ᐅ Experiences with Swedish Houses | Timber Homes – Rörvikshus
Created on: 26 Apr 2025 17:32
R
Replique82R
Replique8226 Apr 2025 17:32Hello everyone,
we are from Berlin and originally planned to build our own Swedish-style house with the company Rörvikshus. Unfortunately, this will not happen, and I would like to share my experiences with this house builder here so that others do not have to go through the same issues.
I’m not even sure if Rörvikshus can call themselves a house builder. Based on my experience, they are nothing more than a wall manufacturer and erector. The construction contract only covers the walls with windows, intermediate ceilings, and the roof. All other trades must be organized and contracted by the homeowner. This includes everything from site development, foundation slab, architect, energy consultant, to the entire interior work such as heating, electrical installations, carpentry for stairs and railings, and so on.
Without an additional, costly construction manager, managing the interfaces between the trades as a private individual is almost impossible. At the same time, if the house is financed, the construction manager must document the progress of the build for the bank and carry out inspections to ensure the quality of each trade’s work. Unfortunately, these critical points regarding the “external” conditions and the associated risks were not explained to us before signing the contract.
The contract with Rörvikshus lacks cost transparency. This means that the scope of services does not include individual cost items or cost groups, making it impossible to understand how the total price is composed. Furthermore, Rörvikshus passes all additional services (such as crane rental, scaffolding, waste container, portable toilet, internal scaffolding, and others) on to the homeowner, which again leads to opaque costs since these are not backed by any quotes at the time of signing the contract. Under German law, these clauses in the Rörvikshus contract could be challenged according to §307 of the Building Code, as they represent an unreasonable disadvantage. Not to mention, the homeowner receives almost no information about the necessary requirements. What kind of container, what size, for which types of waste, and for how long? The access road must be suitable for trucks at least 18m (59 feet) long.
Our local sales partner for Rörvikshus in the Berlin/Brandenburg area promised full support in coordinating the trades and additional duties of the homeowner before signing the contract. He also initially took care of offers for the interior work. Unfortunately, it turned out that the first offer for the foundation slab was from a professional whose online reviews highlighted multiple private bankruptcies and extremely unhappy customers. That was our first red flag. The next two offers he presented were also unreliable, so we ended up managing all trades ourselves. The energy consultant he recommended promised us an energy certificate in about two weeks, but after providing all necessary information, there was no progress. The sales partner assured us he had sent all details to the consultant, but weeks passed during which we repeatedly followed up by phone, and the consultant kept saying he was still waiting for information from the sales partner.
After signing the contract, the sales partner became unreachable. Only a few emails were answered, and specific questions were either ignored or met with anecdotes from his past following the motto: “We’ve always done it this way.”
The freelance architect he offered (who also must be separately contracted and paid by the homeowner) had great difficulty preparing a transparent construction cost breakdown for the bank. After the building application was submitted, we received a formal notice of defects with a four-week deadline. We had to commission another soil survey (!) and asked the architect to request an extension of the deadline. He sent this extension request by email after 6 p.m. on the last day of the deadline. He promised a date for submitting the additional documents, but three working days later, when we checked in, he just said he was still waiting for the surveyor. At this point, the communication seemed deliberately nontransparent.
Another surprise awaited us in the architect’s contract. Only the service phases 1-4 as defined by HOAI (the German fee structure for architects and engineers) were offered. This is not immediately understandable for a layperson. Behind this is the important fact that the architect only supports the project up to the building permit phase (planning phase). The detailed drawings required for contracting trades such as electrical, gas, and plumbing are therefore not prepared by the architect. These must be commissioned separately from relevant specialist planners or another architect.
In summary, I can only say that the contract structure at Rörvikshus includes many pitfalls, hidden costs, and responsibilities for the homeowner that are not explained in any way. The clear impression is that they rely on confident appearances, promises, and maximum opacity to take advantage of the homeowner’s lack of knowledge.
We have since canceled the contract and have paid a lot in learning costs.
we are from Berlin and originally planned to build our own Swedish-style house with the company Rörvikshus. Unfortunately, this will not happen, and I would like to share my experiences with this house builder here so that others do not have to go through the same issues.
I’m not even sure if Rörvikshus can call themselves a house builder. Based on my experience, they are nothing more than a wall manufacturer and erector. The construction contract only covers the walls with windows, intermediate ceilings, and the roof. All other trades must be organized and contracted by the homeowner. This includes everything from site development, foundation slab, architect, energy consultant, to the entire interior work such as heating, electrical installations, carpentry for stairs and railings, and so on.
Without an additional, costly construction manager, managing the interfaces between the trades as a private individual is almost impossible. At the same time, if the house is financed, the construction manager must document the progress of the build for the bank and carry out inspections to ensure the quality of each trade’s work. Unfortunately, these critical points regarding the “external” conditions and the associated risks were not explained to us before signing the contract.
The contract with Rörvikshus lacks cost transparency. This means that the scope of services does not include individual cost items or cost groups, making it impossible to understand how the total price is composed. Furthermore, Rörvikshus passes all additional services (such as crane rental, scaffolding, waste container, portable toilet, internal scaffolding, and others) on to the homeowner, which again leads to opaque costs since these are not backed by any quotes at the time of signing the contract. Under German law, these clauses in the Rörvikshus contract could be challenged according to §307 of the Building Code, as they represent an unreasonable disadvantage. Not to mention, the homeowner receives almost no information about the necessary requirements. What kind of container, what size, for which types of waste, and for how long? The access road must be suitable for trucks at least 18m (59 feet) long.
Our local sales partner for Rörvikshus in the Berlin/Brandenburg area promised full support in coordinating the trades and additional duties of the homeowner before signing the contract. He also initially took care of offers for the interior work. Unfortunately, it turned out that the first offer for the foundation slab was from a professional whose online reviews highlighted multiple private bankruptcies and extremely unhappy customers. That was our first red flag. The next two offers he presented were also unreliable, so we ended up managing all trades ourselves. The energy consultant he recommended promised us an energy certificate in about two weeks, but after providing all necessary information, there was no progress. The sales partner assured us he had sent all details to the consultant, but weeks passed during which we repeatedly followed up by phone, and the consultant kept saying he was still waiting for information from the sales partner.
After signing the contract, the sales partner became unreachable. Only a few emails were answered, and specific questions were either ignored or met with anecdotes from his past following the motto: “We’ve always done it this way.”
The freelance architect he offered (who also must be separately contracted and paid by the homeowner) had great difficulty preparing a transparent construction cost breakdown for the bank. After the building application was submitted, we received a formal notice of defects with a four-week deadline. We had to commission another soil survey (!) and asked the architect to request an extension of the deadline. He sent this extension request by email after 6 p.m. on the last day of the deadline. He promised a date for submitting the additional documents, but three working days later, when we checked in, he just said he was still waiting for the surveyor. At this point, the communication seemed deliberately nontransparent.
Another surprise awaited us in the architect’s contract. Only the service phases 1-4 as defined by HOAI (the German fee structure for architects and engineers) were offered. This is not immediately understandable for a layperson. Behind this is the important fact that the architect only supports the project up to the building permit phase (planning phase). The detailed drawings required for contracting trades such as electrical, gas, and plumbing are therefore not prepared by the architect. These must be commissioned separately from relevant specialist planners or another architect.
In summary, I can only say that the contract structure at Rörvikshus includes many pitfalls, hidden costs, and responsibilities for the homeowner that are not explained in any way. The clear impression is that they rely on confident appearances, promises, and maximum opacity to take advantage of the homeowner’s lack of knowledge.
We have since canceled the contract and have paid a lot in learning costs.
I do not see any deliberate attempt to be non-transparent here. You wanted to purchase a timber frame shell kit. If its manufacturer and exporter calls themselves a “house builder,” that is neither unethical nor misleading or illegal, as long as the contract clearly specifies what is actually being delivered and it is obvious that this is not a move-in ready house. If you, as the client, behave more like a consumer and buy the “house” as if it were a television or a sofa set, that is not a fault of your contractual partner. I do not see Section 307 of the German Building Code (Baugesetzbuch) obliging the seller of a semi-finished product to provide a detailed step-by-step list or “spoon-feed” you the completion of their offer into a fully finished end product. If your contractual partner accepts your termination of the contract, I congratulate you on having more luck than due diligence. Also, if an architect only provides the service phases 1 to 4 (conceptual design through design development), it is obvious from the publicly accessible “table of contents” of the HOAI (Official Scale of Fees for Services by Architects and Engineers) that they neither produce detailed plans, call for tenders, nor manage construction works—and it is not the shell kit supplier’s responsibility to inform you of this. A verbally promised “support” by the sales representative is not part of your contract with the shell kit supplier. None of this requires an expert assessor; even a trainee at a consumer advice center can explain this to you. So you are rather warning others against repeating your naivety than against the business practices of your contractual partner (which may still help those affected, so thank you for that). Furthermore, a deadline expires at midnight on the due date, not at the close of business. However, the architect is responsible for the completeness of the building application (and is professionally insured for this). As a client, you also have obligations and are responsible for failures by your agents.
If you— as I suspect—are now looking for a new house builder to move your project forward (and have not learned anything from your experience, for example, because you do not see any fault on your side), you should find an independent architect—and probably also a specialized lawyer. You do not necessarily need the architect for both halves of the project (phases 1 to 8); an independent construction consultant can also advise you individually on when and who you need (I am currently fully booked until the autumn holidays but there are many other professionals available). As an introduction, I recommend my “House Building Roadmap, for you too: the HOAI phase model!” which you will need to search for externally; it explains when (with or without an architect) each step needs to be taken.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
If you— as I suspect—are now looking for a new house builder to move your project forward (and have not learned anything from your experience, for example, because you do not see any fault on your side), you should find an independent architect—and probably also a specialized lawyer. You do not necessarily need the architect for both halves of the project (phases 1 to 8); an independent construction consultant can also advise you individually on when and who you need (I am currently fully booked until the autumn holidays but there are many other professionals available). As an introduction, I recommend my “House Building Roadmap, for you too: the HOAI phase model!” which you will need to search for externally; it explains when (with or without an architect) each step needs to be taken.
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
What I never understand is: why do people sign something like this? Is it really the psychological pressure of "there won’t be any offers next week" or "prices are going up"? Or maybe the pleasantly smelling aftershave? There is a scope of work that clearly states what is included and what is not. Don’t people read through it in their excitement? Even if the website says the sales partner will support you until the end, that’s true for every sales partner—there are good ones and bad ones. Or was it unrealistic expectations?
You can tell that you put a lot of effort into the project and ended up disappointed. That’s really frustrating, especially when so much money and energy are involved. The fact that Rörvikshus primarily acts as a kit supplier rather than a traditional home builder is often not obvious to laypeople, especially when support and guidance are advertised upfront. Of course, much of this is legally stated in the fine print or can be inferred from the scope of services, but whether a layperson fully understands this right away is another matter.
What happened in your case shows how important it is to clarify absolutely everything before signing a contract—not just what is being delivered, but also who is responsible for what and who takes care of each aspect. If the feeling arises that your contact person disappears or no longer feels responsible after the contract is signed, the trust relationship is broken, no matter what the paperwork says.
I think it’s good that you are sharing this so openly here. In the end, it’s not just a review of a company but also a reminder of how complex a construction project is and how easily problems can occur when you assume you’re simply buying “a house” like a finished product. Have you found a new approach for moving forward with your building project?
What happened in your case shows how important it is to clarify absolutely everything before signing a contract—not just what is being delivered, but also who is responsible for what and who takes care of each aspect. If the feeling arises that your contact person disappears or no longer feels responsible after the contract is signed, the trust relationship is broken, no matter what the paperwork says.
I think it’s good that you are sharing this so openly here. In the end, it’s not just a review of a company but also a reminder of how complex a construction project is and how easily problems can occur when you assume you’re simply buying “a house” like a finished product. Have you found a new approach for moving forward with your building project?
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