ᐅ Homebuilding Forum – Would You Choose to Buy or Build a House Again?
Created on: 11 Dec 2015 11:09
X
xycrazy
Hello,
we are about to sign the contract with the developer but have started seriously reconsidering whether we should go through with it.
We negotiated for 8 months and were quite sure about it. However, towards the end, some issues arose regarding the contract and other matters, which we managed to resolve.
It now looks like we would be paying a third of our net income to the bank for 22 years. I think we can afford it. But when you are used to paying monthly rent of about €800-900 (divided by 2), this is quite a different level.
With a house, it’s not just the loan payments; there are ongoing maintenance costs as well. From what we’ve read, this is roughly €2-3 per m² (about 0.2-0.3 per sq ft) per month. So that’s another €400-500 per month. And, of course, there is much more work involved too.
Admittedly, this is stressing us out quite a bit, especially my partner. She is worried about the heavy financial burden each month. Is that justified?
We don’t want to live just for the house; we want to go on vacations, avoid problems with children, and so on. As I said, the current situation is manageable, but we wonder if we might be underestimating the costs.
So here’s my question to the community: looking back at everything you know now about loans, maintenance costs, upkeep, and so forth, would you buy or build a house again?
If yes, why? If not, why not? I’m really interested to hear your thoughts! And were there any surprises—positive or negative—that you didn’t expect?
Regards
we are about to sign the contract with the developer but have started seriously reconsidering whether we should go through with it.
We negotiated for 8 months and were quite sure about it. However, towards the end, some issues arose regarding the contract and other matters, which we managed to resolve.
It now looks like we would be paying a third of our net income to the bank for 22 years. I think we can afford it. But when you are used to paying monthly rent of about €800-900 (divided by 2), this is quite a different level.
With a house, it’s not just the loan payments; there are ongoing maintenance costs as well. From what we’ve read, this is roughly €2-3 per m² (about 0.2-0.3 per sq ft) per month. So that’s another €400-500 per month. And, of course, there is much more work involved too.
Admittedly, this is stressing us out quite a bit, especially my partner. She is worried about the heavy financial burden each month. Is that justified?
We don’t want to live just for the house; we want to go on vacations, avoid problems with children, and so on. As I said, the current situation is manageable, but we wonder if we might be underestimating the costs.
So here’s my question to the community: looking back at everything you know now about loans, maintenance costs, upkeep, and so forth, would you buy or build a house again?
If yes, why? If not, why not? I’m really interested to hear your thoughts! And were there any surprises—positive or negative—that you didn’t expect?
Regards
@Nordlys
Yes, I understand what you mean. It becomes difficult when you have to move in, for example because you’ve already given notice on your apartment. In your case, the problem is that payments were made before the work was completed. That’s a major mistake that you can easily avoid by setting it clearly in the contract. There are also contractors who require full payment only after completion. Then you just have to choose one of those.
Otherwise, I’m more relaxed about it now. We have almost finished our outbuilding, which is basically a complete tiny house with workshop, insulation, electrical work, etc. We managed everything ourselves. But only because we now knew how to approach it. Basically, anyone could have done it, since no payment was made without work being done.
Of course, I prefer to work with someone I like. And snapping at customers is not polite, even if they are difficult. After two years of research and 14 general contractors with just as many detailed scopes of work, you should have a good sense of what really matters.
Yes, I understand what you mean. It becomes difficult when you have to move in, for example because you’ve already given notice on your apartment. In your case, the problem is that payments were made before the work was completed. That’s a major mistake that you can easily avoid by setting it clearly in the contract. There are also contractors who require full payment only after completion. Then you just have to choose one of those.
Otherwise, I’m more relaxed about it now. We have almost finished our outbuilding, which is basically a complete tiny house with workshop, insulation, electrical work, etc. We managed everything ourselves. But only because we now knew how to approach it. Basically, anyone could have done it, since no payment was made without work being done.
Of course, I prefer to work with someone I like. And snapping at customers is not polite, even if they are difficult. After two years of research and 14 general contractors with just as many detailed scopes of work, you should have a good sense of what really matters.
kaho674 schrieb:
It’s surprising that when I talk to 14 general contractors, I then pick the one I immediately don’t trust. If I have spent that much time dealing with the subject, then I know what I’m talking about and don’t need trust.
The only trust I need is that the contractor actually does the work, but with such thorough information available, you are already well advised and legally protected. Hello kaho674,
I agree with you when it comes to items like vacuum cleaners, laptops, refrigerators, backpacks, hi-fi systems, and so on.
But spending a year studying a complex topic like house construction and then claiming to know everything is quite a statement.
Did you complete training as a bricklayer, plasterer, drywall installer, roofer, or similar before buying the house? Because even those tradespeople sometimes don’t have all the answers (see some threads here about “shoddy workmanship”).
Farilo schrieb:
Did you complete any training as a bricklayer, plasterer, drywall installer, roofer, etc. before buying the house? Because even those tradespeople sometimes have no idea (see some threads here about “botched construction”).To be honest, we installed the windows ourselves. I find that less complicated than just setting up a hi-fi system!
The real question is that you actually need trust when you have little knowledge. Then you have to rely on the general contractor (GC) not to cut corners. However, I’ve had more problems with poor workmanship from individual tradespeople—the GC is liable for them. Of course, it’s a problem if I don’t recognize poor work, and that is unfortunate—you’re right about that.
Maybe it would have been better for the original poster to talk to satisfied homeowners in their area. They could have recommended a GC with many happy clients. I think that’s the best approach overall—word of mouth.
kaho674 schrieb:
To be honest, we installed the windows ourselves. I find that less complicated than setting up a hi-fi system!
The issue is that you really need trust when you have little knowledge. Then you have to rely on the general contractor (GC) not to cut corners. But I think the problem with poor workmanship is usually with the tradespeople—the GC is responsible for them. If I don’t recognize the poor workmanship, that’s a problem—you’re right about that.
Maybe it would have been better for the original poster to talk to satisfied homeowners in their area. They could have recommended a GC with many happy clients. I think that’s the best approach overall: word-of-mouth recommendations.Word-of-mouth recommendations and experiences within your circle of friends are the best you can get!
If you have tradespeople in your close friends, you can approach things very differently... Even if they don’t help physically, they offer advice. That provides reassurance.
Fortunately, we have a carpenter, painter, tiler, bricklayer, flooring installer, and plumber within our circle of friends.
Still, I want/need to educate myself and get familiar with the subject before bothering any of my friends with my concerns. I don’t want to remain ignorant.
But KNOWLEDGE is one thing. Doing is another entirely.