Hello everyone,
During the planning phase of building a house, you inevitably come across forums about home construction and topics related to energy standards. I have already read several books and browsed various websites on the subject. I should mention that I am not a professional in this field. What I have noticed is that the entire topic of "economic / ecological home construction" is heavily influenced by commercial interests. The so-called "smart" consumer is often misled by marketing terms and a government-led campaign for "CO2-efficient building." Books or websites dealing with this subject often do not provide clear, comprehensive assessments.
In the "better" literature, insulation materials are compared in terms of insulation value and whether they are expensive or affordable. However, I still cannot determine what makes the most sense for my individual case. I simply do not want to spend excessive amounts of money, especially on things that do not add value, such as polystyrene insulation. If additional costs for a particular heating system are reasonable over a feasible period, then yes.
Our current goal is to build a simple single-family home with about 130 - 140 sqm (1400 - 1500 sq ft). The house should cost around €200,000 (without outdoor landscaping, floor coverings, land, or additional construction-related costs; our expectations are modest).
I am interested in knowing, based on the current state of technology, what is the most energy-efficient and cost-effective building option?
Energy-saving regulation / building standards according to KfW, yes or no, and if yes, which level?
Solid construction or prefabricated house?
Condensing boiler technology or heat pump?
Thank you very much for your answers!
Best regards
During the planning phase of building a house, you inevitably come across forums about home construction and topics related to energy standards. I have already read several books and browsed various websites on the subject. I should mention that I am not a professional in this field. What I have noticed is that the entire topic of "economic / ecological home construction" is heavily influenced by commercial interests. The so-called "smart" consumer is often misled by marketing terms and a government-led campaign for "CO2-efficient building." Books or websites dealing with this subject often do not provide clear, comprehensive assessments.
In the "better" literature, insulation materials are compared in terms of insulation value and whether they are expensive or affordable. However, I still cannot determine what makes the most sense for my individual case. I simply do not want to spend excessive amounts of money, especially on things that do not add value, such as polystyrene insulation. If additional costs for a particular heating system are reasonable over a feasible period, then yes.
Our current goal is to build a simple single-family home with about 130 - 140 sqm (1400 - 1500 sq ft). The house should cost around €200,000 (without outdoor landscaping, floor coverings, land, or additional construction-related costs; our expectations are modest).
I am interested in knowing, based on the current state of technology, what is the most energy-efficient and cost-effective building option?
Energy-saving regulation / building standards according to KfW, yes or no, and if yes, which level?
Solid construction or prefabricated house?
Condensing boiler technology or heat pump?
Thank you very much for your answers!
Best regards
We are building in the western part of the country, but in a relatively affordable area (rural region, RLP). Here, many people build with a "simple standard" and are happy with it. No gimmicks or unnecessary extras that may look nice but are not essential. House prices are often correspondingly low.
Our build is slightly higher quality than what is typical for this area, with electric roller shutters or partly venetian blinds throughout, controlled residential ventilation, an air-to-water heat pump, colored RC2-rated windows, a front door with fingerprint scanner, two walk-in showers, and so on. However, we are using concrete roof tiles instead of clay, 36.5cm (14 inches) lightweight concrete/pumice blocks, vinyl flooring instead of parquet, and no KNX or similar smart home systems (you have to save somewhere ). Unfortunately, I cannot give an exact price per square meter because we are also building a large double garage (6 x 9 m [20 x 30 feet]) and there is no separate cost calculated for it. For the house, garage, and all upgrades, we are at about €1,700 per m² (approximately $1,850 per square yard) for our 160 m² (1,722 sq ft) "urban villa." If I roughly subtract €20,000 (approximately $22,000) for the brick garage, that leaves around €1,570 per m² (approximately $1,715 per square yard) or slightly less just for the house. This is without additional costs, land, landscaping, kitchen, or furnishings. Including extra costs, we are at around €1,750 per m² (approximately $1,910 per square yard) for the house excluding the garage. Additionally, land prices here are quite affordable at €50-60 per m² (approximately $55-65 per square yard). Overall, this makes the total house-building project much more affordable here than what you often read about in this forum.
We are working with an architect and individual contracts for each trade, which was clearly the more cost-effective option for us. Here, almost everyone builds this way. General contractors or design-and-build companies are rarely used in this region because they tend to be more expensive. If they are hired, it is usually smaller, local contractors — no one uses the big companies.
All trades have already been contracted at fixed prices and all material selections are finalized. The interior plasterer is currently working, and all previous trades have been fully settled. So, we do not expect any major additional costs anymore, only minor ones due to unforeseen “issues,” which are always possible unfortunately. We will do some work ourselves, such as covering the cornice box, drywall, installing interior window sills and the secondary entrance door, laying floors (except tiles), and painting.
This nicely illustrates regional differences. Many people here buy property, even with a net monthly income of €3,500 (we don’t make much more either) or less. Some buy an existing house, but many also build new—even with this level of income. Very few rent their whole life here. The percentage of homeowners here is certainly much higher than in other regions. Accordingly, many couples with the incomes mentioned above dare to build their own home. This is more the norm here, rather than the exception. On the other hand, the average equipment standard of newly built homes is likely lower here than is typical in urban areas. Nonetheless, people are happy with their homes. For me, as an average earner, our house already feels like a luxury, and I am really looking forward to living in it. Most people in the region feel similar — many build houses with even more minimalist equipment than we do. But the houses here are often quite large. Our house is 160 m² (1,722 sq ft), which is about average. Many here build larger (ours is among the smallest on the street) but with less equipment. We build smaller but with more upgrades. Combined with low land prices, this results in significantly lower overall costs for building a house than in other parts of Germany. In total, we will spend about €330,000–340,000 (approximately $360,000–370,000) for the entire project: house (with the equipment mentioned above), garage, additional costs, land, and landscaping. But without the kitchen and furniture.
Our build is slightly higher quality than what is typical for this area, with electric roller shutters or partly venetian blinds throughout, controlled residential ventilation, an air-to-water heat pump, colored RC2-rated windows, a front door with fingerprint scanner, two walk-in showers, and so on. However, we are using concrete roof tiles instead of clay, 36.5cm (14 inches) lightweight concrete/pumice blocks, vinyl flooring instead of parquet, and no KNX or similar smart home systems (you have to save somewhere ). Unfortunately, I cannot give an exact price per square meter because we are also building a large double garage (6 x 9 m [20 x 30 feet]) and there is no separate cost calculated for it. For the house, garage, and all upgrades, we are at about €1,700 per m² (approximately $1,850 per square yard) for our 160 m² (1,722 sq ft) "urban villa." If I roughly subtract €20,000 (approximately $22,000) for the brick garage, that leaves around €1,570 per m² (approximately $1,715 per square yard) or slightly less just for the house. This is without additional costs, land, landscaping, kitchen, or furnishings. Including extra costs, we are at around €1,750 per m² (approximately $1,910 per square yard) for the house excluding the garage. Additionally, land prices here are quite affordable at €50-60 per m² (approximately $55-65 per square yard). Overall, this makes the total house-building project much more affordable here than what you often read about in this forum.
We are working with an architect and individual contracts for each trade, which was clearly the more cost-effective option for us. Here, almost everyone builds this way. General contractors or design-and-build companies are rarely used in this region because they tend to be more expensive. If they are hired, it is usually smaller, local contractors — no one uses the big companies.
All trades have already been contracted at fixed prices and all material selections are finalized. The interior plasterer is currently working, and all previous trades have been fully settled. So, we do not expect any major additional costs anymore, only minor ones due to unforeseen “issues,” which are always possible unfortunately. We will do some work ourselves, such as covering the cornice box, drywall, installing interior window sills and the secondary entrance door, laying floors (except tiles), and painting.
Steffen80 schrieb:
I also know many people with relatively low household incomes (€2,500 to €3,500) who don’t even consider building new today… Reasonable, I think.
This nicely illustrates regional differences. Many people here buy property, even with a net monthly income of €3,500 (we don’t make much more either) or less. Some buy an existing house, but many also build new—even with this level of income. Very few rent their whole life here. The percentage of homeowners here is certainly much higher than in other regions. Accordingly, many couples with the incomes mentioned above dare to build their own home. This is more the norm here, rather than the exception. On the other hand, the average equipment standard of newly built homes is likely lower here than is typical in urban areas. Nonetheless, people are happy with their homes. For me, as an average earner, our house already feels like a luxury, and I am really looking forward to living in it. Most people in the region feel similar — many build houses with even more minimalist equipment than we do. But the houses here are often quite large. Our house is 160 m² (1,722 sq ft), which is about average. Many here build larger (ours is among the smallest on the street) but with less equipment. We build smaller but with more upgrades. Combined with low land prices, this results in significantly lower overall costs for building a house than in other parts of Germany. In total, we will spend about €330,000–340,000 (approximately $360,000–370,000) for the entire project: house (with the equipment mentioned above), garage, additional costs, land, and landscaping. But without the kitchen and furniture.
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