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
RotorMotor schrieb:
It simply doesn’t make sense to use the much higher double construction costs of kfw40 as an argument when there are problems.
There must be other major cost drivers involved beyond just a bit of insulation. We agree with this.
We simply don’t find any motivation among the architects and general contractors we visited.
They either don’t want to budge or do the exact opposite; they are very busy.
That’s why these prices are estimated so high, to avoid attracting new clients.
This is the impression it creates.
At the beginning of last week, we sent out 6 or 7 emails. We requested an initial consultation and mentioned that we already have a plot of land and a clear idea of what we want.
Only one responded with we will get in touch with you.
Nothing else happened.
That’s why we don’t want to completely give up on the architect yet, since there is no alternative.
Of course, we cannot build at the prices being estimated.
Right now, there is just stalling going on to buy time.
O
Oetzberger23 Nov 2021 13:49RotorMotor schrieb:
Since no one knows how energy prices will develop, it could go either way. Ok, a very specific example. Two years ago, for a similarly sized solid construction as planned here, I would have had an additional cost of 12,000€ after subsidies compared to KfW55. I don’t have photovoltaic panels and therefore pay the full electricity price for heating costs. The variable heating costs in the first year are 680 euros, and with KfW40 I would have saved at most 200 euros of that. With photovoltaic, I would have saved even less since the heating costs are already lower from the start.
So, without interest or other factors, it would take 60 years for KfW40 to pay off. Even with a tripling of heating costs, it would still be a poor investment.
As I said, I think KfW40 is great, but it is purely a luxury expense. And in the case of solid construction, it also takes a very long time for the CO2 emissions from the additional building materials to be compensated. With timber construction, it might look better.
R
RotorMotor23 Nov 2021 13:50Coffee82 schrieb:
At the beginning of last week, we sent out 6 or 7 emails.I also like to do that, but unfortunately, it does not seem to be a good approach.You won’t get far without making phone calls.
The best way is through friends, acquaintances, or recommendations in housing developments.
Just ask around where houses were built using a web platform, and then call those contacts.
RotorMotor schrieb:
Without making phone calls, it won’t work.It actually started with phone calls back then. On the phone, all you can do is ask to schedule an appointment.
The answer was always the same: "Please send us an email with your details."
Is it normal to have to beg to build a house?
We wanted a partner who is motivated and eager to realize our project.
Constantly chasing after them and calling, "Please finally do something"?
We won’t do that. Not because of pride, but because it feels wrong.
R
RotorMotor23 Nov 2021 14:00Oetzberger schrieb:
Adjusted for subsidies, there were additional costs of €12,000 compared to KfW55. Can you break that down?
Or did you possibly include a photovoltaic system in that?
And are you aware that the subsidy rates have changed?
Please take another look at my calculation further up.
Oetzberger schrieb:
€12,000 additional costs Even if that’s the case, you would have needed to save about 3 or 4m² (32 or 43 sq ft). 😉
At least, that’s still far from the savings potential that is needed here.
Coffee82 schrieb:
It actually started with the phone calls back then.
On the phone, all you can say is that you want an appointment.
It was always the same: "Please send us an email with your details."
Is it normal to have to beg for a house build?
We were hoping for a partner who would be motivated about our project and eager to carry it out with enthusiasm.
Constantly chasing and calling, saying "please finally do something"?
We won’t do that. Not because of pride, but because it feels disgusting. Yes, that's how it is at the moment. Begging for an appointment, begging for processing the building permit / planning permission, begging for a quote, following up, following up, following up. If this isn’t your experience, you’re either lucky or you buy a finished property.
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