ᐅ Prefabricated House or Traditional Solid Construction Companies – Budget
Created on: 13 May 2020 12:56
C
Cary2020
Hello everyone. As you can see, I am new here and looking for advice. We are 25 and 27 years old, both employed, and our monthly net income is 3100 € (approximately $3,400). We have no equity saved up (we are already aware of the risks). Now, by coincidence, we have found a plot of land. It’s the only one in the area that meets our expectations (small, no more than 500 m² (6000 sq ft)). It was more or less a “random find.” Although we had agreed that we wanted to build a house someday, we hadn’t expected it to happen so soon. We want to build at the edge of the Harz mountains, in Lower Saxony. That’s the basic info.
Over the past few days, we have spent a lot of time researching the topic but have not reached any concrete conclusions yet. We have had initial phone appointments with banks; even without equity, it’s not impossible, and some very reputable, well-known banks were involved. We have further appointments with first companies and additional banks planned for next week. However, I would also like to connect with “regular” homeowners to get realistic assessments because we probably belong to this group ourselves.
Does anyone have experience with building a house at our income level? Is it feasible not only on paper but also in reality?
Then the big question arises: do we want a traditional solid house (brick and mortar) or a prefab house? Twenty years ago, when my parents built their home, prefab houses had a bad reputation. Nowadays, that seems to have improved significantly. Basically, we are still undecided. We see major advantages with prefab houses in the absence of moisture problems, clearly the price (is that really the case?), and according to experience reports, there is less shoddy workmanship. I’m hoping to learn from your experiences here.
The last point, of course, will be contacting companies. I am a bit hesitant about regional developers and would prefer to get in touch with larger firms like Viebrockhaus (probably quite expensive), Massa Haus, Arge, etc. Here too, I hope to have an initial exchange with you.
As you can see, we are just starting out and would like to bring some orientation to our confusion of thoughts. Thanks in advance for your help.
Over the past few days, we have spent a lot of time researching the topic but have not reached any concrete conclusions yet. We have had initial phone appointments with banks; even without equity, it’s not impossible, and some very reputable, well-known banks were involved. We have further appointments with first companies and additional banks planned for next week. However, I would also like to connect with “regular” homeowners to get realistic assessments because we probably belong to this group ourselves.
Does anyone have experience with building a house at our income level? Is it feasible not only on paper but also in reality?
Then the big question arises: do we want a traditional solid house (brick and mortar) or a prefab house? Twenty years ago, when my parents built their home, prefab houses had a bad reputation. Nowadays, that seems to have improved significantly. Basically, we are still undecided. We see major advantages with prefab houses in the absence of moisture problems, clearly the price (is that really the case?), and according to experience reports, there is less shoddy workmanship. I’m hoping to learn from your experiences here.
The last point, of course, will be contacting companies. I am a bit hesitant about regional developers and would prefer to get in touch with larger firms like Viebrockhaus (probably quite expensive), Massa Haus, Arge, etc. Here too, I hope to have an initial exchange with you.
As you can see, we are just starting out and would like to bring some orientation to our confusion of thoughts. Thanks in advance for your help.
A
Alessandro15 May 2020 08:35@Zaba12:
However, the TEs apparently are not standard. Also, it’s reasonable to assume that their income increases regularly. If they are career starters at this age, you can almost assume that both have a university degree.
Personally, I would never want to repay such an amount with such a low income, but I also don’t want to drive a basic car or spend my annual vacation in the Eifel region.
That’s why I wrote that it really depends on spending habits, and apparently the TEs here differ significantly from the norm.
Maybe that’s also why it’s hard for many (including me) to imagine…
However, the TEs apparently are not standard. Also, it’s reasonable to assume that their income increases regularly. If they are career starters at this age, you can almost assume that both have a university degree.
Personally, I would never want to repay such an amount with such a low income, but I also don’t want to drive a basic car or spend my annual vacation in the Eifel region.
That’s why I wrote that it really depends on spending habits, and apparently the TEs here differ significantly from the norm.
Maybe that’s also why it’s hard for many (including me) to imagine…
A
Alessandro15 May 2020 11:13No, but for career starters. I almost assume they have studied unless they spent years backpacking around the world. However, this is only my speculation, of course.
To avoid leaving abruptly without a proper farewell, here is one final word. Over the past few days, I have been reading more than doing anything else. Still, most of what you find here are mostly "experiences" or "speculations." Very few threads actually state: a masonry house cost X amount, a prefab house cost Y amount. Instead, it’s mostly about what could have been or might be. Also, because every homebuilder has different expectations, a direct comparison is very difficult, which is why I asked here specifically for a direct comparison.
I never claimed that we can professionally install an entire roof ourselves. What I meant was that our monthly financial buffer afterward might be smaller because we can repair almost everything ourselves. The houses in my family haven’t seen a tradesperson for years.
Regarding consumption habits: very modest. We don’t take vacations, and no, we don’t miss out on anything. Since my youth, my goal has been to own my own house, and my priorities are clear. My car is 21 years old, cost €4000 (about $4400) seven years ago, and is maintained exclusively by me. I would buy an older car in this price range again at any time. My mobile phone is three years old. I never cared for brand-name clothes; special items are nice for birthdays, and if that’s not possible, a sweater from H&M will do. I find it hard to understand how you live, but I know how I live and where my priorities lie. I simply grew up knowing no (what may seem to you normal) “luxury life” with the newest cars, the latest phone models, extensive annual vacations, and Adidas head-to-toe clothing. Instead, I’m familiar with a life among sand and mud piles, gravel heaps, knowing how to help myself, and living with family support—where the garage wasn’t built by outside contractors but with the whole family pitching in. And imagine this: we all survived without suffocating from envy over the neighbor’s car or holiday.
I studied, but I probably work in a position “lower” than I might be qualified for due to where I live. With a one- to one-and-a-half-hour commute, I could have a higher salary. But it simply wouldn’t be worthwhile with fuel and maintenance costs. My partner didn’t study but had to catch up on basics like getting a driver’s license and buying a car (also 20 years old) from the income of his first few years at work—things I practically inherited from my parents.
In summary, just imagine us as the small craftsman family next door from 20 years ago. Something like that.
I never claimed that we can professionally install an entire roof ourselves. What I meant was that our monthly financial buffer afterward might be smaller because we can repair almost everything ourselves. The houses in my family haven’t seen a tradesperson for years.
Regarding consumption habits: very modest. We don’t take vacations, and no, we don’t miss out on anything. Since my youth, my goal has been to own my own house, and my priorities are clear. My car is 21 years old, cost €4000 (about $4400) seven years ago, and is maintained exclusively by me. I would buy an older car in this price range again at any time. My mobile phone is three years old. I never cared for brand-name clothes; special items are nice for birthdays, and if that’s not possible, a sweater from H&M will do. I find it hard to understand how you live, but I know how I live and where my priorities lie. I simply grew up knowing no (what may seem to you normal) “luxury life” with the newest cars, the latest phone models, extensive annual vacations, and Adidas head-to-toe clothing. Instead, I’m familiar with a life among sand and mud piles, gravel heaps, knowing how to help myself, and living with family support—where the garage wasn’t built by outside contractors but with the whole family pitching in. And imagine this: we all survived without suffocating from envy over the neighbor’s car or holiday.
I studied, but I probably work in a position “lower” than I might be qualified for due to where I live. With a one- to one-and-a-half-hour commute, I could have a higher salary. But it simply wouldn’t be worthwhile with fuel and maintenance costs. My partner didn’t study but had to catch up on basics like getting a driver’s license and buying a car (also 20 years old) from the income of his first few years at work—things I practically inherited from my parents.
In summary, just imagine us as the small craftsman family next door from 20 years ago. Something like that.
saralina87 schrieb:
I never doubted that and feel the same way. But it’s a decision everyone has to make for themselves. I’m not sitting on a high horse. I find that accusation more than offensive. We haven’t inherited anything and have worked for everything.
Just because we don’t consume to the maximum of our means or take on debt?
We know what it’s like to face unemployment, months of short-time work benefits, or illness. It’s nothing unusual, and the economic boom of recent years is over.
Especially with a single earner household, everything falls apart if income is reduced to about 60% for several months.
Cary2020 schrieb:
To avoid leaving on an "impolite" note, here’s one last word. Over the past few days, I’ve read more than I’ve done anything else. Still, most of what you find here are “experiences” or “speculations.” Very few threads actually state: A masonry house cost amount X, a prefab house amount Y. Instead, it’s always about what could, would, or might be. Also, because of the different expectations of homebuilders, a direct comparison is very difficult, which is why I asked here for a direct comparison.
I never claimed that we can professionally roof an entire house ourselves. What I meant was that the leftover monthly financial cushion might be smaller since we can repair almost everything ourselves. The houses in my family haven’t had any tradespeople involved for years.
Regarding consumption habits: very modest. We don’t take vacations, and no, we don’t miss anything. Since I was young, my goal has been to own a house, and my priorities are clear. My car is 21 years old, cost €4000 (about $4400) seven years ago, and is maintained exclusively by myself. I would buy a similar older car in that price range any time again. My phone is three years old. I generally don’t care for brand-name clothes; we might wish for specific items on birthdays, but if that’s not possible, a sweater from H&M works just fine. It’s hard for me to understand how you all live, but I know how I live and where my priorities lie. I simply grew up without what might be considered a “normal” or, for me, “luxury” lifestyle: the latest cars, the newest phone model, long annual holidays, and head-to-toe Adidas clothing. Instead, I know life in sand and mud piles, gravel heaps, how to manage on my own, and a life where family support is key — where strangers didn’t build the garage but the whole family pitched in. And believe it or not: we all survived without drowning in jealousy over the neighbor’s car or vacation.
I studied, but I probably work at a “lower” level than I might be capable of because of where I live. A one-to-one-and-a-half-hour commute would put more on my paycheck, but it wouldn’t pay off after factoring in fuel and maintenance costs. My boyfriend didn’t study but had to use his first years’ salary to pay for his driver’s license, a car purchase (also 20 years old), and other basics, which I more or less grew up with.
In summary, just imagine us as the small family of tradespeople next door from about 20 years ago. Something like that.I already told you once: try a small company nearby. The wall structure doesn’t matter. Look for good reputation and flexibility with tradespeople from your “affordable area.”