Hello everyone,
I have just started reading up on the topic of building a house, even though the desire to do so is still quite vague at the moment. This is more likely to be a project for the next five years. I feel like I’ve already spent dozens of hours here in the forum 🙂
Right now, I’m trying to get a sense of what makes a house expensive, which things are energy inefficient, and so on. That’s why I’m interested in whether there are any general guidelines for comparison.
Disclaimer: I understand that it always depends on the individual situation. Nevertheless, I could imagine that some rough rules of thumb have become established.
One more disclaimer: I am not trying to plan the cheapest possible house. Nor do I want to optimize every decision solely for KfW standards (I don’t even know yet whether I want or need KfW certification).
I’m just trying to get a feel for how building decisions influence cost and energy efficiency. After all, I don’t want to plan something completely unrealistic. When it gets more concrete, of course, I’ll consult an architect.
Until then, I want to build some background knowledge.
Thank you & best regards from the cave.
I have just started reading up on the topic of building a house, even though the desire to do so is still quite vague at the moment. This is more likely to be a project for the next five years. I feel like I’ve already spent dozens of hours here in the forum 🙂
Right now, I’m trying to get a sense of what makes a house expensive, which things are energy inefficient, and so on. That’s why I’m interested in whether there are any general guidelines for comparison.
Disclaimer: I understand that it always depends on the individual situation. Nevertheless, I could imagine that some rough rules of thumb have become established.
- First of all, I would like to know: how does a bungalow compare to a house with two full stories? (In terms of costs and the effort to achieve a KfW standard). My youthful recklessness tells me that a bungalow is cheaper to build but more expensive to insulate because of the larger ground/exterior surface area.
- The same question applies to a two-story house compared to a 1.5-story house (I know, that doesn’t really exist ;-) ) with knee walls but no attic. An attic is certainly great for storage, but initially it’s dead space that requires an additional intermediate ceiling and more exterior surface area.
- Also, I like the idea of an L-shaped (living room) layout with a terrace nestled inside the inner corner. Does deviating from a cubic shape significantly affect the price? I would assume that especially if aiming for KfW standards, this could get tricky because corners are presumably complex to insulate. Or are these just minor issues?
- The same question comes up regarding dormers and possibly a third or fourth gable.
- How much does the roof pitch affect price and energy efficiency? (My assumption: a flatter roof uses less material and also exposes less surface area).
One more disclaimer: I am not trying to plan the cheapest possible house. Nor do I want to optimize every decision solely for KfW standards (I don’t even know yet whether I want or need KfW certification).
I’m just trying to get a feel for how building decisions influence cost and energy efficiency. After all, I don’t want to plan something completely unrealistic. When it gets more concrete, of course, I’ll consult an architect.
Until then, I want to build some background knowledge.
Thank you & best regards from the cave.
You read all kinds of answers on this topic, so honestly, I doubt there is a universally cheapest roof shape. Even though we don’t have a flat, gable, or shed roof, this roof type was achievable without significant additional cost.
My statement primarily refers to the ratio of surface area to volume, without considering whether the construction was more or less expensive.
My statement primarily refers to the ratio of surface area to volume, without considering whether the construction was more or less expensive.
This again leads to a thread that, apart from incrementing the post count, doesn’t serve any real purpose.
Build the house that your zoning plan / building permit allows and that you like. As a rule, many designs don’t meet the requirements anyway, and you end up with the classic gable roof or hipped roof with one or two full stories.
Usually, people don’t drive a Dacia just because it’s cheap. Otherwise, you would see many more of them on the roads.
Build the house that your zoning plan / building permit allows and that you like. As a rule, many designs don’t meet the requirements anyway, and you end up with the classic gable roof or hipped roof with one or two full stories.
Usually, people don’t drive a Dacia just because it’s cheap. Otherwise, you would see many more of them on the roads.
H
Höhlenbewohner17 Aug 2021 11:35Hi everyone,
thanks for the responses so far.
And besides the ratio of exterior surface area to interior volume, any deviation from a simple cube (so with every gable, dormer, balcony, entrance porch, basically anything that makes a house more interesting) adds complexity in construction and insulation.
That’s the part I find hard to assess and why I’m asking here.
Is a captain’s gable or an L-shaped floor plan an expensive luxury, or do the additional costs get lost in the noise?
That’s an interesting and helpful statement. So maybe I’m overestimating the extra costs of “special requests”?
thanks for the responses so far.
K1300S schrieb:
that’s why the next best option is a cube. The more you deviate from that, the more exterior surface area you have to build for the same interior volume (simplified: living space).
And besides the ratio of exterior surface area to interior volume, any deviation from a simple cube (so with every gable, dormer, balcony, entrance porch, basically anything that makes a house more interesting) adds complexity in construction and insulation.
That’s the part I find hard to assess and why I’m asking here.
Is a captain’s gable or an L-shaped floor plan an expensive luxury, or do the additional costs get lost in the noise?
K1300S schrieb:
In the end, the price differences aren’t as significant as you might think.
That’s an interesting and helpful statement. So maybe I’m overestimating the extra costs of “special requests”?
Höhlenbewohner schrieb:
Is the captain’s gable or L-shape design an expensive luxury, or do the additional costs barely make a difference? I tend to think the latter. When you consider the typical mid six-figure price for a single-family house nowadays, a difference of a few thousand euros is not that significant.
Höhlenbewohner schrieb:
That’s an interesting and helpful comment. So I’m probably overestimating the extra costs of "custom requests"? I think so. Of course, small expenses can add up over time, but if you don’t check every single option on the extras list, the final surcharge should not be huge. Apart from that, you can definitely accumulate more extra costs in areas like technology or bathroom fixtures.
H
Höhlenbewohner17 Aug 2021 11:40driver55 schrieb:
This is another thread that, apart from incrementing the post count, doesn’t lead anywhere. Matter of perspective.
I find it quite helpful to understand how much "extra requests" typically affect the price.
That no solid, universally valid numbers can be expected here, but rather qualitative statements or rough estimates, is inherent to the subject.
driver55 schrieb:
Usually, you don’t drive a Dacia just because it’s cheap. Otherwise, you would see many more on the roads. To stick with the analogy: the goal is not to buy the cheapest car but to understand which additional features drive costs and to better assess their cost-benefit ratio.
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