ᐅ Comparison of the Scope of Construction Work: What Should We Prioritize?
Created on: 3 Feb 2014 15:16
K
kochones
Hello!
I have already read a lot here, but unfortunately many use abbreviations like WU basement or similar… I can’t really tell what they mean. But that’s not the only issue.
The starting point is that we want a basement. We have a sloping site, the street level is at 0 m (0 ft), the building envelope starts at about -1.5 m (-5 ft) and ends around -2.7 m (-9 ft). We want a partial separate apartment, about one-third of the total size… approximately 35 m² (375 sq ft)! The rest of the basement will not be living space and should be completely underground.
The fact is, we own a building plot and we don’t know who we will be building with, as it’s not possible to compare offers. One construction company writes in their building and scope of work description about strip foundations and steel fiber reinforced concrete, poured concrete exterior walls… others specify a reinforced concrete slab with 15 kg/m² (3 lb/sq ft) steel reinforcement or masonry with hollow clay bricks.
Since there are semi-detached houses from the 1960s in the neighborhood, I have taken a closer look at them. Some have cracks in the basement exterior walls. Now I don’t know which type of basement or which construction materials we should choose.
Thank you in advance for your experiences and suggestions!
I have already read a lot here, but unfortunately many use abbreviations like WU basement or similar… I can’t really tell what they mean. But that’s not the only issue.
The starting point is that we want a basement. We have a sloping site, the street level is at 0 m (0 ft), the building envelope starts at about -1.5 m (-5 ft) and ends around -2.7 m (-9 ft). We want a partial separate apartment, about one-third of the total size… approximately 35 m² (375 sq ft)! The rest of the basement will not be living space and should be completely underground.
The fact is, we own a building plot and we don’t know who we will be building with, as it’s not possible to compare offers. One construction company writes in their building and scope of work description about strip foundations and steel fiber reinforced concrete, poured concrete exterior walls… others specify a reinforced concrete slab with 15 kg/m² (3 lb/sq ft) steel reinforcement or masonry with hollow clay bricks.
Since there are semi-detached houses from the 1960s in the neighborhood, I have taken a closer look at them. Some have cracks in the basement exterior walls. Now I don’t know which type of basement or which construction materials we should choose.
Thank you in advance for your experiences and suggestions!
D
Doc.Schnaggls4 Feb 2014 16:32Michalko schrieb:
How accurate are the specifications with the turnkey provider? Nowhere does it say how much screed, for example, is required.
Provider 1: Additional payment because more was needed
Provider 2: Credit because less was needed
How were you able to compare the offers in advance? Sorry, but that doesn’t make sense. In turnkey construction, the thickness (in cm) of the screed to be installed and the type of screed used are specified. As the client, I don’t really care whether the builder ends up needing 18 kg or 12 tons of screed...
Michalko schrieb:
When I read what people pay for houses here, I bet that a custom-designed house with individual tenders is cheaper. For example, I am at under €250,000 including land (€23,000), for 156m² (1,680 sq ft) in a high standard, excluding landscaping and garage. Those are your experiences.
We have compared both two architects (with tenders, individual contracts, etc.) and several turnkey providers. In our case, the cheapest architect estimate was still about 10% higher than the most affordable turnkey provider.
N
nordanney4 Feb 2014 16:53Doc.Schnaggls schrieb:
These are your experiences now.
We have compared both two architects (including tendering, individual contracting, etc.) and several turnkey providers. In our case, the cheapest architect’s cost estimate was still 10% higher than the most expensive turnkey provider. I have to agree with this experience. A cost estimate is just an estimate, but with turnkey providers, changes (upward) can still occur. For our building project, we are about 20-25% below the price of turnkey providers (the current status is that 95% of the trades have been contracted and the house is about 80% complete).
D
Doc.Schnaggls4 Feb 2014 16:59nordanney schrieb:
I have to agree with this experience. A cost estimate is just that—an estimate—but with a full-service provider, adjustments (usually upward) can still occur. For our project, we are about 20-25% below the price of full-service providers (current status is that 95% of the trades have been contracted, and the house is about 80% complete).Hello,
that is certainly very encouraging for you. It’s nice to see it work out that way sometimes. In our circle of friends, however, cost overruns were more common when building with an architect and competitive bidding.
This could also be because the construction companies in our area are very busy and can charge accordingly for their work.
We now have a fixed price with our full-service provider, guaranteed for 15 months from signing the contract. The only way it will get more expensive now is if we decide to upgrade the mostly predefined specifications in the contract.
Price certainty was an important factor in our decision.
Best regards,
Dirk
Hello!
Yesterday, I had trouble posting here in the forum, so I'm just writing now.
It’s really frustrating— all the construction companies are extremely busy, and you can’t even get an appointment on short notice. It’s nice that they are fully booked, but this way we won’t reach any results. The architect still hasn’t gotten back to us. And the others just can’t deliver on our requests. Especially since we’re not asking for anything unusual.
Well... I’m just hoping that by the end of February we’ll have the sketches ready and finally get some reliable pricing. Until then, I might explode, but it can’t be helped.
I’ll keep you updated if you’re interested. The construction will be in the Stuttgart area!
Yesterday, I had trouble posting here in the forum, so I'm just writing now.
It’s really frustrating— all the construction companies are extremely busy, and you can’t even get an appointment on short notice. It’s nice that they are fully booked, but this way we won’t reach any results. The architect still hasn’t gotten back to us. And the others just can’t deliver on our requests. Especially since we’re not asking for anything unusual.
Well... I’m just hoping that by the end of February we’ll have the sketches ready and finally get some reliable pricing. Until then, I might explode, but it can’t be helped.
I’ll keep you updated if you’re interested. The construction will be in the Stuttgart area!
Just for your information....
I currently have a quote for a type of bungalow with a basement, about 120sqm (1300 sq ft) of living space, including a garage, for around 250,000€. Then I received another offer for the same from a different provider for about 350,000€. The second one then said, well, if you don’t want to spend that much, we can do a traditional single-family house with 80sqm (860 sq ft) of living space on the ground floor and the same amount on the upper floor, but the upper floor has sloped ceilings and possibly a dormer, plus a basement and a prefabricated garage for 270,000€.
Kind of strange, isn’t it?
I currently have a quote for a type of bungalow with a basement, about 120sqm (1300 sq ft) of living space, including a garage, for around 250,000€. Then I received another offer for the same from a different provider for about 350,000€. The second one then said, well, if you don’t want to spend that much, we can do a traditional single-family house with 80sqm (860 sq ft) of living space on the ground floor and the same amount on the upper floor, but the upper floor has sloped ceilings and possibly a dormer, plus a basement and a prefabricated garage for 270,000€.
Kind of strange, isn’t it?
D
Doc.Schnaggls6 Feb 2014 09:13Hello,
if you are building in the Stuttgart area, you have many options to gather information.
What type of house are you considering? More of a solid (masonry) house or a prefabricated house?
For example, have you already visited the prefab house exhibition (which does not only feature prefab houses) in Fellbach?
There you can see all kinds of building styles and usually get advice on short notice.
A bungalow is always more expensive than a one-and-a-half-story house with the same living area — just think about the extra effort for the much larger roof area, the bigger foundation, the bigger basement...
Best regards,
Dirk
if you are building in the Stuttgart area, you have many options to gather information.
What type of house are you considering? More of a solid (masonry) house or a prefabricated house?
For example, have you already visited the prefab house exhibition (which does not only feature prefab houses) in Fellbach?
There you can see all kinds of building styles and usually get advice on short notice.
A bungalow is always more expensive than a one-and-a-half-story house with the same living area — just think about the extra effort for the much larger roof area, the bigger foundation, the bigger basement...
Best regards,
Dirk
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