Hey,
after receiving great help here in the forum, we are gradually making progress.
The first meetings with different architects have taken place, and as expected, they were all completely different.
I would like to share these experiences with you and ask for your insights.
One of the architects recommended working with a local construction company to build a turnkey house or at least to ensure weather-tightness. This company is apparently well-known and frequently collaborates with the architect. The other architect tends to tender each trade individually and has a construction budget cap set by us.
I have mixed feelings about using a general contractor (GC). On one hand, there is a lack of cost transparency, but on the other hand, we would have a single point of contact.
I wonder if building a house by tendering individual trades might be more sensible, transparent, and possibly more cost-effective than going through a GC. Or would you have the shell construction completed by a GC and then tender the rest? Especially since we have certified electricians, plumbers, and others in our close circle of friends and family who could assist us.
I hope I was able to explain this reasonably well.
Now I am asking those who have had experience with these topics multiple times. Looking forward to your feedback.
Thanks to all
after receiving great help here in the forum, we are gradually making progress.
The first meetings with different architects have taken place, and as expected, they were all completely different.
I would like to share these experiences with you and ask for your insights.
One of the architects recommended working with a local construction company to build a turnkey house or at least to ensure weather-tightness. This company is apparently well-known and frequently collaborates with the architect. The other architect tends to tender each trade individually and has a construction budget cap set by us.
I have mixed feelings about using a general contractor (GC). On one hand, there is a lack of cost transparency, but on the other hand, we would have a single point of contact.
I wonder if building a house by tendering individual trades might be more sensible, transparent, and possibly more cost-effective than going through a GC. Or would you have the shell construction completed by a GC and then tender the rest? Especially since we have certified electricians, plumbers, and others in our close circle of friends and family who could assist us.
I hope I was able to explain this reasonably well.
Now I am asking those who have had experience with these topics multiple times. Looking forward to your feedback.
Thanks to all
H
hampshire17 Oct 2019 22:51I believe the desire for just one single point of contact is misguided.
You need a partner who is responsible for and coordinates the trades and schedules, as this is stressful and hardly manageable for a layperson. This can be the architect, a general contractor (GC), or a suitably organized building contractor or carpentry company.
During the construction phase, it is actually better to communicate directly with the contractors rather than playing “telephone” through a single point of contact.
We had good experiences with both approaches as well as with a developer. As the client, I prefer to be in the driver’s seat, which is more difficult when working with a GC.
You need a partner who is responsible for and coordinates the trades and schedules, as this is stressful and hardly manageable for a layperson. This can be the architect, a general contractor (GC), or a suitably organized building contractor or carpentry company.
During the construction phase, it is actually better to communicate directly with the contractors rather than playing “telephone” through a single point of contact.
We had good experiences with both approaches as well as with a developer. As the client, I prefer to be in the driver’s seat, which is more difficult when working with a GC.
P
Piotr198117 Oct 2019 22:57hampshire schrieb:
I believe the desire to have only one point of contact is misguided.
You need a partner who is responsible for and coordinates the trades and schedules, as this is stressful and hardly manageable for a layperson. This could be the architect, a general contractor (GC), or a suitably equipped building contractor or carpentry company.
During construction, it is actually better to communicate directly with the tradespeople rather than playing a game of “telephone” through a single point of contact.
We have had good experiences with both approaches, as well as with a developer. As a client, I personally prefer to be in the driver’s seat, which is more difficult with a GC. Thank you very much for the great answer. Very helpful.
I would like to discuss this with you sometime. Do you see a possibility for that? That would be great.
B
boxandroof18 Oct 2019 00:27We worked with an architect but had the extended shell construction done by just one (small) company that also builds turnkey houses. There was no general contractor (GC) contract, but rather a tendering process. We paid based on square meters, tons, hours, etc. One company handled everything from the foundation slab to plastering and screed, and the roof was contracted separately.
This was simple for the architects and a lucky find for us because the company was excellent and required little coordination. For the interior work, we awarded several follow-up trades to partner companies of the "GC."
I wouldn’t have a problem with multiple contacts, but take a close look at the GC/the companies and the architects. Everything stands or falls on that. Ask yourself what would happen in case of problems. We sometimes chose the cheapest and sometimes the most expensive offer.
This was simple for the architects and a lucky find for us because the company was excellent and required little coordination. For the interior work, we awarded several follow-up trades to partner companies of the "GC."
I wouldn’t have a problem with multiple contacts, but take a close look at the GC/the companies and the architects. Everything stands or falls on that. Ask yourself what would happen in case of problems. We sometimes chose the cheapest and sometimes the most expensive offer.
@Piotr1981 ... please avoid quoting the entire post and then including your replies inside the quote ... see here ... If you want to refer to someone, you can simply mention them like I just did, or quote only the relevant sentence and make sure your own comments are written outside the quote. Otherwise, the thread quickly becomes hard to read. Thanks
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