ᐅ Is Membership in a Private Home Builders Association Worthwhile?

In our opinion, this comes down to personal preference. We also became members of such an association about a year ago. Apart from a few PDFs available for download in the members’ area and a lot of lawyers and experts who looked at newcomers with dollar signs in their eyes, we didn’t notice any real service. During that time, we received two newsletters by mail—very thin, containing only general information and advertisements.

When we specifically looked for a lawyer to review the four-page construction contract, the contract lawyer first wanted to draft a comprehensive offer, which he said would take 4 days (just to clarify: we weren’t trying to sue anyone at the European Court of Justice, but simply wanted a standard construction contract under the building code checked...). Basically, you can book all the experts, construction supervisors, and lawyers directly without this association. At least with lawyers, in our experience, there is no price difference... For us, this association is just a marketing tool for experts and lawyers; membership did not help us. On top of that, canceling the membership is really complicated...

Thank you for sharing your experiences. We have now submitted the membership application and should become members later this week. I will test the Homeowners’ Protection Association for the first time once the initial preliminary contracts from the discussions with the prefab home manufacturers start coming in. Let’s see what the association can do for us then.

Hello, my experience after one month as a member of the Verband Privater Bauherren: 800 euros spent for two phone calls and a two-hour inefficient consultation with no significant results. A few tips and sample contracts—which I can find for free on the internet or in the home builder advisor guide from Stiftung Warentest for 19.9 euros.

No further comment…

Oh, and many of the documents found there bear the Verband Privater Bauherren stamp on the cover page, but on the back you read that the publisher is a ministry, an authority, or a consumer protection agency. I feel misled by this kind of “repackaging.”

My conclusion: You should look very carefully at the Verband Privater Bauherren fee schedule.

Thank you for sharing your experience!

When I read this, it seems that neither the Building Owner Protection Association nor the Private Builders Association are really ideal. TÜV and DEKRA also offer similar services. Has anyone had any experience with them? How do you find an expert for reviewing the contract and the construction specifications, as well as for construction supervision, who is worth the money?

We had considered this before starting construction, but based on similar experiences shared online, we decided to opt for legal protection insurance related to building law, just in case things went completely wrong. Many former homeowners can also break down a scope of work description quite thoroughly. If I were to choose a smaller general contractor, I would always have the construction contract reviewed by a specialist lawyer. Most are willing to negotiate fees. Nowadays, I would also obtain a credit report on the company I plan to build with. Many already complain about lost contracts, etc. Financial problems can arise quickly if a company lives beyond its means.

There is simply no 100% protection when building.