400k house estimated - became a 470k house / an experience report

That does not say the opposite at all!
You can also feed the Excel with additional costs for desired special expenses or higher-quality materials.

For example: 100 sqm laminate: 2,500,- vs. 100 sqm parquet: 6,000,-

This way, you can see in the end where the budget goes and what you can afford and what you have to cut.
But nobody planning to build a house should have to be told that. It has to be at the top of the to-do list!
The OP would also not have decided on KNX without knowing in advance what a hole it would tear in the budget

That’s exactly where I’m not so sure. I agree with you. If it’s firmly planned in advance and you say: okay, I want more in the electrical area, I’m adding 30k.
But for a lot of people it will be: oh cool, turn-key. So in the end a bit of laminate and some painting. I can manage that. And suddenly, it starts. During the itemization it is then found that there is a 30 cm high shower tray instead of a barrier-free one. Oh, there are no sockets behind the TV at all. What, LAN is not standard? But we want all of that.
You keep seeing these topics pop up here. The description of construction services is almost a foreign word. 30 cm floor exchange is included, right?

yes, I agree with you there. But some people also approach the matter very, very naively and with rose-colored glasses. I always think that the people who take the trouble to ask for tips and budget here are also the ones who make a proper cost breakdown. Especially in times of the internet, you can really access all the necessary information and comparisons quickly. I wonder how people used to do that back in the day :-P

Hi,

I really didn’t expect such a great response. But I’m glad this post helps some people, and it’s legitimate to question a lot of things here.

I’ll try to answer all your questions.
First, our cost estimate and the current status. Of course, we obtained some quotes beforehand, but we know the craftsmen in the area and their reputations, and we partially only approached THIS ONE carpenter, heating engineer, etc. – due to their good reputation.

I’ve put together an Excel list with the data that was estimated and then became more expensive. Unfortunately, we didn’t note the reasons – mostly due to extras or small details missing/not clear in the architect’s specifications, which required more working hours/higher-quality materials or other challenges.

We heat with a wood chip heating system. – This is also a point. Since our parents-in-law already have a wood chip heating system, we get it from them via district heating. (They live diagonally opposite.) We have already planned connections as well as a drop shaft for the wood chips (in case we ever need one for some reason (dispute, wood chip heating broken, etc.) but could therefore completely omit a wood chip heating system (whose offers start at around €20,000) in the calculation. Yes, we also own forest, otherwise, this would be little profitable.

So we have 2 floors, we are basically fully basemented and then have a ground floor on top. Because we built into the slope, there are 2 rooms without daylight that we use as a basement or technical room, but they are insulated just like the rest of the house.

Many commented on the word "modest." Maybe it really wasn’t the right word. I just wanted to express that we currently have a net income of 5k and practically only spend 2k per month (including rent, groceries, insurance, utilities, hobbies, leisure, and vacation). We have always saved the rest for the wedding or also for the house. is exactly right: The question “do I need this?” was often answered with No in the past, but suddenly we could no longer manage it. Too often came the thought: “Retrofitting or buying later is more expensive, cheap buying means buying twice,” or also, “Whatever, we’ll treat ourselves now.”

Unfortunately, I still wouldn’t know where I should have saved. It’s still a healthy financing. I just thought there would be something left over from the equity for a new electric car (the high-voltage cable is of course already planned), or we had arranged with the bank that we could repay up to €50,000! without costs, which of course reduces the amount. That nothing is left over from that and that we can only just make a little special repayment this year.

Trades House ancillary costs House connection Demolition Shell construction Partition walls Balcony sealing Screed Facade Shell construction	Estimate €40,000.00 €5,000.00 €9,016.00 €91,000.00 €11,295.00 €4,500.00 €6,500.00 €14,127.00 €141,438.00	Current status €30,500.00 €1,500.00 €9,016.00 €97,541.78 €8,632.32 €4,479.31 €6,560.00 €14,127.00 €141,856.41
Roof Windows + front door Basic house Heating + Sanitary incl. ventilation system Stove Bathroom fixtures Photovoltaic Heating + sanitary	€30,000.00 €25,000.00 €55,000.00 €29,000.00 €13,624.30 €20,000.00 €13,403.22 €76,027.52	€41,169.00 €30,240.00 €71,409.00 €35,980.00 €13,833.86 €11,200.00 €13,293.22 €74,307.08
Floor Painting + plaster Doors Stairs Electrical Interior finishing	€13,570.00 €22,000.00 €5,000.00 €5,000.00 €18,000.00 €63,570.00	€15,800.00 €26,677.93 €2,244.99 €11,952.96 €25,646.73 €82,322.61
Lamps + Sonos systems Furnishing Kitchen Furnishing Carport and outdoor facilities Total	€3,000.00 €19,000.00 €22,000.00 €20,000.00 €418,035.52	€12,371.00 €7,920.96 €14,782.88 €35,074.84 €40,000.00 €475,469.94
I just copied it out of an Excel sheet – the right column is not yet the final status. The outdoor facilities + exterior plaster are only estimates or based on quotes.	Important: no heating is included in the price. The electrical part only includes materials as own contribution.

Thank you very much for this breakdown - it is really very interesting! I just don't understand the item [Heizung + Sanitär], there are two of them (29,000 and 76,000).

Why does a driveway have to be paved? Can't it also be nicer Rhine gravel?

That made me smile, better to pave than gravel if you don't want your driveway to look like the Garden of Horror. Down here in the south, they are even starting to demonize cherry laurel now—I just read that yesterday on the NABU page; thuja are already demonized.

Thank you very much for this overview - it is really very interesting! I just don't understand the item Heating + Sanitary, it appears twice (29,000 and 76,000).

The formatting seems to have gotten messed up. Subtotals are also mentioned.