Hello dear home builders.
Over the past few weeks, we have gathered numerous quotes from construction companies and are now facing the question: Whom should we choose?
What criteria would you base your decision on, and what would you pay special attention to when deciding who you want to build with?
We would appreciate your suggestions.
Brief overview of the building project:
- Two-story urban villa or single-family house with knee wall of 1.80m (5 feet 11 inches), starting from 130sqm (1,400 sqft)
- No plot of land yet, as they are scarce in Erfurt and the surrounding area. So we are still searching. (Some construction companies offer assistance with this)
Over the past few weeks, we have gathered numerous quotes from construction companies and are now facing the question: Whom should we choose?
What criteria would you base your decision on, and what would you pay special attention to when deciding who you want to build with?
We would appreciate your suggestions.
Brief overview of the building project:
- Two-story urban villa or single-family house with knee wall of 1.80m (5 feet 11 inches), starting from 130sqm (1,400 sqft)
- No plot of land yet, as they are scarce in Erfurt and the surrounding area. So we are still searching. (Some construction companies offer assistance with this)
E
erfurter11028712 Sep 2020 08:49I’m not making this up—here in Erfurt, what happens is that when new residential areas are developed, the major developers are first given priority and reserved plots of land. After all these developers have taken their share, there might only be about 5 to 10 plots left in the new development.
These remaining plots are simply not offered on the open market. If you’re interested in building a house with one of these developers, you are given the contact information of the “marketer” handling the plots and can purchase the plot separately beforehand.
If anyone has more helpful information, thanks in advance and have a great weekend.
These remaining plots are simply not offered on the open market. If you’re interested in building a house with one of these developers, you are given the contact information of the “marketer” handling the plots and can purchase the plot separately beforehand.
If anyone has more helpful information, thanks in advance and have a great weekend.
F
FoxMulder2412 Sep 2020 09:15Well, honestly, apart from one or two sentences, I didn’t find the comments that bad.
However, many people here rightly become alarmed when a construction company pressures you to sign a contract before you even have a plot of land or it is confirmed.
There are some companies (or salespeople) that try to take advantage of you. You read about this here quite often. It also happened in my family.
It doesn’t seem unusual to me that developers are supplied with land early by municipalities—due to better contacts or other reasons.
With arrangements like this (a house without a confirmed plot), you need to be very cautious.
IF I were to consider this, I would want potential plots shown or guaranteed to me in writing beforehand. Also, I would check with the local authority who owns the land and verify whether the information from the construction company is correct. And you absolutely need a free cancellation clause in the contract in case the shown plots don’t meet your expectations. There are also often excessive cancellation fees to watch out for here.
Another point is that the house you buy in advance might not be allowed to be built on the later plot, depending on the zoning plan. Then the disappointment is big, and additional costs start. At that point, you no longer have room to negotiate because you have already signed the contract.
Is the marketer and the developer the same company? If so, there is a dependency, and the tax authorities will charge you accordingly—even if the builder promised otherwise. Some construction companies tend to tell untruths in this regard.
However, many people here rightly become alarmed when a construction company pressures you to sign a contract before you even have a plot of land or it is confirmed.
There are some companies (or salespeople) that try to take advantage of you. You read about this here quite often. It also happened in my family.
It doesn’t seem unusual to me that developers are supplied with land early by municipalities—due to better contacts or other reasons.
With arrangements like this (a house without a confirmed plot), you need to be very cautious.
IF I were to consider this, I would want potential plots shown or guaranteed to me in writing beforehand. Also, I would check with the local authority who owns the land and verify whether the information from the construction company is correct. And you absolutely need a free cancellation clause in the contract in case the shown plots don’t meet your expectations. There are also often excessive cancellation fees to watch out for here.
Another point is that the house you buy in advance might not be allowed to be built on the later plot, depending on the zoning plan. Then the disappointment is big, and additional costs start. At that point, you no longer have room to negotiate because you have already signed the contract.
Is the marketer and the developer the same company? If so, there is a dependency, and the tax authorities will charge you accordingly—even if the builder promised otherwise. Some construction companies tend to tell untruths in this regard.
Even if all of that is true, move away from the idea that YOU already have a house plan, and instead find a builder or developer first!!! (The land and the house form a unit and are treated as such for tax purposes.) Then plan the house together on the available plot of land, where factors like floor area ratio, number of storeys, house orientation, and so on can be specifically coordinated.
I would not sign a contract solely for building a house without owning the land, and you have received these answers here but seem unwilling to accept them.
I would not sign a contract solely for building a house without owning the land, and you have received these answers here but seem unwilling to accept them.
B
BackSteinGotik12 Sep 2020 09:54erfurter110287 schrieb:
First, take a deep breath...
...
If anyone still has reasonable answers now, thanks in advance and have a nice weekendThe answers were reasonable after all. At the current market conditions, you simply can’t consider a construction company if you don’t own land. You can start thinking about that once you have enough money for the existing “plots” with old buildings, which are going for sky-high prices nowadays.
If not, you need to focus on finding land. Whenever developers are involved, you have to accept paying property transfer tax on everything – both the house and the land. There’s no way around it – ask the representative if they will take liability if they claim otherwise.
The only point worth discussing is 11ant’s statement that “knee wall height of 1.8m (6 feet) is a typical newbie misconception.” Presumably, this refers to the question: “Why not just go for a full floor? With a 1.8m (6 feet) knee wall, you can’t create a recessed top floor without substantially increasing the ground floor footprint.”
erfurter110287 schrieb:
Seriously, guys? You ask a question and your way of communicating is so snappy. No, it isn’t.
I checked the old thread from around 2013: back then, you called us unfriendly just because everyone criticized your under 4sqm (43 sq.ft) small utility room and your idea to dry laundry in the living room. I happened to notice that you were very upset about the responses. So maybe you should consider why you keep accusing others of being unfriendly... hello, we are sharing our good knowledge with you!
erfurter110287 schrieb:
I’m not telling you nonsense, here in Erfurt it’s like this: new housing developments come along, and first the “big” developers get the land “secured” so after all the developers took their lots, maybe 5 to 10 plots remain. Yes, they get a guarantee if no one else wants them. The municipality sells to interested parties. If no private individuals approach the municipality expressing interest, of course the general contractor or developer gets the “brokerage business.”
erfurter110287 schrieb:
These plots are simply not offered on the “open market”! Then you are A municipality simply does not advertise plots; the general contractors and developers do. That’s what I meant with:
ypg schrieb:
Private homeowners have the same rights. They just need to get moving. You have to approach the municipality directly and/or follow regional newspapers. Homeowners think developers or general contractors have exclusive rights to the plots, but these are just “initiative offers.”
Regarding the marketing of plots, I do not share Yvonne’s skepticism—municipalities do market land themselves, just not through their property management office but, for example, through their savings bank. However, keep in mind that only one tax office is responsible for a development area, and the caseworkers handling names A-K and L-Z often sit together in the cafeteria. It might only become apparent after each of them encounters the same case for the third time that plot seller XY is always linked to the developer’s houses—but then all involved parties receive a questionnaire. Situations like this arise when the land purchase contract specifies that building must be done with a particular developer. Whether that party is a “third party” or simply “the other hand of the seller” makes no difference when assessing whether there is a connection. In case of doubt, the tax office just establishes the connection and issues a notice that, along with late payment penalties, can be enforced—even while you are suing them. They are also already familiar with the “trick” of carrying out both connected transactions on different days and what came first, the chicken or the egg, which is an old joke by now. For the buyer, however, it does make a difference: signing the construction contract first makes the land issue subject to pressure and uncertain, like being at sea.
No, it is about the experience that zoning plan issuers, when they want to avoid full upper floors, usually close any loopholes such as knee wall heights and dormer windows tightly. By “typical newbie misconception,” I mean the obsessive idea that every last corner of a room must have full standing height. An energy-saving regulation-compliant attic is neither a sauna nor a refrigerator, and the very highest cupboard compartments regularly store things that only clutter the space. Hating the sloped roof only works against you as a builder. In Krüger’s sense, this is not art but something that can be omitted. Furthermore, the principle of “too much leads to less” also applies to knee wall heights: too much is not good because it awkwardly raises the dividing line between facade and roof windows; even more excessive height causes the spatial impression to shift from a “high knee wall” to a “straight wall floor with clipped corners.” Then the rooms essentially have “dog ears.”
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
BackSteinGotik schrieb:
Only 11ant’s statement “Kniestock 1.80 meters (6 feet) is a typical newbie misconception” is debatable. Presumably, the point is: “Why not just a full storey right away, since with a 1.8m (6 ft) knee wall, you can’t create a stepped floor without a larger ground floor footprint?”
No, it is about the experience that zoning plan issuers, when they want to avoid full upper floors, usually close any loopholes such as knee wall heights and dormer windows tightly. By “typical newbie misconception,” I mean the obsessive idea that every last corner of a room must have full standing height. An energy-saving regulation-compliant attic is neither a sauna nor a refrigerator, and the very highest cupboard compartments regularly store things that only clutter the space. Hating the sloped roof only works against you as a builder. In Krüger’s sense, this is not art but something that can be omitted. Furthermore, the principle of “too much leads to less” also applies to knee wall heights: too much is not good because it awkwardly raises the dividing line between facade and roof windows; even more excessive height causes the spatial impression to shift from a “high knee wall” to a “straight wall floor with clipped corners.” Then the rooms essentially have “dog ears.”
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
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