Dear forum members,
I have a few questions about the Bauherren-Schutzbund that I couldn’t find answers to in their information materials—maybe it’s because I’m just starting to familiarize myself with this topic.
Situation:
We plan to start building our single-family house in March 2015. The project is currently being designed by our architect, who is also expected to oversee the construction.
I’ve come across the Schutzbund quite often, including here in the forum, and have read a lot on their website. If I join the association, I have the option to use many of their services, especially their consulting. I’m particularly interested in their construction supervision service. I understand this would be an additional service alongside our architect, where I as a member arrange appointments with the association’s consultants, who then visit the construction site. The building plans and schedule are coordinated with their advisors, and they inspect the site at these appointments. The cost for this supervision is charged according to the hourly rates listed on their website, correct?
I suppose it’s possible to be overly cautious, but initially this supervision service combined with the architect’s work seems reasonable, doesn’t it? Or is it overkill and the architect alone will be sufficient? I’d be interested to hear about your experiences.
Best regards from Hamburg
I have a few questions about the Bauherren-Schutzbund that I couldn’t find answers to in their information materials—maybe it’s because I’m just starting to familiarize myself with this topic.
Situation:
We plan to start building our single-family house in March 2015. The project is currently being designed by our architect, who is also expected to oversee the construction.
I’ve come across the Schutzbund quite often, including here in the forum, and have read a lot on their website. If I join the association, I have the option to use many of their services, especially their consulting. I’m particularly interested in their construction supervision service. I understand this would be an additional service alongside our architect, where I as a member arrange appointments with the association’s consultants, who then visit the construction site. The building plans and schedule are coordinated with their advisors, and they inspect the site at these appointments. The cost for this supervision is charged according to the hourly rates listed on their website, correct?
I suppose it’s possible to be overly cautious, but initially this supervision service combined with the architect’s work seems reasonable, doesn’t it? Or is it overkill and the architect alone will be sufficient? I’d be interested to hear about your experiences.
Best regards from Hamburg
Hi,
I think having construction supervision is a good idea. Whether this should be done through the Bauherren-Schutzbund (Building Owners’ Protection Association) is something everyone needs to decide for themselves.
We used the Bauherren-Schutzbund for reviewing contracts and checking the construction specifications. There were several valid points raised, but also some comments that seemed a bit far-fetched. Additionally, the Bauherren-Schutzbund accompanied me to a meeting with the construction company to discuss potential changes. The cost for this consulting service, in addition to the membership fee, was around 1,300 euros. To be fair, I might not have kept close track of the time at first, so the hours added up.
During this meeting, I noticed that my builder and the representative from the Bauherren-Schutzbund knew each other and apparently had strong animosity between them. Later, I learned that this representative had previously stopped one of my builder’s construction sites. The work could only continue after a TÜV inspector (technical inspection authority) disproved his arguments. In short, I decided against using the Bauherren-Schutzbund for construction supervision because I was concerned that their conflict might negatively impact our project. I now have a TÜV inspector who visits the site five times and carries out fairly detailed checks (as far as I can judge).
One other aspect also made me question the Bauherren-Schutzbund: the representative is also a freelance architect. Maybe I am wrong, but I believe a good architect should generally earn well. So why would he spend time working for the Bauherren-Schutzbund, where he presumably earns significantly less?
I think having construction supervision is a good idea. Whether this should be done through the Bauherren-Schutzbund (Building Owners’ Protection Association) is something everyone needs to decide for themselves.
We used the Bauherren-Schutzbund for reviewing contracts and checking the construction specifications. There were several valid points raised, but also some comments that seemed a bit far-fetched. Additionally, the Bauherren-Schutzbund accompanied me to a meeting with the construction company to discuss potential changes. The cost for this consulting service, in addition to the membership fee, was around 1,300 euros. To be fair, I might not have kept close track of the time at first, so the hours added up.
During this meeting, I noticed that my builder and the representative from the Bauherren-Schutzbund knew each other and apparently had strong animosity between them. Later, I learned that this representative had previously stopped one of my builder’s construction sites. The work could only continue after a TÜV inspector (technical inspection authority) disproved his arguments. In short, I decided against using the Bauherren-Schutzbund for construction supervision because I was concerned that their conflict might negatively impact our project. I now have a TÜV inspector who visits the site five times and carries out fairly detailed checks (as far as I can judge).
One other aspect also made me question the Bauherren-Schutzbund: the representative is also a freelance architect. Maybe I am wrong, but I believe a good architect should generally earn well. So why would he spend time working for the Bauherren-Schutzbund, where he presumably earns significantly less?
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