Hello everyone,
I would like to get your assessment of my situation.
I live in an older apartment in Munich and want to renovate my bathroom. The bathroom is about 5.5 sqm (59 sq ft) in size.
My first visit to a local bathroom showroom was disappointing.
I visited the bathroom exhibition and after a brief consultation where I showed some pictures, I was told to expect a price of around 50,000 euros.
That is completely beyond my budget. My budget is a maximum of 30,000 euros.
So I thought I would go to a larger plumbing company located just outside Munich, hoping it might be a bit cheaper there.
I quickly found a company that offers everything from a single source and made a good impression. They measured my bathroom free of charge. Then I had an appointment at the bathroom studio to select the bathroom furniture and sanitary ware.
Here is what I selected:
- Burgbad washbasin
- Shower fittings from the bathroom studio’s own brand
- Faucet from the bathroom studio’s own brand
- Geberit toilet
- Shower tray with Geberit CleanLine drain channel
- Shower enclosure made of glass
- Standard wall tiles / floor tiles (€50 per sqm (approx. $54 per sqft))
- A new radiator
The following work is planned:
- Completely gut and dispose of the old bathroom
- New tiling
- New plastering
- Convert bathtub into a walk-in shower
- New sanitary ware
- New bathroom furniture
- A smaller water meter
Now I have a concrete offer for 38,000 euros. This is not a luxury bathroom, just standard equipment.
I’m not sure what to do now.
I only have this one offer. I want everything from a single source because I cannot be without my bathroom for too long. Individual services from platforms like MyHammer are not an option for me.
I’d prefer not to request another quote here only to end up with such a high price again. (This is always a time-consuming process.)
What would you do?
Should I try to get a quote from a plumbing company in a more affordable region of Germany, if that is even done? Or are these simply the prices one has to pay nowadays in Munich?
I would like to get your assessment of my situation.
I live in an older apartment in Munich and want to renovate my bathroom. The bathroom is about 5.5 sqm (59 sq ft) in size.
My first visit to a local bathroom showroom was disappointing.
I visited the bathroom exhibition and after a brief consultation where I showed some pictures, I was told to expect a price of around 50,000 euros.
That is completely beyond my budget. My budget is a maximum of 30,000 euros.
So I thought I would go to a larger plumbing company located just outside Munich, hoping it might be a bit cheaper there.
I quickly found a company that offers everything from a single source and made a good impression. They measured my bathroom free of charge. Then I had an appointment at the bathroom studio to select the bathroom furniture and sanitary ware.
Here is what I selected:
- Burgbad washbasin
- Shower fittings from the bathroom studio’s own brand
- Faucet from the bathroom studio’s own brand
- Geberit toilet
- Shower tray with Geberit CleanLine drain channel
- Shower enclosure made of glass
- Standard wall tiles / floor tiles (€50 per sqm (approx. $54 per sqft))
- A new radiator
The following work is planned:
- Completely gut and dispose of the old bathroom
- New tiling
- New plastering
- Convert bathtub into a walk-in shower
- New sanitary ware
- New bathroom furniture
- A smaller water meter
Now I have a concrete offer for 38,000 euros. This is not a luxury bathroom, just standard equipment.
I’m not sure what to do now.
I only have this one offer. I want everything from a single source because I cannot be without my bathroom for too long. Individual services from platforms like MyHammer are not an option for me.
I’d prefer not to request another quote here only to end up with such a high price again. (This is always a time-consuming process.)
What would you do?
Should I try to get a quote from a plumbing company in a more affordable region of Germany, if that is even done? Or are these simply the prices one has to pay nowadays in Munich?
Taillefer schrieb:
I spoke earlier with a plumbing company, and they said they receive 50–60 calls a day for bathroom renovations. Apparently, people here have too much money and need to get rid of it. It’s not about having too much money, but about renovating after more than 20 years. Some prefer to drive a newer car, others update their bathroom, and some do both.
J
JuliaMünchen2 Nov 2021 13:38Phew... I completely understand what you mean. We’re currently building in Munich, and I was shocked when we received the additional cost offer from our construction company for the items selected at Richter+Frenzel (which were only furniture and fixtures). What upset me even more was that I found most of the items really ugly in the showrooms and the quality was more like what you’d expect from a discount store—especially those awful wood decors that just scream “cheap” and are supposed to cost €2,500 (around $2,700).
At the same time, my parents-in-law renovated their entire bathroom in Lower Bavaria for our “extra cost,” including gutting, new underfloor heating, brand new tiles, shower, bathroom furniture, and more.
Honestly, I think it’s not worth asking two or three other wholesalers or plumbing specialists, as they will all be operating at the same level. You either bite the bullet and accept the “golden bathroom” or do what I would have done if we weren’t tied to our general contractor and that shady place, R+F: find people in your family or circle of friends who are handy or know someone who is (for me, that would have been my cousin and his seemingly 30 tradesman friends) and have them install at least the bathroom furniture and fixtures separately (if I didn’t know anyone, I would have checked MyHammer and bought all the fittings online).
For a 5m² (54 sq ft) bathroom, I would probably even consider trying to lay the tiles myself with some help, simply because the prices here are outrageously high and right now, you wait forever for anyone to show up. My godmother has been renovating her small bathroom in Ottobrunn for over a year now (through a general plumber who’s handling everything) and she’s frustrated because either no one shows up as promised or something isn’t available again.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed for you!
At the same time, my parents-in-law renovated their entire bathroom in Lower Bavaria for our “extra cost,” including gutting, new underfloor heating, brand new tiles, shower, bathroom furniture, and more.
Honestly, I think it’s not worth asking two or three other wholesalers or plumbing specialists, as they will all be operating at the same level. You either bite the bullet and accept the “golden bathroom” or do what I would have done if we weren’t tied to our general contractor and that shady place, R+F: find people in your family or circle of friends who are handy or know someone who is (for me, that would have been my cousin and his seemingly 30 tradesman friends) and have them install at least the bathroom furniture and fixtures separately (if I didn’t know anyone, I would have checked MyHammer and bought all the fittings online).
For a 5m² (54 sq ft) bathroom, I would probably even consider trying to lay the tiles myself with some help, simply because the prices here are outrageously high and right now, you wait forever for anyone to show up. My godmother has been renovating her small bathroom in Ottobrunn for over a year now (through a general plumber who’s handling everything) and she’s frustrated because either no one shows up as promised or something isn’t available again.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed for you!
T
Taillefer2 Nov 2021 14:23JuliaMünchen schrieb:
Phew... I know exactly what you mean. We’re currently building in Munich, and I nearly fell off my chair when we got the extra charge offer from our construction company for the items selected at Richter+Frenzel (which were only furniture and fixtures). What upset me even more was that I found most of these things really ugly in the showrooms and of rather low quality—more like what you’d expect from a discount store—especially those awful wood finishes that just scream “cheap” and are supposed to cost €2,500 (about $2,700).
At the same time, my in-laws had their entire bathroom renovated in Lower Bavaria for our “extra charge,” including gutting, a new underfloor heating system, completely new tiles, shower, bathroom furniture, etc.
Honestly, I don’t think it’s worth asking two or three other big suppliers or plumbing companies because they’ll all be operating at the same price level. You either bite the bullet and pay the premium for the bathroom or do what I would have done if we weren’t tied to our general contractor and that ridiculous place called R+F: find people from your circle of acquaintances or friends who are handy or know someone who is (in my case, that would have been my cousin and his seemingly 30 craftsman friends) and have at least the bathroom furniture and fixtures installed by such someone else (if I didn’t know anyone, I would have checked MyHammer and bought all the materials online).
For a 5m² (54 ft²) bathroom, I would even consider trying to tile with help myself because prices here are outrageously high, and right now there are also long waiting times before anyone even shows up. My godmother has been renovating her small bathroom in Ottobrunn for over a year through a general plumber that does everything, and she’s frustrated because either no one arrives as promised or something isn’t deliverable again.
I’m crossing my fingers for you! That’s exactly where I went—R+F. It feels like every plumbing company in Munich sends you there, so they can charge whatever they want. I have now found a company that lets you order the bathroom furniture online and install it for you. That could lower the price a bit; I have a consultation appointment next week. Otherwise, I’ll inquire at hardware stores that offer handyman services.
But I keep being amazed that people in Munich are willing to spend €10,000 per m² (about $930 per ft²) for a standard bathroom. More power to them.
M
Myrna_Loy2 Nov 2021 14:32Taillefer schrieb:
I actually went to R+F. In Munich, it feels like every plumbing company sends you there, so they can charge whatever suits them at the moment. I’ve now found a company that lets you order the bathroom fixtures online and they handle the installation. That could at least reduce the cost somewhat. I have a consultation appointment next week. Otherwise, I will also inquire with home improvement stores that offer tradesman services.
I always find it crazy that people in Munich are willing to spend €10,000 per square meter for a standard bathroom. But that’s their choice. “Money has to go somewhere, even if we flush it down the toilet.” takes on a whole new meaning here. 😀
H
Hutchinson1232 Nov 2021 14:37Simply insane for a mere 5 sqm (54 sq ft).
It confirms for me that we will soon renovate our guest bathroom ourselves and, in the longer term, completely redo the main bathroom (10 sqm (108 sq ft)) on our own in a few years.
You just have to dare to do it.
But that’s probably true for everything.
For example, if I didn’t have contacts and couldn’t do a lot myself when it comes to cars, we probably wouldn’t even be able to afford driving a car as “ordinary people” 😉
It confirms for me that we will soon renovate our guest bathroom ourselves and, in the longer term, completely redo the main bathroom (10 sqm (108 sq ft)) on our own in a few years.
You just have to dare to do it.
But that’s probably true for everything.
For example, if I didn’t have contacts and couldn’t do a lot myself when it comes to cars, we probably wouldn’t even be able to afford driving a car as “ordinary people” 😉
Similar topics