ᐅ General contractor / prefabricated house supplier with an existing cost estimate (equivalent to HOAI Phase 4)
Created on: 16 May 2021 12:38
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TommyNRW
Hello dear house building experts,
we would like to find the right partner for our house construction after obtaining the building permit / planning permission.
Background:
My wife and I have purchased a plot of land and initially searched for a general contractor or a prefab home provider who could offer us a finished move-in ready house at a fixed price. This is important to us, as we have heard many negative experiences from acquaintances regarding price surges when building with architects.
However, the companies we spoke with (and there were quite a few) were not able to address our specific requirements and the particularities of the site in enough detail, at least not before signing the construction contract.
Our plot has some special features: a narrow building envelope (tapering), a tightly defined floor area ratio / FAR, a slight height offset in length and width (about 1m (3 feet)), two parking spaces need to be created, and more. In our opinion, related external facilities such as garages, carports, storage rooms, parking spaces, driveways, etc. must already be planned from the start, as they also influence the actual house. At the latest with these external facilities, all providers referred to their own architectural services, which – as mentioned – are only available after signing.
Since we do not want to rely on the assumption that a satisfactory solution will be found then, we have now decided to work with a local architect. He knows the local conditions very well, has already designed another house in the new development area, and knows how to fully utilize the building permit / planning permission given his good contacts with the authorities.
After HOAI Phase 4, that is once the building permit / planning permission is granted, we would like to have the corresponding design implemented. The architect is absolutely fine with this and has successfully done so multiple times before.
Which providers would you consider most suitable in this case? We are not looking for the cheapest option, but definitely a reliable, experienced partner with a good price-performance ratio.
Thank you very much for your opinions and support.
we would like to find the right partner for our house construction after obtaining the building permit / planning permission.
Background:
My wife and I have purchased a plot of land and initially searched for a general contractor or a prefab home provider who could offer us a finished move-in ready house at a fixed price. This is important to us, as we have heard many negative experiences from acquaintances regarding price surges when building with architects.
However, the companies we spoke with (and there were quite a few) were not able to address our specific requirements and the particularities of the site in enough detail, at least not before signing the construction contract.
Our plot has some special features: a narrow building envelope (tapering), a tightly defined floor area ratio / FAR, a slight height offset in length and width (about 1m (3 feet)), two parking spaces need to be created, and more. In our opinion, related external facilities such as garages, carports, storage rooms, parking spaces, driveways, etc. must already be planned from the start, as they also influence the actual house. At the latest with these external facilities, all providers referred to their own architectural services, which – as mentioned – are only available after signing.
Since we do not want to rely on the assumption that a satisfactory solution will be found then, we have now decided to work with a local architect. He knows the local conditions very well, has already designed another house in the new development area, and knows how to fully utilize the building permit / planning permission given his good contacts with the authorities.
After HOAI Phase 4, that is once the building permit / planning permission is granted, we would like to have the corresponding design implemented. The architect is absolutely fine with this and has successfully done so multiple times before.
Which providers would you consider most suitable in this case? We are not looking for the cheapest option, but definitely a reliable, experienced partner with a good price-performance ratio.
Thank you very much for your opinions and support.
T
Traumfaenger19 May 2021 22:03TommyNRW schrieb:
After HOAI Phase 4, meaning once the building permit / planning permission is obtained, we would like to proceed with the corresponding design. The architect is completely fine with this and has successfully done this multiple times before.That approach is possible. The architectural services already provided can be credited by the prefab house manufacturer if you come with completed plans. There are practical examples of this. Of course, depending on the project, it might happen that the prefab house provider is not capable of properly interpreting the plans or simply overwhelmed by the implementation; there are examples of this as well. Usually, they only build their own designs, and an external plan might not fit their usual process. It is essential to thoroughly question the prefab house provider before signing any contract. The alternative—signing first and then seeing whether the prefab provider can produce an acceptable design for your plot—seems, in this case, considerably riskier. Architects working for prefab house manufacturers are not necessarily the experienced or creative top talents from their profession; otherwise, they would probably work in their own architectural offices. Their work tends to follow standard procedures rather than being innovative.
netuser schrieb:
At least you get a certain price guarantee upfront for a specific period (e.g., 12-24 months fixed-price guarantee), which you don’t have when building with an architect. However, this fixed-price guarantee comes at a flat-rate surcharge, because the effort can only be estimated in one direction beforehand: upwards. And precisely for this reason:
TommyNRW schrieb:
The companies we talked to (and there were quite a few) could not address our requirements and the specific conditions of the site in enough detail, at least not before signing the construction contract. General contractors are expected to pull detailed information out of thin air during the free quotation phase—information for which the architect earns a good fee. Execution planning and preparation of the tender make up 35% of the architect’s fee, more than phases 1-4 combined!
I can really only recommend continuing with the architect who also designed the house.
Tassimat schrieb:
This fixed-price guarantee comes at the cost of a flat surcharge because the effort can only be estimated in one direction beforehand: upwards. I believe it is more of a "balanced" average calculation. A large provider can afford this and has the relevant experience, especially if they have been on the market for years or decades and build hundreds of houses annually...
I do not mean to only support prefabricated house providers, but rather to put the often generalized negative statements into perspective.
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blubbernase22 May 2021 01:05Traumfaenger schrieb:
Then the architectural services provided are credited by the prefab home builder if you come with completed plans. Unfortunately, this is not the case everywhere. We discussed this approach with a few prefab home builders, but not all offered it to us. However, the other way around, a few did allow it—you could bring your architectural plans and receive a discount of about €7,000 to €10,000.
blubbernase schrieb:
Unfortunately, not everywhere. We discussed this approach with a few prefabricated home builders; not all of them offered it. On the other hand, some did allow you to take the architectural plans for a discount of 7,000–10,000 € (7,000–10,000 USD). Of course. You can't just convert a masonry construction plan directly into a timber design.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
11ant schrieb:
Then the acquaintances must have done something wrong, and you apparently want to copy that: namely, not putting the architect in charge of planning and construction management as well.
By the way, NRW is large – it stretches, as several premiers have reluctantly realized, from NR to W – so you would need to specify more precisely where you want us to assist you. But my preferred approach is clearly as stated above.We want a fixed price guarantee, which the architect cannot provide (nor can anyone else), but a general contractor or prefab house supplier can. Therefore, we want to combine the best of both worlds by advancing the planning with a local architect and then proceeding with the construction through a general contractor or prefab house provider. The architect has already followed this approach with other clients several times.
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