ᐅ Our lifelong project: A single-family home with 8,600 square feet of living space
Created on: 8 Nov 2020 12:49
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VanillaSwap
Good morning ladies and gentlemen,
I have found the form that everyone usually fills out in advance to provide more input. We are still trying to find a suitable plot of land. Most of the properties currently listed online in Hesse have either a too low floor area ratio or site coverage ratio, or they are unsuitable due to their location or neighborhood.
In general, we are not fixed on Hesse and have decided to remain flexible, as long as the location is not in the eastern part of the country (too far away for us), since this building project is only intended as a second home, to be used as a weekend house.
We see this house as our last major construction project before retirement. We are both very skilled at DIY work, so tasks like electrical installation planning, bathroom construction, and even building a sauna and steam bath have already been completed entirely by ourselves. We also finished the last interior work completely on our own, as well as the garden including the terrace and pond, independently built. As you can see, there is a high level of own initiative and expertise, which we believe enables us to successfully undertake such a project. Additionally, we aim to keep labor costs low by "optimizing" taxes and contributions.
General information about you:
Who are you? Father, mother, 2 teenagers.
How old are you? Parents are in their late 40s, children around 18 years old.
Are more children planned? No.
Are you employed, self-employed, retired, homemaker, etc.? Father is self-employed (lawyer with his own practice), mother does not work.
Income and assets:
What income do you have (gross/net)? Net: at least €30,000 per month as private withdrawal
How much equity do you want to invest in the house project? Preferably a low equity share to make the most of the current available funds (our consideration)
Housing costs:
No rent, own single-family house
General information about the property:
How large is the plot? We are trying to secure a plot from 1500 sqm (approximately 16,150 sq ft) upwards, preferably larger. Our motto is: the bigger, the better. Please feel free to post ideas on where to find such plots in Hesse – private tips via PM will of course be rewarded. We would need a building envelope with dimensions of about 34 x 25-30 meters (112 x 82-98 ft).
New build, existing building (year built), house type? Garage? New build with underground garage (a major wish to accommodate my husband’s small car collection)
How big is the house? (living area / usable area): approximately 800 sqm (8,600 sq ft) plus basement (part underground garage, partly fitness room, etc.)
Construction or purchase costs:
Plot costs: We are budgeting up to half a million (Euros); please correct us if this seems unrealistic. The last time we built was in ’08-’09, and at that time such a budget still worked well for the land.
Development costs: Unknown
Building or purchase costs (including architect, structural engineer): estimated €1,000,000 - €1,500,000
Additional construction-related costs (e.g., utility connections, soil surveyor, temporary power, etc.): Unknown
Outdoor facilities/terrace, paths, garden design, fences, etc.: Outdoor pool desired
Total costs: €1.5 - 2 million
Cost breakdown:
Total costs: €1,500,000
Deductible equity: e.g., €150,000
Financing amount: €1,350,000
Attached you will find some pictures that inspired us stylistically and that represent what the final product should look like. Of course, we know this project is quite demanding in terms of effort and execution, but we are confident that with our ideas and contacts within the industry, we should be able to realize it.
We very much look forward to your input and hope to receive ideas on implementation, opinions on the budget, and suggestions for possible locations of the plot.
Best regards,
S.
I have found the form that everyone usually fills out in advance to provide more input. We are still trying to find a suitable plot of land. Most of the properties currently listed online in Hesse have either a too low floor area ratio or site coverage ratio, or they are unsuitable due to their location or neighborhood.
In general, we are not fixed on Hesse and have decided to remain flexible, as long as the location is not in the eastern part of the country (too far away for us), since this building project is only intended as a second home, to be used as a weekend house.
We see this house as our last major construction project before retirement. We are both very skilled at DIY work, so tasks like electrical installation planning, bathroom construction, and even building a sauna and steam bath have already been completed entirely by ourselves. We also finished the last interior work completely on our own, as well as the garden including the terrace and pond, independently built. As you can see, there is a high level of own initiative and expertise, which we believe enables us to successfully undertake such a project. Additionally, we aim to keep labor costs low by "optimizing" taxes and contributions.
General information about you:
Who are you? Father, mother, 2 teenagers.
How old are you? Parents are in their late 40s, children around 18 years old.
Are more children planned? No.
Are you employed, self-employed, retired, homemaker, etc.? Father is self-employed (lawyer with his own practice), mother does not work.
Income and assets:
What income do you have (gross/net)? Net: at least €30,000 per month as private withdrawal
How much equity do you want to invest in the house project? Preferably a low equity share to make the most of the current available funds (our consideration)
Housing costs:
No rent, own single-family house
General information about the property:
How large is the plot? We are trying to secure a plot from 1500 sqm (approximately 16,150 sq ft) upwards, preferably larger. Our motto is: the bigger, the better. Please feel free to post ideas on where to find such plots in Hesse – private tips via PM will of course be rewarded. We would need a building envelope with dimensions of about 34 x 25-30 meters (112 x 82-98 ft).
New build, existing building (year built), house type? Garage? New build with underground garage (a major wish to accommodate my husband’s small car collection)
How big is the house? (living area / usable area): approximately 800 sqm (8,600 sq ft) plus basement (part underground garage, partly fitness room, etc.)
Construction or purchase costs:
Plot costs: We are budgeting up to half a million (Euros); please correct us if this seems unrealistic. The last time we built was in ’08-’09, and at that time such a budget still worked well for the land.
Development costs: Unknown
Building or purchase costs (including architect, structural engineer): estimated €1,000,000 - €1,500,000
Additional construction-related costs (e.g., utility connections, soil surveyor, temporary power, etc.): Unknown
Outdoor facilities/terrace, paths, garden design, fences, etc.: Outdoor pool desired
Total costs: €1.5 - 2 million
Cost breakdown:
Total costs: €1,500,000
Deductible equity: e.g., €150,000
Financing amount: €1,350,000
Attached you will find some pictures that inspired us stylistically and that represent what the final product should look like. Of course, we know this project is quite demanding in terms of effort and execution, but we are confident that with our ideas and contacts within the industry, we should be able to realize it.
We very much look forward to your input and hope to receive ideas on implementation, opinions on the budget, and suggestions for possible locations of the plot.
Best regards,
S.
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VanillaSwap8 Nov 2020 15:09saralina87 schrieb:
Oh well.
What more is there to say...
Good luck with your representative build. What exactly is it supposed to represent again? I don’t understand the issue here; why has this suddenly become about our political views on taxation?!
Ysop*** schrieb:
Honestly, I would take a completely different approach. If it’s just a weekend house, I would first narrow down regions that appeal to me landscape-wise. Then I’d check whether there are country houses available there that I could renovate beautifully.
Judging by your photos, you don’t seem to have a modern taste. For that, I would hire a real estate agent to consider my preferences regarding location and house. Then an architect to realize your wishes. You would need to significantly (!) increase the budget for that.
May I ask how many square meters you currently live in? Where does the 800 m2 (8,600 sq ft) figure come from? Yes, that would also be an option. We searched in both the Hochtaunus district and Upper Franconia but unfortunately found no houses on relevant portals that matched our expectations in either location. In principle, though, I find your suggestion quite sensible.
Currently, we live in 400 m2 (4,300 sq ft). The 800 m2 (8,600 sq ft) was just set as a rough guide, based on similar construction projects of acquaintances abroad. Of course, we are also interested in a constructive discussion about the building size here.
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HansHansen8 Nov 2020 15:12The thread is quite obviously a weak trolling attempt.
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VanillaSwap8 Nov 2020 15:14HansHansen schrieb:
The thread is quite obviously a weak attempt at trolling.It is not, sorry if it came across that way. Please excuse any potentially politically incorrect statements.
On popular platforms, usually only the leftover properties are listed. I would recommend hiring luxury real estate agents who search specifically for you.
First, older properties often include nicer plots and locations, and second, scarce building land is not "wasted." The way you put the tax optimization part is rather unfortunate. It is true that everyone legally tries to minimize their tax burden. However, you could have left that comment out. It sounds like you have plenty of money but don’t want to give the workers much. This kind of statement doesn’t help move the discussion forward.
First, older properties often include nicer plots and locations, and second, scarce building land is not "wasted." The way you put the tax optimization part is rather unfortunate. It is true that everyone legally tries to minimize their tax burden. However, you could have left that comment out. It sounds like you have plenty of money but don’t want to give the workers much. This kind of statement doesn’t help move the discussion forward.
rick2018 schrieb:
I'm not sure if this is meant seriously.Me neither. But I'm certain this will turn into one of those boredom-Corona threads.
VanillaSwap schrieb:
We're talking about an income after (!) taxes of over 30k.Even worse: with that income, I would have saved a bit more equity aside from my living expenses. But whatever. What exactly do you want here? To spice up a nice Sunday with Pinterest-style houses from England? By the way, there’s a similar house in our town: definitely not 800 sq m (8,600 sq ft).
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VanillaSwap8 Nov 2020 15:19@Ysop*** thank you for your input. Yes, this may have been somewhat awkwardly phrased, but it must be said that some users like to take on a judgmental role here, simply rejecting things or writing out of envy. We only wanted to talk about the building plot, etc., and what ideas others might have. Now, however, we have ended up in the middle of a political discussion. I find that very unfortunate!