Hello House Building Forum,
I have been following for several years now because we want/wanted to build a house someday. So far, we have mostly waited, partly because our jobs required us to move around a lot, partly because we were saving capital, and also because we never really had the “free time” to dive deeper into the process. And it is the latter point that this post is about.
A few things have changed over time:
What has not changed at all over the years is the time issue. Looking back, I can say that this will not improve significantly. I have always been heavily occupied professionally, which is one reason for our relatively good income. This situation will likely continue for the foreseeable future. My spouse is in a similar situation, mostly due to the children. Of course, there are occasional quieter periods, but besides family time, there is not much more than a few afternoons or weekends scattered over several months. One could debate at length about this, but it comes down to different priorities and balancing work and private life.
We have a good living situation and rent a townhouse. It’s not like we urgently need to buy right now. However, over the years I have realized that if we keep waiting for big changes, we will just keep delaying. And after a while, it becomes painful to continue without owning property, paying a substantial rent (2,000 per month), and keeping house-building dreams unrealized.
Over the years, I have read several threads here about searching for land. Common advice includes:
It makes sense that these strategies can help discover hidden gems or bargains. But every situation is different, and I think for us it is unlikely that we would be successful with these measures. On the other hand, our budget does not force us to rely entirely on purchasing land below current market value. We are selective, but so far this has not become a problem.
That’s our situation; now for the actual question:
What other ways are there to find a suitable plot? Online portals mostly show unusable listings. Does it have to be a real estate agent in our case? Aren’t they usually very locally limited? Is the only solution to save even more money and then go hunting with a stronger financial position?
Thank you and best regards
MatthiasBW
I have been following for several years now because we want/wanted to build a house someday. So far, we have mostly waited, partly because our jobs required us to move around a lot, partly because we were saving capital, and also because we never really had the “free time” to dive deeper into the process. And it is the latter point that this post is about.
A few things have changed over time:
- I now have a job that allows me to work from home, only occasionally needing to go to the office or visit clients. This provides flexibility and stability in terms of location.
- Our children are now 3 and 7 years old; planning is complete, and they are past the most demanding phase for now, at least for a few years.
- We have managed to save around 200,000 in equity, and most months we add another 2,000–3,000.
What has not changed at all over the years is the time issue. Looking back, I can say that this will not improve significantly. I have always been heavily occupied professionally, which is one reason for our relatively good income. This situation will likely continue for the foreseeable future. My spouse is in a similar situation, mostly due to the children. Of course, there are occasional quieter periods, but besides family time, there is not much more than a few afternoons or weekends scattered over several months. One could debate at length about this, but it comes down to different priorities and balancing work and private life.
We have a good living situation and rent a townhouse. It’s not like we urgently need to buy right now. However, over the years I have realized that if we keep waiting for big changes, we will just keep delaying. And after a while, it becomes painful to continue without owning property, paying a substantial rent (2,000 per month), and keeping house-building dreams unrealized.
Over the years, I have read several threads here about searching for land. Common advice includes:
- Driving around municipalities looking for empty lots, asking neighbors
- Proactively contacting town halls or local authorities to express interest
- Applying to new development areas, where scoring systems often favor applicants with local ties
- Waiting for something to happen as described above
- Opportunities through relatives (not applicable to us)
It makes sense that these strategies can help discover hidden gems or bargains. But every situation is different, and I think for us it is unlikely that we would be successful with these measures. On the other hand, our budget does not force us to rely entirely on purchasing land below current market value. We are selective, but so far this has not become a problem.
That’s our situation; now for the actual question:
What other ways are there to find a suitable plot? Online portals mostly show unusable listings. Does it have to be a real estate agent in our case? Aren’t they usually very locally limited? Is the only solution to save even more money and then go hunting with a stronger financial position?
Thank you and best regards
MatthiasBW
For example, I am really glad that, after some detours in finding what we wanted, we decided to buy a townhouse from a developer. Even then, there is still plenty to plan and coordinate. With a custom-designed project, I can now imagine ending up either in a psychiatric hospital or at a divorce lawyer’s office, especially since our child is still going through the most challenging phase (U1).
Looking back, I have to say that we wouldn’t have had the time or the enjoyment to dive deeply enough into all the topics to gain enough experience to properly oversee the construction. So I would recommend considering in advance whether this is realistic for you. After all, the period from planning to moving in is often quite long.
Looking back, I have to say that we wouldn’t have had the time or the enjoyment to dive deeply enough into all the topics to gain enough experience to properly oversee the construction. So I would recommend considering in advance whether this is realistic for you. After all, the period from planning to moving in is often quite long.
Ysop*** schrieb:
Here, I would rather look for an existing property that isn’t too old.I would specify this more precisely: "not too old" means "target age: ten years," and "existing property" means "at most one non-load-bearing wall might be modified"—which is roughly comparable to a newly built house. Up to twenty years, it corresponds to a mid-life property, and older than that, the savings in time and effort become quite limited.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
MatthiasBW schrieb:
What other ways are there to find a suitable plot of land? We placed several advertisements for our land search in the official newsletter of our preferred municipality. Property listings were even free of charge there. In fact, the owner of our current plot contacted us through that.
KingJulien6 Jul 2021 20:1011ant schrieb:
My Barthel tips will be compiled and updated online in autumn—due to technical reasons, only after the book fair. Was that a joke ................?
If I were in your position, I would also consider whether building a house—whether with a general contractor or an architect—is the right choice for you. The search for a plot may be lengthy, but it only takes a fraction of the time required for the actual construction. Even when working with a developer, the time commitment is only slightly less, and experience from multiple house-building projects doesn’t really reduce the effort involved—if anything, it’s the opposite. 😉
That aside, although it can be stressful, it is still manageable alongside work and family life—provided you want to do it and are somewhat organized.
That aside, although it can be stressful, it is still manageable alongside work and family life—provided you want to do it and are somewhat organized.
KingJulien schrieb:
Was that a joke ................?No. A publisher will organize the "providing" of my tips and other information for prospective builders online, but mainly deals with print formats, and the book fair is a busy period during which this can no longer be completed beforehand.https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
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