Hello,
I had some bad luck during an old building renovation, and on top of that, more misfortune.
So, here’s a brief summary (yes, a pun) of the situation:
Now the decision has to be made whether to:
Of course, I have to decide this myself, but any help (practical or advice) is welcome. Maybe someone can contribute practical input on a specific aspect.
Or does anyone have experience with any of these options...
In short: I’m at a loss and need help.
I had some bad luck during an old building renovation, and on top of that, more misfortune.
So, here’s a brief summary (yes, a pun) of the situation:
- House from 1909
- 3 residential units, one or two to be owner-occupied, one will be rented out
- approximately 280 m² (3000 sq ft) of living space in total
- 800 m² (8600 sq ft) plot size
- the rented apartment is not affected by the renovation
- no loans taken out so far
- major renovation planned, including partial age-appropriate remodeling
- heating boiler burst just before purchase, which actually turned out well because it led to a big discount; now a gas condensing boiler has been installed
- however, the contractor botched the installation: the stainless steel combustion chamber is now corroded on the outside due to sulfur-containing condensate running down the outside
- the same contractor (company) also acted as energy consultant and construction supervisor and was supposed to handle electrical work as well as heating and plumbing
- he started the work
- then unfortunately stopped and has been unreachable for months (for me and other trades such as drywall installers), but is still active on other sites. He does not respond to texts, calls, letters, or registered mail. A delivery certificate is now on the way.
- the insulation he planned was poorly executed
- the electrical installation is incomplete (and unlabeled, so someone else would first have to measure everything)
- the gas boiler is corroded, as mentioned above
- the work was performed in a completely different order than planned and agreed upon
- no invoices have been issued yet for work and materials done… materials are still on site
- the claim that he was a KfW-listed energy consultant turned out to be false; he was listed once, yes, but did not renew and is no longer on the list
- therefore, no KfW funding for individual energy efficiency measures is possible
- why didn’t I intervene earlier: mainly because I was away for work – and I live alone, so no one else could keep an eye on things
- so now there is an unfinished construction site standing there
- this makes it difficult to find other tradespeople
- rejections due to unclear liability
- allegedly completely overloaded tradespeople
- lack of detailed bill of quantities – well, that’s true, but it’s also a difficult situation right now
- so I hired an expert for evidence documentation
- the expert is taking forever
- the report produced is totally unusable
- the expert refuses to revise it
- allegedly, he could not write more due to missing documents – but he also did not request or point out these missing items
- in the reply letter to the complaint (only after the third attempt and threat of legal action was a response received) there suddenly are many more details (without further inspection or questions), and a risk of explosion is suddenly mentioned, which was not noted in the report itself
- further steps unclear
- an architect from the KfW energy efficiency consultant list was hired for further construction supervision
- numerous new quotes obtained, nearly all highly overpriced
- the architect calculated high remediation costs for the above-mentioned damages
- next steps unclear
- several thousand euros worth of KfW funding (individual measures) lost due to no timely application
- funding for several other measures still possible
- subsidized loan for age-appropriate remodeling still possible
- hidden damages discovered during construction halt
- damages to load-bearing timber frame elements
- boring holes covered over with some kind of bitumen paint
- severe rot spots covered with bitumen paint
- rot spots filled with mortar
- expert inspected site; next meeting with master carpenter pending
- repair costs unclear
- next steps unclear
- asbestos-containing protective panels found on one gable of the house
- of course, not mentioned in the purchase contract
- cost and procedure for removal unclear
- next steps unclear
- currently, because of all the unresolved points, I have lost track of the total costs
- this makes negotiations with the bank difficult, as financing is now necessary
Now the decision has to be made whether to:
- pursue legal action aiming to reverse the contract
- pursue legal action aiming for a price reduction
- “forget it” – accept the damage and sell the house as a tear-down/project house (land value)
- rent out the second apartment after all – but then face legal disadvantages because two units are rented out
- only partially renovate, leave the rest as a construction site, possibly find someone to renovate by themselves (supply materials, no rent, but labor in return)
Of course, I have to decide this myself, but any help (practical or advice) is welcome. Maybe someone can contribute practical input on a specific aspect.
Or does anyone have experience with any of these options...
In short: I’m at a loss and need help.
B
Bauexperte23 Sep 2014 13:41Hello,
my answer might not be what you want to hear….
I would first wait for the evidence preservation process to conclude, if it is not already finalized. Based on that, decide whether another, this time proper renovation is financially feasible; you already have some quoted figures. At the same time, invest money in a lawyer (must have solid knowledge in contract and construction law) and discuss the case with them to get professional advice regarding the next steps … with all pros and cons.
Only once you know all advantages and disadvantages can you decide whether it makes sense to pour good money after bad, or if it is even cheaper to swallow the loss (money wasted unnecessarily), chalk it up to life experience, and sell the shell as is for the best possible price. Either way, there will not be a financially viable solution without further investment!
Best regards,
Bauexperte
my answer might not be what you want to hear….
BOFH42 schrieb:No offense, but your entire post reads as if you always chose the path of least resistance and used your work-related stress as an excuse. Now that the situation has gotten serious, suddenly you have time to post here? I don’t really understand that, especially since the planned renovation – even if the original property was probably very cheap to buy – was certainly anything but easy to handle; it would have required competent expertise and not just focusing on the price in the bottom right corner or the nice words of the so-called site manager in your ears 😕
I had bad luck with an old building renovation, and then misfortune on top of that.
BOFH42 schrieb:With an architect involved?
Major renovation planned, partially age-appropriate conversion planned.
BOFH42 schrieb:That reinforces my suspicion about all the pretty talk....
The heating boiler burst even before purchase, which was actually quite good, resulting in a large discount. Now there is a gas condensing boiler installed. However, the tradesman botched the installation: meanwhile the stainless steel combustion chamber is corroded on the outside due to sulfur-containing condensate running along it.
BOFH42 schrieb:Honestly now – what made you hire a plumber (probably with an evening course to become an "energy consultant") as the site manager? Or is it even worse and he is a friend/relative/acquaintance?
The same tradesman (company) also acted as energy consultant and building supervisor.
BOFH42 schrieb:Consider that done!
He started but unfortunately stopped and has not been reachable for months (neither by me nor the other trades, e.g. drywallers), but he is still active on other construction sites. Doesn’t respond to texts, calls, letters, or registered mail. Now a postal delivery certificate is on the way.
BOFH42 schrieb:No, not really, once the evidence preservation process is completed. Until then, you will have to wait.
This is making it difficult to find other tradespeople.
Cancellations due to unclear liability.
Allegedly completely overloaded.
Lack of detailed bill of quantities – well, that’s true, but currently difficult.
BOFH42 schrieb:You really don’t have much luck with service providers 🙄
So, got an expert for evidence preservation.
Expert is taking forever.
Report produced is completely unusable.
Expert refuses to revise.
Allegedly couldn’t continue due to missing documents – but didn’t request anything or point it out.
In the response letter to the complaint (only after the third attempt and threat of legal action did a reply come) suddenly many more details appear (without further inspection or questions), and suddenly there is talk of an explosion hazard, which is not mentioned at all in the report.
BOFH42 schrieb:I think the prices for the various trades are finally correct, of course adjusted by a factor “correcting for poor previous work”.
Architect from the KfW energy efficiency consultant list with further construction supervision commissioned.
Got a lot of new quotes, almost all significantly overpriced.
Architect calculated high remediation costs for the above-mentioned damages.
BOFH42 schrieb:You have no one to blame but yourself. You ARE responsible for the applications and that they are submitted on time!
Lost several thousand euros in KfW funding (individual measures) due to missing timely application.
Further funding for some measures still possible.
Discounted loan for age-appropriate renovation still possible.
BOFH42 schrieb:Hidden defects exist only as a colloquial term. Either they were fraudulently concealed or they are simply defects that would have been revealed with proper site supervision.
During the construction stop, hidden damages were discovered [...]
BOFH42 schrieb:You need to internalize this: in legal disputes, only one party wins, and that’s the lawyer; actually twice, because most of the time a settlement is reached to avoid the huge additional costs of further appeals.
Basically now need to decide whether to
Obviously, I have to decide this myself, but any help (practical or good advice) is welcome. Maybe someone can contribute something practical on one of these points.
- pursue legal action aiming to unwind the contract
- pursue legal action aiming for a price reduction
- “forget it” – accept the loss and sell it as a fixer-upper/tear-down (land value)
- rent out the second dwelling – but then face legal disadvantages because two units are rented
- partially renovate, leave remainder as a building site, possibly find someone to renovate by themselves (provide materials but no rent, only labor)
I would first wait for the evidence preservation process to conclude, if it is not already finalized. Based on that, decide whether another, this time proper renovation is financially feasible; you already have some quoted figures. At the same time, invest money in a lawyer (must have solid knowledge in contract and construction law) and discuss the case with them to get professional advice regarding the next steps … with all pros and cons.
Only once you know all advantages and disadvantages can you decide whether it makes sense to pour good money after bad, or if it is even cheaper to swallow the loss (money wasted unnecessarily), chalk it up to life experience, and sell the shell as is for the best possible price. Either way, there will not be a financially viable solution without further investment!
Best regards,
Bauexperte
BOFH42 schrieb:
Good idea, tell that to my employer...I kind of expected that response....
You might want to consider the following trade-off:
Either
ask your employer if they would allow you to take a leave of absence for 6 to 9 months or if you could reduce your working hours to about 15 hours per week, which would mean a loss of roughly 10,000 to 20,000 EUR (about 10,800 to 21,600 USD) in net income. Only by doing this will you have time to follow the approach suggested by Bauexperte.
Or
risk letting the construction site run completely unmonitored, which could lead to damages in the six-figure range, possibly permanent.
I don’t envy your situation!