally, as you said: architect plus construction manager equals? It doesn’t get any better. With the general contractor (the turnkey solution), you get a finished, pre-defined scope of work plus additional costs that are not mentioned in the contract.

Mertha257 schrieb:

more solvent/crisis-proof as a large provider, lower risk of insolvency

Is that the naive dream of "too big to fail"? – Philipp Holzmann was bigger.
Do you know the company's equity ratio?

Mertha257 schrieb:

own sample showrooms with presumably material storage

I find that the key phrase.

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Mertha257 schrieb:

- more financially stable/resilient because of a large provider, lower risk of insolvency

Is that really the case? Despite the franchise model and multiple independent construction companies?
I’d rather go with an architect and individual trades. If one tradesperson is unavailable, you just hire the next. If Viebrockhaus fails, everything falls apart.

Oh, and Viebrockhaus still has to purchase its materials and can’t build if there are no windows available. And if there’s a COVID-19 outbreak on the construction site, it doesn’t really matter who stops work.

Sending greetings to the “neighborhood.” Are you also building in Berkenthin?

We are looking to build in the Lübeck area as well. However, our preference would always be to work with an architect. We have had many visits to homebuilding companies (Team Massiv, Viebrockhaus, ECO, etc.), and in our region, the actual construction work by these companies is relatively limited. They primarily handle planning and coordination, which, in my opinion, comes with excessively high markups. At the same time, these companies manage a lot of money because the entire building project is processed through them. I don’t see the risk of default as insignificant in this setup.

Therefore, I prefer to contract the respective trades individually myself.

Best regards from Bad Oldesloe.

I know someone who is building with V (near Hamburg), and work is continuing there at the moment. However, they will also face a delay of 2-3 weeks. This kind of delay can happen anywhere since not only workers (being present and healthy) but also materials are needed.

We are currently facing similar questions. A lawyer advised us to initially commission only the planning phase with the building permit application, as no one knows how long this will take (plus risks such as price lock expiration, company bankruptcy, everyone in the company passing away, etc. Lawyers tend to be naturally pessimistic...) and only sign the rest afterwards. The downside is that prices negotiated now without a markup in 2020 will most likely no longer apply.

Crystal ball guessing can go wrong either way. The advantage is that you keep control in your hands.