ᐅ Stopping or pausing a home construction project? Costs too high
Created on: 23 Nov 2021 12:06
C
Coffee82
Good morning,
My husband and I want to build a house.
We already have the plot of land. We are now facing an unpleasant situation.
We planned the house roughly with an architect, which went very quickly.
No building permit / planning permission has been applied for yet, and no detailed execution plan has been made.
The architect provided a cost estimate that surprised us a lot.
Of course, we had previously asked acquaintances, friends, and family members about the costs of their construction projects.
Obviously, we only considered recent projects.
The architect’s estimate is more than double what we initially expected—around 4500-5000€/sqm (420-465 USD/sqft).
After this, we consulted a few others locally and two from a bit further away. Everyone seems to agree on the construction costs.
I’m not allowed to share the documents here, but there is really nothing unusual. It’s a KW40+ house with 198 sqm (2132 sqft) of living and usable space, plus a double garage attached to the left side of the house. Of course, no basement.
The specifications given to the architect were average and typical. No marble floors, no smart home features. A simple house like my uncle’s, just new.
It looks like the house will cost around 1 million euros. On top of that, of course, there are additional costs such as fees for the architect, landscaping, etc. Together with the land, the total is so high that we neither can finance it nor afford to pay it.
Unfortunately, the architect had to do quite some work before he could estimate the costs.
Now we are worried that if we cancel the project, the architect will want 15,000 to 20,000 euros for the work he has already done.
What would you do in our place?
Best regards,
Coffee82
My husband and I want to build a house.
We already have the plot of land. We are now facing an unpleasant situation.
We planned the house roughly with an architect, which went very quickly.
No building permit / planning permission has been applied for yet, and no detailed execution plan has been made.
The architect provided a cost estimate that surprised us a lot.
Of course, we had previously asked acquaintances, friends, and family members about the costs of their construction projects.
Obviously, we only considered recent projects.
The architect’s estimate is more than double what we initially expected—around 4500-5000€/sqm (420-465 USD/sqft).
After this, we consulted a few others locally and two from a bit further away. Everyone seems to agree on the construction costs.
I’m not allowed to share the documents here, but there is really nothing unusual. It’s a KW40+ house with 198 sqm (2132 sqft) of living and usable space, plus a double garage attached to the left side of the house. Of course, no basement.
The specifications given to the architect were average and typical. No marble floors, no smart home features. A simple house like my uncle’s, just new.
It looks like the house will cost around 1 million euros. On top of that, of course, there are additional costs such as fees for the architect, landscaping, etc. Together with the land, the total is so high that we neither can finance it nor afford to pay it.
Unfortunately, the architect had to do quite some work before he could estimate the costs.
Now we are worried that if we cancel the project, the architect will want 15,000 to 20,000 euros for the work he has already done.
What would you do in our place?
Best regards,
Coffee82
O
Oetzberger23 Nov 2021 14:43The question here, if I remember correctly, is whether you prefer to have a house built at a barely manageable price, or if you should better abandon the project altogether. You are setting remarkable priorities. In this situation, I would go to the nearest prefabricated house builder and ask for standard floor plans. But you are welcome to gain your own experience; with some persistence, you will find the right provider for your needs. I sincerely wish you the best of luck and success.
Oetzberger schrieb:
The question here, if I remember correctly, is whether you prefer to have a house built at a barely manageable price, or if it would be better to abandon the project altogether. The issue is why it’s so expensive.
It turns out you have to beg for appointments.
Because everyone is so busy, the price is overestimated. They don’t want new clients right now.
If the costs can’t be clarified, we will probably put the project on hold.
That would be extremely frustrating, especially if the architect then demands 20,000 for their work.
Of course, we understand that they worked and no one should work for free. But if they say they spent that many hours on it, then that’s the case. If we cancel the project, they won’t have any reason to be accommodating.
For us, it’s just unfortunate. Nothing built and the architect paid.
Mycraft schrieb:
Why not just build a passive house from the start?Good question why not, if yes
M
Myrna_Loy23 Nov 2021 15:00Coffee82 schrieb:
The question is, why is it so expensive?
It turns out you have to beg for appointments.
Because they are all very busy, the price is overestimated. They don’t want new clients at the moment.
If the costs can’t be resolved, we will probably drop the project.
It would be extremely frustrating if the architect then demands 20,000 for his work.
Of course, we understand he has worked and no one should work for free. But if he says he has spent that many hours, then that’s that. If we cancel the project, he has no reason to be lenient.
For us, it’s just unfortunate. Nothing built and the architect paid. Without knowing your plans, it’s really impossible to say. Depending on the building volume, window layout and size, terrain slope, ground structure, local regulations, and features (outdoor pool? sunroom?), that could be a defensive quote or realistic.
Y
Ypsi aus NI23 Nov 2021 15:04Coffee82 schrieb:
We want to build in Gifhorn. It's located near Wolfsburg.
It has already been attempted. Who have you spoken with so far?Similar topics