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.
Winniefred3 May 2020 16:57I can only advise testing everything that can already be tested. Every window, every function, every door. All electrical systems, including labeling in the fuse box—especially to check if the high-voltage connections are labeled correctly (yes, in our case, they were not!). As for the tiles, well, no one is going to tear those out anymore. Some issues will only become apparent after moving in. Test all faucets and drains, including hot water at all taps and outlets. Heating system. Make sure all smoke detectors are installed and active. Exterior shutters, of course. Just go through everything and thoroughly test absolutely everything.
G
goalkeeper5 May 2020 10:35The handover of the house had to be postponed from Thursday to next Tuesday because the plumber will not finish on time. However, it still fits within our overall schedule.
Yesterday, while checking with the leveling rod, we unfortunately noticed that the screed in some rooms is not correct. Hopefully, this will be fixed within this week.
On Friday, the 120 sqm (1,292 sq ft) flooring including skirting boards will be delivered (almost 1 ton of material – phew). On the 15th, a larger furniture delivery from the big yellow store will arrive, and kitchen installation is scheduled for May 28th and 29th. The kitchen appliances have also all been ordered.
We’ll see if the timeline can still be maintained since the move is planned for the Pentecost weekend.
Yesterday, while checking with the leveling rod, we unfortunately noticed that the screed in some rooms is not correct. Hopefully, this will be fixed within this week.
On Friday, the 120 sqm (1,292 sq ft) flooring including skirting boards will be delivered (almost 1 ton of material – phew). On the 15th, a larger furniture delivery from the big yellow store will arrive, and kitchen installation is scheduled for May 28th and 29th. The kitchen appliances have also all been ordered.
We’ll see if the timeline can still be maintained since the move is planned for the Pentecost weekend.
G
goalkeeper5 May 2020 13:26kaho674 schrieb:
So, is your account already empty, or are you still buying a rubber duck for the bathtub? We managed our budget so well that we can even afford an 85-inch (216 cm) TV for Dad – and Mom is getting her KitchenAid.
Seriously: financially, we’re on track because we included extra buffers for many items that ended up being less expensive – even though we had to pay almost 15,000 more for the foundations. Otherwise, there would have been even more left over.
goalkeeper schrieb:
We managed our budget so well that there’s even room for an 85-inch (215 cm) TV for Dad – and Mom is getting her KitchenAid.
Just don’t get overconfident. The bottleneck usually appears after you’ve moved in and suddenly need curtain rods or a doormat....or a house number, exterior light, mailbox... and so on.
@goalkeeper: KitchenAid? They should take a look at the Kenwood Chef Titanium and similar models. We bought a Kenwood and, after the kitchen was installed (actually purchased earlier), I boldly asked a few days later during a promotion and received a KitchenAid as well. In my opinion, the Kenwood is much better built and the better choice. Overall, it feels more durable, though this may also depend on the specific KitchenAid model. But if it’s not absolutely necessary to have the KitchenAid look, they should definitely consider Kenwood.