ᐅ Stopping or pausing a home construction project? Costs too high
Created on: 23 Nov 2021 12:06
C
Coffee82
Good morning,
My husband and I want to build a house.
We already have the plot of land. We are now facing an unpleasant situation.
We planned the house roughly with an architect, which went very quickly.
No building permit / planning permission has been applied for yet, and no detailed execution plan has been made.
The architect provided a cost estimate that surprised us a lot.
Of course, we had previously asked acquaintances, friends, and family members about the costs of their construction projects.
Obviously, we only considered recent projects.
The architect’s estimate is more than double what we initially expected—around 4500-5000€/sqm (420-465 USD/sqft).
After this, we consulted a few others locally and two from a bit further away. Everyone seems to agree on the construction costs.
I’m not allowed to share the documents here, but there is really nothing unusual. It’s a KW40+ house with 198 sqm (2132 sqft) of living and usable space, plus a double garage attached to the left side of the house. Of course, no basement.
The specifications given to the architect were average and typical. No marble floors, no smart home features. A simple house like my uncle’s, just new.
It looks like the house will cost around 1 million euros. On top of that, of course, there are additional costs such as fees for the architect, landscaping, etc. Together with the land, the total is so high that we neither can finance it nor afford to pay it.
Unfortunately, the architect had to do quite some work before he could estimate the costs.
Now we are worried that if we cancel the project, the architect will want 15,000 to 20,000 euros for the work he has already done.
What would you do in our place?
Best regards,
Coffee82
My husband and I want to build a house.
We already have the plot of land. We are now facing an unpleasant situation.
We planned the house roughly with an architect, which went very quickly.
No building permit / planning permission has been applied for yet, and no detailed execution plan has been made.
The architect provided a cost estimate that surprised us a lot.
Of course, we had previously asked acquaintances, friends, and family members about the costs of their construction projects.
Obviously, we only considered recent projects.
The architect’s estimate is more than double what we initially expected—around 4500-5000€/sqm (420-465 USD/sqft).
After this, we consulted a few others locally and two from a bit further away. Everyone seems to agree on the construction costs.
I’m not allowed to share the documents here, but there is really nothing unusual. It’s a KW40+ house with 198 sqm (2132 sqft) of living and usable space, plus a double garage attached to the left side of the house. Of course, no basement.
The specifications given to the architect were average and typical. No marble floors, no smart home features. A simple house like my uncle’s, just new.
It looks like the house will cost around 1 million euros. On top of that, of course, there are additional costs such as fees for the architect, landscaping, etc. Together with the land, the total is so high that we neither can finance it nor afford to pay it.
Unfortunately, the architect had to do quite some work before he could estimate the costs.
Now we are worried that if we cancel the project, the architect will want 15,000 to 20,000 euros for the work he has already done.
What would you do in our place?
Best regards,
Coffee82
Ysop*** schrieb:
Do I understand correctly? You want to cancel the entire project if you don’t get the standard you want? There is unfortunately some discussion at home. Because it still costs a very, very large amount of money and you don’t get what you had wished for.
Ysop*** schrieb:
You will probably have to pay the architect. Of course, it’s questionable what he has actually delivered in the presumably short time. It can hardly work if he claims he has already invested 300 hours. We weren’t present to verify that.
Ysop*** schrieb:
Otherwise, I would keep bothering other construction companies and follow up. If they don’t respond, call, call, call. We will do that.
Ysop*** schrieb:
Out of interest: I would already consider 198 sqm (2,130 sq ft) to be luxury. Can you share a bit more about the project? I assume you are not building on a slope, but maybe there are other cost drivers? 200 sqm (2,150 sq ft) just as floor area can’t be luxury on its own. The interior will stay simple because more is not needed.
We have 3 children and my mother will live with us.
You should inquire with 10 to 15 construction companies. I would check both local and large firms. €4,500 to €5,000 per square meter (approximately $420 to $470 per square foot) is very exaggerated. I would also consider going down to KfW 55 standard. KfW 40+ usually isn’t worthwhile. I would estimate that for your house build (assuming there are no unforeseen cost drivers) you will end up around €2,750 to €3,000 per square meter (approximately $255 to $280 per square foot).
W
WilderSueden23 Nov 2021 12:49Let’s start from the beginning. In which area are you building? Is the plot challenging in any way, such as a sloped site?
What costs have you honestly planned for? When I was looking, it was difficult to find anything under 2500€/m² (house turnkey + concrete slab) in the area. And that was before material prices skyrocketed this year. If you budgeted 2000€/m², it won’t work without increasing your budget. What budget is realistically manageable for you?
Where can you save? Skipping the basement, lowering the energy standard, doing parts yourself? Smaller living area? I grew up with two siblings in about 120m² (1300 sq ft), so it’s possible. Even with a grandmother in the house, you could reduce it to 150–160m² (1600–1700 sq ft) if you want.
What does “basic finish” mean for you?
What costs have you honestly planned for? When I was looking, it was difficult to find anything under 2500€/m² (house turnkey + concrete slab) in the area. And that was before material prices skyrocketed this year. If you budgeted 2000€/m², it won’t work without increasing your budget. What budget is realistically manageable for you?
Where can you save? Skipping the basement, lowering the energy standard, doing parts yourself? Smaller living area? I grew up with two siblings in about 120m² (1300 sq ft), so it’s possible. Even with a grandmother in the house, you could reduce it to 150–160m² (1600–1700 sq ft) if you want.
What does “basic finish” mean for you?
R
RotorMotor23 Nov 2021 12:57Tom1978 schrieb:
I would also go down to KfW 55. KfW 40+ usually isn’t worth it.I completely disagree. How do you always come to the conclusion that it would be that expensive? With timber frame construction, you almost automatically achieve that insulation standard.
With solid construction, you just insulate a bit thicker or use insulation with a better thermal conductivity value (WLG).
Photovoltaic systems pay for themselves anyway.
Yes, there may still be things like insulating the slab on grade, but here we’re talking about a maximum of 5,000€ (around $5,400) and not 400,000€. 😉
W
WilderSueden23 Nov 2021 12:57I seem to have overlooked the location... It was supposed to be somewhat cheaper than here.
But regarding the costs, I would appreciate an honest expectation. Saying "more than double" is not very precise. At 4500-5000€/m² (around 420-465 USD per sq ft), that would imply clearly less than 2500€/m² (about 230 USD per sq ft) as an expectation, which is currently more wishful thinking.
As for the energy standard... it depends on the construction method. With a slab-on-grade foundation, you can also keep costs low. Quoting our general contractor... the thicker insulation doesn't cost much more than the thinner one, and the installation work is the same. He covered the additional costs himself for upgrading from 55 to 40 (U-value). But the wall was already suitable anyway.
But regarding the costs, I would appreciate an honest expectation. Saying "more than double" is not very precise. At 4500-5000€/m² (around 420-465 USD per sq ft), that would imply clearly less than 2500€/m² (about 230 USD per sq ft) as an expectation, which is currently more wishful thinking.
As for the energy standard... it depends on the construction method. With a slab-on-grade foundation, you can also keep costs low. Quoting our general contractor... the thicker insulation doesn't cost much more than the thinner one, and the installation work is the same. He covered the additional costs himself for upgrading from 55 to 40 (U-value). But the wall was already suitable anyway.
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