ᐅ Are the structural engineer’s fees reasonable?

I like the suggested approach of using a "cheap" structural engineer, as long as the final result still recommends standard ceiling heights, reinforcements, and so on. Who says that specially designed custom solutions aren’t more expensive during the shell construction phase? I can’t really judge that, so I would always stick to the usual standard, where a rough estimate from the structural engineer is enough to determine if it will work or not.

Anyway, there is still no feedback from the structural engineer (not the architect) explaining where the prices come from and why they are estimating 10,000 to 20,000.

Lumpi_LE schrieb:
As always, the question is what exactly is included and what the requirements are. Otherwise, you just get nonsensical answers.

To apply that to your question and the responses:
I want to buy a new bicycle, I am 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) tall. The bike should cost €3000 (about $3200). Is that too expensive?

Answers:
- Mine cost €600 (about $640) here at the hardware store, yours is way too expensive.
- I am 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) tall and paid €1500 (about $1600) in a large bike shop, so yours is too expensive.
- My bike cost €4000 (about $4300) even though I’m only 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in), so the price is fine.

This is not always applicable... a service is not always the same as equipment.

For example, I wanted to have a detached house demolished...

Procedure:
1) Demolish the house
2) Seal the ground

The cheapest offer was around €21,000 (about $22,500)... the most expensive was €70,000 (and it was this one that actively searched for projects :-))

Sand made of gold :-)?

@OP Just get more offers (also from farther away, don’t hesitate :-))

Regarding the topic, yes.
In your case, the two tasks are clearly defined.
It would be different if your task was finishing.

Our structural engineer is quite expensive... in the end, the final approval cost us 7,000 euros. Based on the architect’s recommendation, we chose to work with a structural engineer who has a strong reputation. In contrast, my neighbor paid only 1,000 euros for his entire structural engineering, while his architect charged him 5,000 euros. It’s amazing what prices are out there sometimes. Personally, that offer seemed too good to be true for me... Good work should also be properly compensated 🙂

Milo3 schrieb:
My neighbor, by contrast, paid a whopping 1000€ for his entire structural analysis (he paid his architect 5000€).

In my small personal experience, those were the typical amounts. And, of course, you get what you pay for: a piece of paper with a stamp.

Personally, I wouldn’t have wanted to pay for all the phases according to HOAI either, but definitely would have built with a general contractor plus an expert, as most people do here.

boxandroof schrieb:
In my small personal experience, these were the typical scales. And of course, you get what you pay for: sheets with a stamp.

However, I personally would not have wanted to pay for every phase according to the HOAI (German fee structure for architects and engineers); instead, I would definitely have built with a general contractor plus an expert, as most people here do.

Everything up to service phase 5, which was a conscious decision. We do a lot ourselves, and having a good, detailed plan is crucial.