ᐅ Shell construction – final inspection – what questions should we still ask?

Nothing else can be added, otherwise it will get expensive.

Our floor plan was finalized
Window sizes, type of heating, fireplace, stairs,
roof design, controlled mechanical ventilation included, walk-in shower at floor level.
Side panel of the front door.
The rest according to the building specification.

We didn’t customize much.

Nordlys schrieb:

For me, "final" means that the house, fittings, general location on the plot, and price have already been clarified beforehand. Both the client and the builder attend this appointment knowing the contract is effectively agreed upon. Now it’s about the details. Start date, application, masonry plan for the kitchen fitter with connections, etc. will be discussed. Building without a contract based on a handshake is certainly not the norm in 2020, but it still exists in rural areas; it’s a question of honor to stick to what has been agreed upon. This applies to both parties.

The house and fittings are decided, location on the plot and price are set. The floor plan is not yet finished; it will be ready tomorrow.

If that is approved, there will be a general contractor (GC) with whom we will build.

For me, it already feels somewhat final, especially since I’ve never done anything like this before. Buying a house, yes; signing a contract for something I cannot see or touch yet, no. And just the commitment is almost like a final agreement.

For some, this might seem trivial, but for average consumers and earners like us, it’s quite a significant matter.

So, whether you call it final or not doesn’t change the fact that I have received great advice which I can look into more closely tomorrow.

tomtom79 schrieb:

Nothing else can be added, otherwise it will get expensive.

Our floor plan was finalized
window sizes, heating type, fireplace, stairs,
roof style, mechanical ventilation system included, walk-in shower.
Side panel of the front door.
The rest according to the building specifications.

We didn’t add many extra features.

Our floor plan is not finished yet, but we will keep around 130,000 in equity for unforeseen costs and upgrades. I think that should be sufficient.

OWLer schrieb:

It’s never too early to address this topic. If you are building with a heat pump, it’s very important. For example, see the current discussions in the heating section. The same issues come up everywhere: bathrooms that are too cold, heat pumps cycling frequently, or extremely high energy consumption. These problems are often due to the design of the heating circuits. Therefore, it should be specified that a room-by-room heating load calculation is conducted and provided to the homeowner, followed by the design of the heating circuits. All according to DIN 12831 and a supply temperature—for example, 30°C (86°F).

The selections of fixtures and fittings are definitely possible. Why shouldn’t they be? The only risk for the general contractor is that you negotiate any additional costs into the overall house price—as was sometimes the case with us. Without this option, I would have made it clear to our general contractor that there are other builders out there as well.

Will I be crucified if I now say that we are not building a KFW house and are opting for a regular gas central heating system instead?

Yaso2.0 schrieb:

Will I get flamed if I say that we are not building a KFW house and are just going for a regular gas central heating system..

No, it would be enough if you just logged out immediately with your inferior plan... simply cheeky not to participate in the KFW race.

Yaso2.0 schrieb:

Will I get criticized if I say now that we are not building a KfW house and are choosing a quite "normal" gas central heating system..?

Haha, no, definitely not. But even with a "normal" KfW house, I would insist on room-by-room heating load calculation (my wife now hates that term). Mainly for future-proofing, in case you want to retrofit a heat pump in 20 years. Today, gas is clearly the most affordable option for operating costs, and the technology is proven and reliable. However, looking at CO2 taxation, which has recently been sharply increased, I consider it too risky.

If you have an inappropriately designed underfloor heating system, retrofitting simply won’t be possible.