ᐅ Single-Family Home New Construction – How Do We Make a Decision Now?

At the end of last year, we were lucky to be offered a very nice plot of land. It was a returned lot from the latest new development area. The previous owners missed the deadline to build within the three-year period. Everyone else ahead of us on the waiting list no longer wanted the plot, so we simply took the opportunity. Over the past few weeks, we have visited various show homes and factory tours of prefabricated house manufacturers to gather information, and we are now a bit overwhelmed trying to figure out the best way to make a decision. I can’t just sign a purchase contract somewhere and see what kind of house ends up being built and how much it will cost. And I can’t commission designs from several manufacturers costing several thousand euros just to compare the final prices. But I still need to somehow plan the right house for us on this exact piece of land. How did you approach your decision-making process?

We would like to build in an ecological and sustainable way, and I was shocked by the anticipated prices we have encountered so far. Frammelsberger Wooden House and Stommel House estimate around 3500 EUR per square meter (square foot), excluding the foundation slab and garage, but at least for the EH40 standard. We also visited the architect who designed our neighbors’ home, and he quoted the same amount, but including the foundation slab and carport, although only for EH55. With an architect-designed house, I definitely need to budget a considerable extra margin. I don’t even want to think about the NH class. Have prefabricated houses or timber frame constructions really become that expensive? Who is supposed to be able to afford that?

Well, the only solution is to lower your expectations. Of course, many would love to have a Passive House designed by a star architect, with a basement, triple garage, granny flat, and 5 children’s bedrooms. But living in a well-designed house built to standard Energy Saving Ordinance requirements, with appropriate room sizes and quantities, works very well too. In my opinion, the energy regulations are at a level that makes additional initiatives by homeowners almost unnecessary. The savings for every extra dollar spent are too small. Higher costs lead to smaller houses, which further reduces overall energy consumption. If you really want to make a difference, it’s better to retrofit an older building to meet current standards. 😉

Karlsson schrieb:

Have prefabricated houses or timber frame constructions really become that expensive? Who can still afford that?

Everything has gotten so expensive, yes.
Probably that’s why others on the list dropped out as well.

K a t j a schrieb:

If you really want to make a contribution, renovate an older building to meet current standards instead.

Exactly!
That benefits the environment 100 times more.

The impulse to visit the nearest model home park is understandable, as is the assumption that a prefab house might be cheaper or faster. If I were to start again, I would do so much later and initially roughly follow the list below:

- Budget: what can I realistically afford
- Plot: sloped site? Challenging soil? Particularly attractive or unattractive sides? Restrictions from the building permit / planning permission
- Wishes and requirements: family house with 3 children’s bedrooms or bungalow for two?
- More of a proven standard house or a custom architect-designed home?
- General contractor (fewer contacts and less coordination effort, but also less direct influence) or individual contracts?
- If general contractor: large company or small?
- Reasons for preferring a particular building method?

This will narrow down the range of construction companies without talking to a sales representative first, and then you will need to start contacting companies that fit your requirements well.

K a t j a schrieb:

Well, the only solution is to lower your expectations. Of course, many people would love a passive house designed by a star architect with a basement, triple garage, granny flat, and five bedrooms for children. But living in an efficiently planned house built to the current Energy Saving Ordinance standards with appropriate room sizes and quantities works just fine. In my opinion, energy regulations have reached a level that makes additional efforts by homeowners almost unnecessary. The energy savings per additional dollar spent are too small. The price pressure leads to smaller houses, which further reduces energy consumption. If you really want to make a difference, it’s better to upgrade an older building to today’s standards. 😉

Neither a passive house nor a star architect, basement, triple garage, or granny flat are among our expectations. We are planning "just" 150 sqm (1,615 sq ft) with a slab foundation and a carport. A modern heating system and photovoltaic panels are the "luxuries" I would like to afford, along with a solid timber frame construction that hopefully doesn’t require five trucks to be shipped from the Czech Republic to Rhineland-Palatinate. According to my current calculations, we still have a budget of around 550,000 EUR (including additional building costs; the land has already been paid for), but somehow I feel that this will really be tight.

K a t j a schrieb:

If you really want to make a difference, it’s better to upgrade an old building to current standards.

We searched for a house for 4 years. You have probably followed the price trends for existing properties as well. People tried to sell old rundown houses for exorbitant amounts and sometimes succeeded. I have seen houses with completely moldy basements and garages priced at 600,000 EUR (about 650,000 USD). In every case, a full renovation was necessary, and even then, the money wouldn’t have been enough to properly carry out an energy-efficient refurbishment.