Hello dear forum,
House planning should be something enjoyable, right?
Unfortunately, I feel that choosing our architect was a total mistake, and apart from wasting time, money, nerves, and lost child construction allowance, nothing has come of it. :-(
As the title says, after almost ten months, we realized that our architect has led us in a completely wrong direction. Last week, I terminated our contract, and now it is uncertain whether we will agree on the installment payments already made.
I am interested if anyone here in the forum has had similar experiences and how they resolved them.
Our issue is that from the start, a construction budget was set, which also appears in the contract.
After ten months of collaboration, it is still not being adhered to, despite several reminders.
I have now paid installment payments amounting to 11,000 EUR (around 11,000 USD) – foolishly – out of a total of 18,000 EUR (about 18,000 USD) for service phases 1 to 4…
Here is a brief timeline excerpt:
- 01/20 – Architect contract states a maximum construction budget of 450,000 EUR (about 450,000 USD) – excluding building site, architect, special features (this should have been enough for a nice single-family house)
- then design planning until April – first installment payment
- 04/20 – Architect’s cost estimate 546,000 EUR (about 546,000 USD)
- redesign of design planning
- reminder of max. 450,000 EUR (about 450,000 USD) budget – second/third installment payments
- 09/20 – Cost calculation 593,000 EUR (about 593,000 USD)
- confusion, as we realized we were moving in the wrong direction
- revised calculation 539,000 EUR (about 539,000 USD) – mainly due to adjustment of price per square meter and smaller windows
- loss of trust and termination of the contract by us
Looking forward to your feedback!
Best regards,
Johann
House planning should be something enjoyable, right?
Unfortunately, I feel that choosing our architect was a total mistake, and apart from wasting time, money, nerves, and lost child construction allowance, nothing has come of it. :-(
As the title says, after almost ten months, we realized that our architect has led us in a completely wrong direction. Last week, I terminated our contract, and now it is uncertain whether we will agree on the installment payments already made.
I am interested if anyone here in the forum has had similar experiences and how they resolved them.
Our issue is that from the start, a construction budget was set, which also appears in the contract.
After ten months of collaboration, it is still not being adhered to, despite several reminders.
I have now paid installment payments amounting to 11,000 EUR (around 11,000 USD) – foolishly – out of a total of 18,000 EUR (about 18,000 USD) for service phases 1 to 4…
Here is a brief timeline excerpt:
- 01/20 – Architect contract states a maximum construction budget of 450,000 EUR (about 450,000 USD) – excluding building site, architect, special features (this should have been enough for a nice single-family house)
- then design planning until April – first installment payment
- 04/20 – Architect’s cost estimate 546,000 EUR (about 546,000 USD)
- redesign of design planning
- reminder of max. 450,000 EUR (about 450,000 USD) budget – second/third installment payments
- 09/20 – Cost calculation 593,000 EUR (about 593,000 USD)
- confusion, as we realized we were moving in the wrong direction
- revised calculation 539,000 EUR (about 539,000 USD) – mainly due to adjustment of price per square meter and smaller windows
- loss of trust and termination of the contract by us
Looking forward to your feedback!
Best regards,
Johann
JohannFugger schrieb:
Exactly, 11ant. That was our turning point—or so I thought. It became clear afterwards that we couldn’t and didn’t want to build it that way.
That’s why we started over. Then tell us what was planned after the turning point.
JohannFugger schrieb:
But that’s not really the point. The issue is that the architect simply ignored our budget limit and kept designing and designing, and in the end, it actually became more expensive instead of cheaper. Which specific costly items did you approve with the architect that would have allowed him to reduce the price?
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Not to forget, in Bavaria, for example, construction costs are about 30 to 50 percent higher than, for instance, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. With 450,000 (four hundred fifty thousand), you can already get something decent, but that only covers the house including additional costs. Most people also want a garden, basement, garage, and kitchen...
JohannFugger schrieb:
that the architect simply ignores our budget limit When reading your wish list including the requirement for a slope, I almost feel sorry for the architect. Your list is impossible to fulfill.
The question is: how was this communicated?
Considering that you already faced resistance regarding the budget here in April and simply ignored it, how did you handle things with the architect?
I’m not here to judge, but maybe you should take a closer look at yourself when it comes to a complex hillside house paired with a normal budget.
Nice-Nofret schrieb:
The problem, in my opinion, is not primarily with the architect, but with your unrealistic expectations. I agree with that as well.
rennschnecke schrieb:
As I said, friends are currently building. A town villa including garage and carport, good standard, corner windows, underfloor heating, etc., for 330k + 50k additional costs. But presumably without a slope and without a granny flat?!
A granny flat costs just as much as the main house, roughly 2000/sqm (20.9/sqft). So if you plan a 60sqm (645sqft) apartment, that’s 120,000 on top of a single-family home. Every homeowner wanting to take advantage of subsidies forgets this. They believe they are coming out ahead, supported by grants... and (sorry) they don’t see the reality anymore.
There’s no need to sugarcoat this.
KEVST schrieb:
450k should only be enough for a small cabin?! So a 130m² (1400 sq ft) house without extras costs about 3500€/m² (325 sq ft)? This is starting to get ridiculous....Don’t compare a general contractor’s standard house including electrical installations with an architect-designed house!ypg schrieb:
Don’t compare a turnkey house including electrical installations with an architect-designed house!The main difference is probably the size. The house of KEVST's friends is likely around 150 sqm (1,615 sq ft), which is about half the size of Johann’s initial design. Plus architecture, slope, and fittings.
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