ᐅ Semi-detached house, possibly with your own construction company and independent schedule?
Created on: 13 Apr 2012 09:50
J
jensmaHello everyone!
What do you think about the following situation?
We have reserved a semi-detached house plot until the end of April and plan to purchase it in mid-May. The neighbor wants to build with a relatively unknown solid construction house builder recommended by the plot developer, finds their plans completely satisfactory, is already choosing the interior finishes, and wants to start construction as soon as possible, i.e., according to the plan, at the beginning of June, with the goal to move in by the end of the year.
We would like to have enough planning time to carefully design our semi-detached house, thoroughly review the construction and service specifications, and if necessary, build with another, more established builder with more references, possibly even a prefab house company.
Some questions about this:
(1) Do you consider the planned construction start (beginning of June) by the builder realistic? After all, there is still time needed for the building permit / planning permission, right?
(2) How much time would you allow for the construction planning before signing the construction contract?
(3) Do you see any problems if we decide on our semi-detached house to go with a different builder and a different schedule?
I already have some thoughts on the last point:
- When the neighbors move in, our shell should be standing; otherwise, the neighbors would have to insulate the exposed partition wall until our party wall is built.
- It would still be practical to excavate the foundation pit together.
By the way, next week we will meet our future semi-detached house neighbors for the first time.
Best regards
jensma
What do you think about the following situation?
We have reserved a semi-detached house plot until the end of April and plan to purchase it in mid-May. The neighbor wants to build with a relatively unknown solid construction house builder recommended by the plot developer, finds their plans completely satisfactory, is already choosing the interior finishes, and wants to start construction as soon as possible, i.e., according to the plan, at the beginning of June, with the goal to move in by the end of the year.
We would like to have enough planning time to carefully design our semi-detached house, thoroughly review the construction and service specifications, and if necessary, build with another, more established builder with more references, possibly even a prefab house company.
Some questions about this:
(1) Do you consider the planned construction start (beginning of June) by the builder realistic? After all, there is still time needed for the building permit / planning permission, right?
(2) How much time would you allow for the construction planning before signing the construction contract?
(3) Do you see any problems if we decide on our semi-detached house to go with a different builder and a different schedule?
I already have some thoughts on the last point:
- When the neighbors move in, our shell should be standing; otherwise, the neighbors would have to insulate the exposed partition wall until our party wall is built.
- It would still be practical to excavate the foundation pit together.
By the way, next week we will meet our future semi-detached house neighbors for the first time.
Best regards
jensma
B
Bauexperte13 Apr 2012 14:12Hello Jens,
Unconditionally the better choice.
I’d like to see that 🙄
If the neighbor buys in May, the preliminary site plan must first be created. The building application is then based on that, and its approval usually takes between 4 weeks and 3 months, depending on the development plan.
That varies individually. Take as much time as you need and don’t let anyone persuade you otherwise.
No.
Only if the shell structure stands alone over the winter.
If you both want to build basements, yes.
Kind regards
jensma schrieb:
We would like to have enough planning time ...
Unconditionally the better choice.
jensma schrieb:
(1) Do you think the planned start of construction (beginning of June) by the builder is realistic? After all, there is still time needed for the building permit / planning permission, right?
I’d like to see that 🙄
If the neighbor buys in May, the preliminary site plan must first be created. The building application is then based on that, and its approval usually takes between 4 weeks and 3 months, depending on the development plan.
jensma schrieb:
(2) How much time would you take for the construction planning before the building contract can be signed?
That varies individually. Take as much time as you need and don’t let anyone persuade you otherwise.
jensma schrieb:
(3) Do you see any problems if we choose a different builder and follow a different schedule for our semi-detached house?
No.
jensma schrieb:
- When the neighbors move in, our shell structure should be standing; otherwise, the neighbors would have to insulate the exposed party wall until our house wall is built.
Only if the shell structure stands alone over the winter.
jensma schrieb:
- It would practically be easier to excavate the foundation pit together anyway.
If you both want to build basements, yes.
Kind regards
B
Bauexperte17 Apr 2012 09:13Hello,
Where exactly should the advantage come from? What the building owner saves—if you build together with a company—is just the cost for the construction fence and a portable toilet; so not much 😕
Best regards
jensma schrieb:
It would still be interesting to know how big the financial disadvantage is when not building with a company?
Where exactly should the advantage come from? What the building owner saves—if you build together with a company—is just the cost for the construction fence and a portable toilet; so not much 😕
Best regards
B
Bauexperte17 Apr 2012 09:47Hello,
The house as a whole doesn’t change, so neither does the price per square meter/square foot of living space.
You are mistaken if you keep focusing on the word “once.” A large excavation is clear—but that also means more time and effort. If the site doesn’t allow storage of the excavated soil, multiple trips to a landfill are necessary. Overall, the “once” factor is offset by longer or altered workflows. What actually only needs to be done once are the construction fence and the portable toilet.
I am aware that general contractors like to argue with a price advantage; they can do this because they usually speak to non-experts. If the “savings” are about 5,000 euros (approximately $5,400), that is significant; in most cases, the general contractor likely recovers this supposed saving during the construction process 😉
Kind regards
jensma schrieb:
No idea, that’s why I’m asking. I imagine there are savings: only one construction crane, only one concrete mixer, only one excavation, many tasks are faster since they can be done for both semi-detached units at once.
The house as a whole doesn’t change, so neither does the price per square meter/square foot of living space.
You are mistaken if you keep focusing on the word “once.” A large excavation is clear—but that also means more time and effort. If the site doesn’t allow storage of the excavated soil, multiple trips to a landfill are necessary. Overall, the “once” factor is offset by longer or altered workflows. What actually only needs to be done once are the construction fence and the portable toilet.
I am aware that general contractors like to argue with a price advantage; they can do this because they usually speak to non-experts. If the “savings” are about 5,000 euros (approximately $5,400), that is significant; in most cases, the general contractor likely recovers this supposed saving during the construction process 😉
Kind regards
Similar topics