ᐅ House Construction Planning: Solid Brick and Mortar House or Prefabricated House? With or Without a Basement?
Created on: 1 Jun 2021 18:18
R
RomanoD.
Hello everyone,
We have been researching house building for a year now and have been feeling quite uncertain throughout the process.
Basically, we need to be mindful of the budget when building.
However, we would prefer a traditional masonry house, preferably with a basement.
We honestly don’t know where to really start to find a clear direction for ourselves.
For a year now, we have been struggling with different bits of information and still don’t know which way to go.
The house should be a smart home with all related features (definitely no wireless).
It should also be possible to retrofit if, for example, a power outlet or something similar is forgotten during construction.
We basically want a basement to keep the technology, heating system, and storage space separate from the living areas.
We won’t need an attic then.
We also want a modern open-plan living, dining, and kitchen area on the ground floor, along with a guest room.
The upper floor should have the bedroom, a walk-in closet, a large bathroom, and two offices (we will not have children).
The garage should be accessible from inside the house (either through the basement or an extension).
The house will be built in the Saxony-Anhalt region.
The total usable floor area, including bathrooms and basement, should be between 200 and 300 square meters (2,150 - 3,230 square feet).
We have many wishes, but we really don’t know where to start and currently have more questions than answers.
We are looking for an online community where we can exchange ideas and experiences with others.
Is this the right place for that?
If not, does anyone know where we might be better off?
Best regards, Maxi and Romano.
We have been researching house building for a year now and have been feeling quite uncertain throughout the process.
Basically, we need to be mindful of the budget when building.
However, we would prefer a traditional masonry house, preferably with a basement.
We honestly don’t know where to really start to find a clear direction for ourselves.
For a year now, we have been struggling with different bits of information and still don’t know which way to go.
The house should be a smart home with all related features (definitely no wireless).
It should also be possible to retrofit if, for example, a power outlet or something similar is forgotten during construction.
We basically want a basement to keep the technology, heating system, and storage space separate from the living areas.
We won’t need an attic then.
We also want a modern open-plan living, dining, and kitchen area on the ground floor, along with a guest room.
The upper floor should have the bedroom, a walk-in closet, a large bathroom, and two offices (we will not have children).
The garage should be accessible from inside the house (either through the basement or an extension).
The house will be built in the Saxony-Anhalt region.
The total usable floor area, including bathrooms and basement, should be between 200 and 300 square meters (2,150 - 3,230 square feet).
We have many wishes, but we really don’t know where to start and currently have more questions than answers.
We are looking for an online community where we can exchange ideas and experiences with others.
Is this the right place for that?
If not, does anyone know where we might be better off?
Best regards, Maxi and Romano.
untergasse438 Jun 2021 21:45OK, my opinion on the main topic: solid (masonry) house with a basement. I am not a fan of timber houses.
untergasse43 schrieb:
OK, my opinion on the main topic: solid house with a basement. I’m not a fan of wooden houses. Okay 🙂
My gut feeling is the same.
What is the main advantage of a masonry house over a timber frame prefab house?
(Excluding the resale value, which is about the same now ^^ I already know that much from my sister who works in real estate financing)
haydee schrieb:
Solid wood without basement on a sloped site with a living basement level Why a wooden house?
Wooden houses look nice, but I don’t really want the additional maintenance work that comes with upkeep...
haydee schrieb:
Seriously, if you need a passive house, you should look for a company that specializes in that, the wall construction doesn’t really matter. What does that refer to?
I don’t really know what to make of that.
From what I’ve read, prefab houses and masonry houses have pretty similar insulation values, right?
So basically it doesn’t matter much for energy efficiency as long as it’s done properly...
I’ve heard that insulation is supposedly a bit harder to install well in masonry construction?
Is there any truth to that?
untergasse438 Jun 2021 22:05With proper bricks, you don’t need any insulation at all. That’s definitely one of the advantages...
Baugrübchen8 Jun 2021 22:13Try drawing a floor plan on graph paper to scale (1 square = 0.5m (1.5 feet)) so you can visually capture your rough ideas that you described here. That way, you’ll have a proposal to discuss.
My current assessment is that you are focusing on the wrong priorities when it comes to building a house. In planning, the heating system, home cinema, or built-in furniture can be items on the checklist, but the detailed thoughts you are putting into these should really go into considering the layout of the rooms.
What does your daily life and work routine look like? You mention living very privately, which is perfectly fine. So why do you need a home office with an attached bathroom? How large do your workspaces need to be? What professional demands require this? We both work from home a lot but don’t conduct phone or video conferences and share 15 m² (160 ft²). This includes archiving materials once a year to free up space.
Someone here already said something along the lines that you are building a house to live in—not living a life that adapts to the house.
Regarding the budget: Set up an appointment at the bank and bring your preparations (income, equity, offers or cost estimates from online sources) instead of relying on vague inquiries like “we casually asked someone.” If you keep acting like this, the ribbon around the package will stay intact—and on top of that, it’s still wrapped in plastic and you have no scissors to open it.
We wanted to build a solid masonry house because it felt right. Opinions on this are about as divided as when comparing Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd. If you have a competent architect and a confident, reliable contractor, you can be happy with either type of house.
If the drive from the Harz region to a model home park is too far for you, maybe you don’t really want to build. Most parks are also open on Sundays when fewer people are there. Especially without kids or other commitments, I don’t understand this attitude when it comes to a project worth several hundreds of thousands. We drove 350 km (220 miles) just to see the clinker brick on a reference facade because everything was closed due to COVID and we didn’t want to decide based on three sample bricks. This is what I meant earlier about priorities.
Summary:
- Sketch the plan and discuss it together over wine, beer, or non-alcoholic drinks to see what feels right
- Set priorities: walls and windows before media technology
- Find and purchase the land
- Arrange a bank consultation
- Visit model homes to develop a feel for space
- Basement? I’ve never found a practical use for one and was always afraid of going down there as a child
- Masonry or prefabricated house? Trust your gut feeling
My current assessment is that you are focusing on the wrong priorities when it comes to building a house. In planning, the heating system, home cinema, or built-in furniture can be items on the checklist, but the detailed thoughts you are putting into these should really go into considering the layout of the rooms.
What does your daily life and work routine look like? You mention living very privately, which is perfectly fine. So why do you need a home office with an attached bathroom? How large do your workspaces need to be? What professional demands require this? We both work from home a lot but don’t conduct phone or video conferences and share 15 m² (160 ft²). This includes archiving materials once a year to free up space.
Someone here already said something along the lines that you are building a house to live in—not living a life that adapts to the house.
Regarding the budget: Set up an appointment at the bank and bring your preparations (income, equity, offers or cost estimates from online sources) instead of relying on vague inquiries like “we casually asked someone.” If you keep acting like this, the ribbon around the package will stay intact—and on top of that, it’s still wrapped in plastic and you have no scissors to open it.
We wanted to build a solid masonry house because it felt right. Opinions on this are about as divided as when comparing Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd. If you have a competent architect and a confident, reliable contractor, you can be happy with either type of house.
If the drive from the Harz region to a model home park is too far for you, maybe you don’t really want to build. Most parks are also open on Sundays when fewer people are there. Especially without kids or other commitments, I don’t understand this attitude when it comes to a project worth several hundreds of thousands. We drove 350 km (220 miles) just to see the clinker brick on a reference facade because everything was closed due to COVID and we didn’t want to decide based on three sample bricks. This is what I meant earlier about priorities.
Summary:
- Sketch the plan and discuss it together over wine, beer, or non-alcoholic drinks to see what feels right
- Set priorities: walls and windows before media technology
- Find and purchase the land
- Arrange a bank consultation
- Visit model homes to develop a feel for space
- Basement? I’ve never found a practical use for one and was always afraid of going down there as a child
- Masonry or prefabricated house? Trust your gut feeling
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