Good evening, dear forum members,
We are planning to build a single-family house with approximately 170m² (1830 sq ft) of living space.
We have already visited several prefabricated house companies and received a few offers for kit houses (shell construction, weather-tight). Now, we are not really sure what to decide.
We want to contribute a significant amount of labor ourselves, as much as possible if feasible. This does not mean we won’t hire professional tradespeople, but we have many skilled friends and family members.
I have read a lot about these topics and often seen that kit houses may not actually be cost-effective, as in the end they tend to cost about the same as a house built by local contractors — and then I wouldn’t even have to do any work myself.
The kit house offer is about €110,000 (around $120,000) for the shell including a 6x9m (20x30 ft) garage. This includes windows, front door, and roof structure with tiles. The construction is a wooden formwork stone kit with 36.5cm (14 inches) thick μ22 blocks for the exterior walls.
I would be interested in your opinion on whether the costs of a conventionally planned house are roughly the same or significantly higher. For now, this question concerns only the shell construction.
Thank you in advance.
We are planning to build a single-family house with approximately 170m² (1830 sq ft) of living space.
We have already visited several prefabricated house companies and received a few offers for kit houses (shell construction, weather-tight). Now, we are not really sure what to decide.
We want to contribute a significant amount of labor ourselves, as much as possible if feasible. This does not mean we won’t hire professional tradespeople, but we have many skilled friends and family members.
I have read a lot about these topics and often seen that kit houses may not actually be cost-effective, as in the end they tend to cost about the same as a house built by local contractors — and then I wouldn’t even have to do any work myself.
The kit house offer is about €110,000 (around $120,000) for the shell including a 6x9m (20x30 ft) garage. This includes windows, front door, and roof structure with tiles. The construction is a wooden formwork stone kit with 36.5cm (14 inches) thick μ22 blocks for the exterior walls.
I would be interested in your opinion on whether the costs of a conventionally planned house are roughly the same or significantly higher. For now, this question concerns only the shell construction.
Thank you in advance.
To be able to compare anything, the information provided is far from sufficient.
What always concerns me, though, are statements like: We have professionals among our friends and family who will help us build.
So they all work for free on a house for you, right? And they always have time, so that a reasonably concrete schedule is not an issue?
What always concerns me, though, are statements like: We have professionals among our friends and family who will help us build.
So they all work for free on a house for you, right? And they always have time, so that a reasonably concrete schedule is not an issue?
What would you consider a reasonably concrete timeline? Time isn't really a "factor" for us since we don’t have a double burden, and if it takes 2–3 months longer, that’s not a big deal.
All our friends and acquaintances are informed, and no one has said anything about expecting something for free.
What other information would be needed?
For now, it's mainly about the shell construction, and I already have a comparative price for the building kit,
All our friends and acquaintances are informed, and no one has said anything about expecting something for free.
What other information would be needed?
For now, it's mainly about the shell construction, and I already have a comparative price for the building kit,
[Double load, and if it takes 2-3 months longer, that’s not a big deal.
All friends and acquaintances are informed, and no one here is doing anything for free.]
You can expect 2-3 months if you build with a general contractor... if you do it yourself, I would add 9 to 12 months—just a gut feeling!
Who is responsible for the organizational planning? Who arranges material deliveries? Can “friend Lars” prepare the electrical work in 3 days within 2 weeks, so that “friend Hannes” can start plastering (assuming he’s not on a fishing vacation or dealing with back pain)? What happens if Lars is stressed and can’t do it—what does Hannes do without the electrical work?
Zacharias promised very different things, but he is currently unreachable (he promised another friend...). That can easily turn one year into 18 months, but then with different construction costs because the plan was originally different…
From the way this sounds, the construction of the house will progress, just somewhat slower.
And nobody does anything for free, so what exactly is being saved? You can do painting and small jobs yourself with family—that’s exhausting enough—and then you’ll need a break. Let the professionals handle the important parts—that’s my advice!
All friends and acquaintances are informed, and no one here is doing anything for free.]
You can expect 2-3 months if you build with a general contractor... if you do it yourself, I would add 9 to 12 months—just a gut feeling!
Who is responsible for the organizational planning? Who arranges material deliveries? Can “friend Lars” prepare the electrical work in 3 days within 2 weeks, so that “friend Hannes” can start plastering (assuming he’s not on a fishing vacation or dealing with back pain)? What happens if Lars is stressed and can’t do it—what does Hannes do without the electrical work?
Zacharias promised very different things, but he is currently unreachable (he promised another friend...). That can easily turn one year into 18 months, but then with different construction costs because the plan was originally different…
From the way this sounds, the construction of the house will progress, just somewhat slower.
And nobody does anything for free, so what exactly is being saved? You can do painting and small jobs yourself with family—that’s exhausting enough—and then you’ll need a break. Let the professionals handle the important parts—that’s my advice!
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