ᐅ Older building or new construction?

Zimtstern27 schrieb:

Yes, I recently watched an interesting report... It mainly focused on demographic changes. Fewer children are being born, and the real estate boom will decline over the next decades. Prices will drop significantly in rural areas because everyone will have found their properties in urban centers... This will lead to many vacancies and a growing demand for age-appropriate housing! Currently, interest rates are low... Who knows if everyone can afford refinancing later...
...
It’s all quite complicated...

Exactly. Unfortunately, these overarching trends are very interesting but often not very helpful for dealing with the present. You need somewhere to live right now – but you’re facing an issue with your current housing situation. The alternative is to rent again and sell. Can you find something suitable on the market currently?
Or you could buy again and renovate or build new. This option is mainly possible because you have a semi-detached house. That’s also part of the trend. With your current income alone, expensive renting would be the only option. What do you think about an initial plan for a full renovation and adding an extension, while continuing to monitor the market? You can see the properties for sale – is there a better house among them, and what does it cost? How much additional investment would be needed?
Put all the costs side by side, and roughly calculate with a loan calculator what the monthly payments would look like...

You have a plot of 350 m2 (3,770 sq ft) and find it too small for a semi-detached house?

For new constructions in Nuremberg, you’re looking at a townhouse on less than 200 m2 (2,150 sq ft) of land (the garden is really small) starting at around 600,000 euros, and a semi-detached house at about 750,000 euros, usually on a plot closer to 300 m2 (3,230 sq ft).

Outskirts of Nuremberg

Zimtstern27 schrieb:
. Realistically, existing houses up to 450,000 euros are definitely possible..

A purchase price of 450,000 euros in Nuremberg would get you a townhouse in need of renovation or a small semi-detached house like yours to be refurbished. Including additional costs and renovation, you’d probably be back around 600,000 euros. The advantage is that plots with existing buildings are often larger than in new developments.

Prices in the immediate surrounding area are practically the same. To achieve the land price of around 300 euros/m2 (about 28 USD/sq ft) you mentioned, you would need to go roughly 50 km (30 miles) further out, for example to rural districts like WUG, NM, NEA, or AN, or in areas such as LAU or ERH, possibly Pommersfelden or Pommelsbrunn. And even if you are willing to pay those prices there, finding an available offer can be difficult!

Where exactly is your “outskirts of Nuremberg”? And where is your geographical limit?

First of all, form your own opinion, preferably not based on tabloid newspapers or random reports. Only a crystal ball can predict what will happen in 10 years. Mine is at least broken.

Did anyone think about Covid-19 or the massive refugee wave 10 years ago? There are too many variables to plan seriously. Are you sure? I’m sure you don’t know anything about the future! You can only make assumptions that are about as reliable as a 14-day weather forecast.

Are you sure you won’t like the house? At least that has a pretty high probability. Then: sell it! Even if that sounds arrogant to some here, a finished house can also be a punishment! I also spent many years tinkering with my parents’ house and ended up dissatisfied.

If your finances are tight, it might be better to first find a suitable plot of land without a building permit / planning permission requirement and then build when your income situation has improved. In the meantime, live in a suitable rental and keep saving.

Seven1984 schrieb:

Then: tear it down! Even if that sounds arrogant to some here, a badly built house can also be a punishment!

How badly built is it exactly?
@Zimtstern27: would you like to share some floor plans? Maybe we can come up with practical ideas on how to add a bathroom without an extension for now.

Zimtstern27 schrieb:

Besides, it would probably cost a fortune to close the street, which has a school and buses. Trust me, I’ve already done extensive research and thought this through.
Also, the house is located on a busy main road. Opposite are three schools. From 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. it’s hectic here, with about eight buses parked right outside, and so on.

How much would something like that cost? There are plenty of school holidays. In summer there are even six weeks off. The important thing is to hire reputable professional companies who can reliably stick to schedules. Shutting down the road for three months to do an owner-built extension probably won’t be approved. But if you start the planning process now with an architect and get the building permit / planning permission going, you could carry out the extension next summer.

Zimtstern27 schrieb:

In our semi-detached house we completely renovated walls, floors, and windows ourselves. I’m not afraid of hard work.

I really admire that. I have also tried a lot of owner-built work. Still, you do have to spend some money on skilled tradespeople, and an architect is worth more than many realize. In hindsight, I would have hired my architect for more than just the building permit / planning permission.
You should have involved an architect right at the start to properly plan the floor plans, plumbing, etc. Now, you will still need one for the extension, and they will have to create proper floor plans for the building permit / planning permission application anyway. This input and the discussion about floor plans should have happened before you started renovating, but now it’s too late. A structural engineer will also have to work thoroughly. Since floors are already installed, many things are no longer possible without demolishing again. I completely understand your frustration and why you might prefer a new house instead of finishing this one.

But as I said, please upload your floor plans here first. The floor plan section of this forum is very helpful and creative. I’m sure you will get practical solutions.

Seven1984 schrieb:

First of all, form your own opinion, and preferably not based on tabloids or random reports. Only a crystal ball could say what will happen in 10 years. Mine is at least broken.

Did anyone expect Covid-19 or the massive wave of refugees 10 years ago? There are too many variables to plan seriously for the future. Are you certain? I’m certain you don’t know anything about the future! You can only make assumptions as reliable as a 14-day weather forecast.

Are you sure you won’t like the house? You’re actually quite likely to be right on that one.
Then: sell it! Even if that sounds arrogant to some here. A completed house can also be a punishment!
I spent many years fixing up my parents’ house and in the end, I was not satisfied.
If finances are tight, it might be enough to start by finding a suitable plot of land without a building permit / planning permission obligation, and then build later when your salary situation improves. In the meantime, rent an appropriate apartment and keep saving.

Sure, there’s some truth to that! No one really knows what will happen...
Still, I fear that houses in rural areas will continue to be not very attractive...

Thanks for the ideas so far. I’ll run all the numbers ✌️

Joedreck schrieb:

Who really knows what will happen in 20 or 30 years? Why invest so much energy in that now?
Of course, property prices might fall for various reasons.
But the opposite could also happen, especially since digitalization is accelerating due to the pandemic and people are moving to rural areas. Focus on the present. Right now, you have an income of €2500 (about $2700). You currently have a more or less comfortable living situation.
Increase your income, fully renovate your apartment, and then reassess. A debt of €150,000 (about $160,000) with an extension is not too high given the location. Meanwhile, you can look for an affordable plot of land and possibly buy it directly. But again: in this location, you certainly won’t get a new build with land for less than €700,000 (about $750,000). Personally, I wouldn’t do it.

I would never build new for 700k!! I don’t want to take on that kind of debt.