ᐅ Avoid Mistakes When Building Your Second Home: Builder or Architect?
Created on: 13 Feb 2024 11:39
R
RotesDach
Hello forum,
In 2020, we built a new single-family home. However, for various reasons, we are not completely satisfied and are considering building again. We want to take our time with this (time frame 5-10 years) to be really sure about what exactly we want to change. In the meantime, we can also save more equity and observe everyday life with the children. From our experience, daily life with 3-4 children requires a lot of flexibility in the house because the needs of all family members seem to change quickly. That is why we have set quite a long time frame.
When we started planning the house in 2019, we didn’t always make the right decisions in hindsight. With the first and later the second child, and then the lockdown, we could not view or visit everything that was installed beforehand. Also, contact with the architect from the homebuilding company was quite limited. We often simply lacked proper advice.
My question to you is: How can we avoid making the same mistakes again in the next build? We always had to make decisions very quickly and often had no solid basis to decide. We would have liked to have quick access to prices and services; this just wasn’t available. For example, if we planned an additional window or increased the living area, we received a new total price and could only guess how much the extra cost was.
We found that the homebuilding company only builds in the way they usually do, meaning when we asked for something unusual, they said it wasn’t possible. For example, we wanted a large panoramic glass window wall that could slide open barrier-free. They said this wasn’t possible for structural reasons in our house. It seemed likely that our builder simply did not have this kind of feature in their program, or the profit margin on such a request was too low for them.
What frustrates me most is the roof. It is not usable as living space. It is a low pyramid roof made of nail plate trusses. There is not enough standing height for living space, and the structure is not suitable for conversion. We never discussed the roof with the architect at the time. The catalog house our free planning was based on originally had a gable roof—exactly what we would wish for today. The architect kept talking about a "town villa" we would be building, and we eventually adopted that term. As laypeople, we understood that as a house with two full floors. However, the architect from the building company implied a pyramid roof by "town villa." The change from the original gable roof to this non-convertible pyramid roof was never communicated to us, and we realized this far too late. Sure, you could say we should have noticed, but at some point, we just wanted to finish the project. The two-year construction period with two small children was really exhausting.
For the second build, we want to do everything right or make as few mistakes as possible, so we are allowing ourselves a much longer time for advance planning. We certainly will not build with the same homebuilding company again.
BUT: Is this the typical experience with standard (prefabricated) homebuilders? If you want something special like panoramic window walls, is it better to go to an architect? They are usually paid hourly. I worry that an architect might overall be the more expensive option. If we do go with a homebuilder, should we choose one that specializes in our style? For example, Huf-Haus comes to mind, but they are also very expensive.
Maybe someone here has had similar experiences with poor communication and advice, especially during the corona period?
Is there another solution besides a homebuilding company or an architect that we haven’t thought of? We just want to be involved in every decision and not be treated like we were the first time.
If what you want is above the average in size and features, does it make more sense economically to hire an architect than to modify a catalog house so much that it only ends up being more expensive?
Thanks for reading. I know this post is long.
In 2020, we built a new single-family home. However, for various reasons, we are not completely satisfied and are considering building again. We want to take our time with this (time frame 5-10 years) to be really sure about what exactly we want to change. In the meantime, we can also save more equity and observe everyday life with the children. From our experience, daily life with 3-4 children requires a lot of flexibility in the house because the needs of all family members seem to change quickly. That is why we have set quite a long time frame.
When we started planning the house in 2019, we didn’t always make the right decisions in hindsight. With the first and later the second child, and then the lockdown, we could not view or visit everything that was installed beforehand. Also, contact with the architect from the homebuilding company was quite limited. We often simply lacked proper advice.
My question to you is: How can we avoid making the same mistakes again in the next build? We always had to make decisions very quickly and often had no solid basis to decide. We would have liked to have quick access to prices and services; this just wasn’t available. For example, if we planned an additional window or increased the living area, we received a new total price and could only guess how much the extra cost was.
We found that the homebuilding company only builds in the way they usually do, meaning when we asked for something unusual, they said it wasn’t possible. For example, we wanted a large panoramic glass window wall that could slide open barrier-free. They said this wasn’t possible for structural reasons in our house. It seemed likely that our builder simply did not have this kind of feature in their program, or the profit margin on such a request was too low for them.
What frustrates me most is the roof. It is not usable as living space. It is a low pyramid roof made of nail plate trusses. There is not enough standing height for living space, and the structure is not suitable for conversion. We never discussed the roof with the architect at the time. The catalog house our free planning was based on originally had a gable roof—exactly what we would wish for today. The architect kept talking about a "town villa" we would be building, and we eventually adopted that term. As laypeople, we understood that as a house with two full floors. However, the architect from the building company implied a pyramid roof by "town villa." The change from the original gable roof to this non-convertible pyramid roof was never communicated to us, and we realized this far too late. Sure, you could say we should have noticed, but at some point, we just wanted to finish the project. The two-year construction period with two small children was really exhausting.
For the second build, we want to do everything right or make as few mistakes as possible, so we are allowing ourselves a much longer time for advance planning. We certainly will not build with the same homebuilding company again.
BUT: Is this the typical experience with standard (prefabricated) homebuilders? If you want something special like panoramic window walls, is it better to go to an architect? They are usually paid hourly. I worry that an architect might overall be the more expensive option. If we do go with a homebuilder, should we choose one that specializes in our style? For example, Huf-Haus comes to mind, but they are also very expensive.
Maybe someone here has had similar experiences with poor communication and advice, especially during the corona period?
Is there another solution besides a homebuilding company or an architect that we haven’t thought of? We just want to be involved in every decision and not be treated like we were the first time.
If what you want is above the average in size and features, does it make more sense economically to hire an architect than to modify a catalog house so much that it only ends up being more expensive?
Thanks for reading. I know this post is long.
W
WilderSueden13 Feb 2024 20:29Prager91 schrieb:
- Choosing the right architect/general contractor
- Reading extensively about EVERYTHING related to house building in order to participate in discussions and understand your optionsPoint 1 sounds simple in theory. General contractors are professionals and can easily tell who lacks knowledge and who is in a weaker position during disputes. I would also argue that, as a layperson, selecting a good general contractor is only possible if you have lived in the building area for a while, are well connected locally, and can rely on word of mouth. Even then, you are not completely protected against poor workmanship.Point 2 is a misconception. You can never study in a few months after work well enough to seriously keep up with someone who has studied construction, regularly updates their knowledge, and has several years of professional experience. That’s why most home builders hire an expensive expert to handle this. If you pay the site manager directly from the start, you can already weigh that cost in advance.
G
Gerddieter13 Feb 2024 20:50I’m still not quite getting it... The second house won’t automatically be “better” just because you’re starting over.
What exactly is the issue with the current new build? Is it that the roof can’t be converted? So, space is the problem? Anything else? How many children do you have? Three to four, or two?
I would also consider improving New Build No. 1 as an option to discuss with the architect...
Gerddieter
What exactly is the issue with the current new build? Is it that the roof can’t be converted? So, space is the problem? Anything else? How many children do you have? Three to four, or two?
I would also consider improving New Build No. 1 as an option to discuss with the architect...
Gerddieter
Gerddieter schrieb:
The second house won’t simply be “better” just because you’re starting over again. That’s exactly why the original poster wants to know how radically different the approach would need to be to achieve a noticeably more satisfying result.
Gerddieter schrieb:
What exactly is the problem with the current new build? That the roof can’t be converted? So space? Anything else? How many children do you have? 3-4 or 2? It starts with the fact that what seems to be the main wish (a panoramic view from the open-plan living, dining, and kitchen area) was implemented as a clear failure (a fragmented display-window-like front = completely missed the point). There is more than enough space, sufficient for five children (even though there are apparently only two). A roof conversion is not necessary but seems to be a missed opportunity that bothers everyone involved.
Gerddieter schrieb:
I would also consider optimizing new build No. 1 as an option with the architect… To evaluate this otherwise obvious option, I reviewed the original thread again (after three and a quarter years, even a mind like 11ant’s doesn’t keep a discussion fresh in memory) and turned away shortly thereafter. Conclusion: at first, the architect ignored everything, then the original poster here did not act on timely advice. The end result: a pathologically overbuilt “suburban villa” that somehow feels like it lacks any sense of spaciousness. Probably due to unusual structural spans crammed full of load-bearing elements. For the few who really like it, it can be sold for a high price to build something nicer (or at least something that interprets the original wish list more faithfully). Sad and not worth a single cent of renovation investment.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
masterflok schrieb:
And in the end, you will realize that this type of building does not actually cost you more.That certainly depends a lot on the architect. My architect used some numbers from an unspecified tool. I have no idea whether they were adjusted for recent years using factors or calculated in some other way. I don’t think she really understood it either. Based on experience with a general contractor (GC) house and square meter prices from residential developments, I added 15% to her estimate. That turned out to be too little; overall, it will probably be about 25% more. So, I think most architects don’t deal with detailed cost planning – after all, their education is more creative, and business administration is often not a strong focus in this field. I believe a GC usually provides a much more accurate cost estimate since they have to carry the risk if costs increase.
However, especially for special requests and creative solutions, the architect is definitely the better choice.
R
RotesDach14 Feb 2024 07:46Good morning,
it's great to see so many people participating here. Thank you very much for that.
We now have three children and are expecting a fourth. When we were planning the house, we only had one child, and at that time, it was uncertain whether we would have more. Unfortunately, it didn’t look likely back then. Therefore, we simply planned for two large bedrooms for children.
it's great to see so many people participating here. Thank you very much for that.
We now have three children and are expecting a fourth. When we were planning the house, we only had one child, and at that time, it was uncertain whether we would have more. Unfortunately, it didn’t look likely back then. Therefore, we simply planned for two large bedrooms for children.
R
RotesDach14 Feb 2024 08:02@11ant: I still clearly remember the criticism of the 2019 floor plan – respect for digging up the thread again. My problem back then was implementing it correctly with the house builder. The architect somehow fixated on this “city villa” concept, even though we never used that term. All we wanted were two full floors. There was also the idea that construction costs would be lower with such a city villa (let’s forget the word “villa,” which implies something more prestigious) compared to, for example, staggered building volumes, bay windows, or other fancy features. So we went with this (almost) square floor plan. Of course, that limits design and planning options. We especially notice that now when living inside. But that’s how the decision was made. The architect wouldn’t provide us with a completely different design. And it’s hard for you to mentally detach from it. I spent a long time trying to draft something myself but, as a layperson, I couldn’t manage it.
The criticism about making the master bedroom smaller was consciously not followed, and we are glad about that today. Of course, that’s very individual. I often read here that bedrooms should be kept nice and small because you’re just sleeping in them. That’s not the case with us: many other things happen here, like a changing table (although temporarily), my home office was separated, we have two long rows of closets (we don’t have a separate walk-in closet), and a small area with an armchair. The bed is placed centrally as a room divider. We like it. So if there’s anything in our house that I’m happy with, it’s our bedroom. This is not meant as a retrospective excuse for ignoring criticism, but rather as an explanation that there can be individual needs that don’t always have to be changed based on the same good advice.
Today I understand that our mistake was choosing or being given a city villa floor plan and then trying to enlarge it. That doesn’t work.
Now, instead of two children's rooms, we want four, plus two home offices and a guest room. It’s becoming increasingly clear to me that this is no longer a standard production house.
The criticism about making the master bedroom smaller was consciously not followed, and we are glad about that today. Of course, that’s very individual. I often read here that bedrooms should be kept nice and small because you’re just sleeping in them. That’s not the case with us: many other things happen here, like a changing table (although temporarily), my home office was separated, we have two long rows of closets (we don’t have a separate walk-in closet), and a small area with an armchair. The bed is placed centrally as a room divider. We like it. So if there’s anything in our house that I’m happy with, it’s our bedroom. This is not meant as a retrospective excuse for ignoring criticism, but rather as an explanation that there can be individual needs that don’t always have to be changed based on the same good advice.
Today I understand that our mistake was choosing or being given a city villa floor plan and then trying to enlarge it. That doesn’t work.
Now, instead of two children's rooms, we want four, plus two home offices and a guest room. It’s becoming increasingly clear to me that this is no longer a standard production house.
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