ᐅ Is it possible to build a new house for €900 per square meter?
Created on: 3 Sep 2024 21:04
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Ottowillswisse
Hello everyone,
After my house purchase unfortunately fell through, I happened to start a conversation with someone from a new development in town.
He told me that the average cost for new builds is usually around €3000 per m² (approximately $280 per ft²), which is quite expensive. But he built his 100 m² (1,076 ft²) flat-roof bungalow with an architect for only €900 per m² (around $85 per ft²). How he managed that: wall construction consists of 17.5 cm (7 inches) calcium silicate bricks + 15 cm (6 inches) insulation with a thermal conductivity of 0.035 W/(mK) + 1.5 cm (0.6 inches) plaster (this is apparently the cheapest possible wall build-up).
Most of the interior work was done by himself, so for example, the kitchen cost €2000 (about $2200) purchased from a DIY store, and the bathrooms were tiled and the fixtures installed by himself. Laminate flooring and tiles were also installed as DIY for a maximum of €15 per m² (about $1.40 per ft²). Interior plaster on ceilings and walls, interior doors, windows, and the front door were also installed by himself.
The design is very simple with small window areas, and the excavated soil was reused in the garden, for example. The house has no photovoltaic or solar system. Hot water is provided by a tankless water heater, and heating is done with an air-to-air heat pump, that is, a split air conditioning system.
What do you think about such a construction cost? It seems somewhat unrealistic to me.
Best regards
After my house purchase unfortunately fell through, I happened to start a conversation with someone from a new development in town.
He told me that the average cost for new builds is usually around €3000 per m² (approximately $280 per ft²), which is quite expensive. But he built his 100 m² (1,076 ft²) flat-roof bungalow with an architect for only €900 per m² (around $85 per ft²). How he managed that: wall construction consists of 17.5 cm (7 inches) calcium silicate bricks + 15 cm (6 inches) insulation with a thermal conductivity of 0.035 W/(mK) + 1.5 cm (0.6 inches) plaster (this is apparently the cheapest possible wall build-up).
Most of the interior work was done by himself, so for example, the kitchen cost €2000 (about $2200) purchased from a DIY store, and the bathrooms were tiled and the fixtures installed by himself. Laminate flooring and tiles were also installed as DIY for a maximum of €15 per m² (about $1.40 per ft²). Interior plaster on ceilings and walls, interior doors, windows, and the front door were also installed by himself.
The design is very simple with small window areas, and the excavated soil was reused in the garden, for example. The house has no photovoltaic or solar system. Hot water is provided by a tankless water heater, and heating is done with an air-to-air heat pump, that is, a split air conditioning system.
What do you think about such a construction cost? It seems somewhat unrealistic to me.
Best regards
O
Ottowillswisse23 Apr 2025 11:32ypg schrieb:
Thank you for the feedback. I’ll be more cautious and say: the total will be calculated at the end.
But I’m also curious and happy for you. It’s quite possible that in the end we’ll end up at €1800 or €1900 per m² (approximately $210/sq ft or $220/sq ft), but I have a buffer, and from what I’ve read my construction costs are still well below average. I’m definitely looking forward to the house build and this new stage of life. If things go half as well professionally and privately as expected, I could start breeding German Shepherds in 3–4 years, something that obviously wasn’t possible in my apartment until now. The excitement about the house and moving in is really huge right now.
N
nordanney23 Apr 2025 11:51Ottowillswisse schrieb:
It’s possible that in the end we’ll end up at €1800 or €1900 per m2 (approximately $170/sq ft or $177/sq ft), but I have a buffer and according to what I’ve read my construction prices are still well below average. I have to correct that. Your construction prices are quite normal, as they are everywhere. Perhaps even expensive.
But you are compensating through extensive self-performed work. You must not forget that.
Ottowillswisse schrieb:
Self-performed work includes: floating screed, floor coverings, interior plaster, windows and front door, interior doors, bathroom and also bathroom fixtures, and an infrared heating system. Have all of that done by professionals and you will end up at the prices you read here. If you hire tradespeople for the work you do yourself, e.g. €60,000 (approximately $64,000), with €100 per m2 (about $9 per sq ft) for coverings or €15,000 (about $16,000) for painting, which are not unusual, you will also end up “only” slightly below approximately €3,000/m2 (about $280/sq ft) of living space.
I don’t want to take away your good feeling, just point out that you are exchanging money for self-performed work (which I actually think is great, to be able to build your own house).
M
MachsSelbst23 Apr 2025 12:30Yes. However, you need to consider that a small bungalow is significantly more expensive per square meter than an urban villa. Both require the same costly roof, both need 2 bathrooms or a bathroom and a guest toilet, and so on.
At Town & Country, a bungalow with 90 m² (970 sq ft) in an expensive area starts at 240,000 EUR, which is about 2,700 EUR/m² (250 USD/sq ft). The urban villa with 154 m² (1,660 sq ft) costs around 320,000 EUR, which is about 2,100 EUR/m² (195 USD/sq ft).
With 60,000 EUR for labor, it would still be around 2,500 EUR/m² (230 USD/sq ft). That’s far from 3,000 EUR/m² and that’s for a small bungalow—the most expensive type you can build if you look at EUR per square meter.
These general figures are useful for an initial estimate but don’t replace a detailed calculation.
At Town & Country, a bungalow with 90 m² (970 sq ft) in an expensive area starts at 240,000 EUR, which is about 2,700 EUR/m² (250 USD/sq ft). The urban villa with 154 m² (1,660 sq ft) costs around 320,000 EUR, which is about 2,100 EUR/m² (195 USD/sq ft).
With 60,000 EUR for labor, it would still be around 2,500 EUR/m² (230 USD/sq ft). That’s far from 3,000 EUR/m² and that’s for a small bungalow—the most expensive type you can build if you look at EUR per square meter.
These general figures are useful for an initial estimate but don’t replace a detailed calculation.
N
nordanney23 Apr 2025 12:35MachsSelbst schrieb:
This general stuff is good for an initial estimate, but it doesn’t replace a real calculation, does it? No. But the "general stuff" actually fits quite well in the end. Whether a chocolate bar costs 99 cents or €1.09, everyone agrees the price is similar. If the house costs +/- €3,000, then €3,300 per m² (≈ $306 per sq ft) suddenly seems extremely expensive and €2,700 per m² (≈ $250 per sq ft) unreasonably cheap. Both prices only differ by 10%.
And the €60k = €700 per m² (≈ $65 per sq ft) mentioned by the original poster is just thrown in. We will never get a comparable price because that exact house only exists once. But it’s clear that they would also end up around +/- €3,000 per m² (≈ $278 per sq ft). Not at €900 per m² (≈ $84 per sq ft) – with EL they are already at least doubling the originally stated figure.
Ottowillswisse schrieb:
It’s quite possible that we’ll end up at 1800€ or 1900€ per m2, but I have a buffer.Now that’s what I call a positive attitude: aiming for nine hundred but willing to accept nineteen hundred as the result and calling the difference a "buffer." Absolutely brilliant!https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/