Are the costs justified?

Hello everyone,

I hope I am asking my questions in the right place.

The first question is whether we have to simply accept the increased costs for the foundation slab without consultation. At first, it was said that 40 cm had to be excavated. After the soil report, it was then 70 cm and during excavation then 92 cm ... without prior notice. The entire foundation slab is now almost 9 thousand euros more expensive than initially offered. It bothers us that we were presented with completed facts.

Then there is the Telekom. The street will be reopened for this connection and of course we are supposed to pay for that as well. The basic connection also costs about 700 euros. The civil engineer who opens the street for Telekom also issues an invoice, but we cannot understand why all this has to be done multiple times and why it cannot be better coordinated.

The surveyor or the architect, we are not exactly sure ... also mismeasured. Our house was planned 37 cm too low ... so it has to be "set" higher ... which means we have to heap up more earth in the garden to maintain the planned ground-level connection to the terrace. Again, costs that were not planned beforehand. Do we have to just accept that as well?

We inquired at our municipal utilities about what applications we need to connect a new build to the supply network. The utilities then sent us applications for electricity and water. Costs are just under 7,000 euros. The week before last we then learned from various neighbors (entire new development) that the drainage must be done by the subsidiary of the municipal utilities. One neighbor had to bear an extra 11,000 euros in addition to the house connections ... the invoice did not come from the subsidiary, but from the municipal utilities. One feels quite ripped off there. For us, that means an additional almost 8,500 euros on top.

Do you have to just accept all this or what should we do? We are currently quite desperate and the cost screw keeps turning and it is not for us to assess whether all this is justified and what else is coming. We thought we had planned well. We also sat with various consultants and friends with building experience ... but at the moment we really feel lost and more financing is looming.

Best regards

Welcome to the forum and the construction madness.

I believe most of it is normal – that is development costs, Telekom €600 flat rate, €7,000 house connections. Regarding the other things, I think that perhaps an experienced planner would have been worthwhile (?) – without knowing the exact details now.

Good evening,

The first question is whether we have to simply accept the increased costs for the base slab without consultation. At first, it was said that 40 cm had to be excavated. After the soil survey, it was then 70 cm and during excavation 92 cm.... without prior information. The entire base slab is now almost 9 thousand euros more expensive than originally offered. It bothers us that we were presented with a fait accompli.

I understand that and it does not reflect well on your temporary construction partner; the additional costs billed are probably covered by the contract.

Then there’s Telekom.

Belongs to typical ancillary construction costs (Baunebenkosten) which in NRW usually amount to around TEUR 40 +/-.

The street will be opened again for this connection and of course we have to pay for that as well. The basic connection also costs about 700 euros. The civil engineer who opens the street for Telekom also sends an invoice, but we don’t understand why all of this has to be done double and triple and can’t be better coordinated.

If the public utilities ever manage to complete all work in one existing open manhole, let me know.

The surveyor or the architect, we are not exactly sure... also mismeasured. Our house was planned 37 cm too low... so it must be "set" higher... which means we have to fill more soil in the garden to maintain the planned level access to the terrace. Again costs that were not planned beforehand. Do we also just have to accept that?

Annoying — but you would have had to pay these costs anyway => Baunebenkosten

You really feel screwed over. For us that means almost another 8,500 euros on top.

If I were you, I would approach the construction partner and ask why they did not give you a reliable overview of ancillary costs => Baunebenkosten

Do we simply have to accept all this or what are we supposed to do?

Yes, and besides TEUR 40 for ancillary costs, consider a buffer or buy turnkey from the developer.

Rhine greetings

Do we just have to accept that?

That depends! The question is what was agreed upon at the beginning. The question is, for example, what exactly "mis-measured" means...

Maybe it helps if you present the particularly unclear/disputed points in a separate thread in a more structured way. In particular, the contractual side of your construction project is also missing. Then one can more easily form an opinion on whether you are being wronged or not.

you would have had to pay the costs anyway

Changes almost always lead to additional costs. Starting from "+37 cm" right from the beginning will presumably be cheaper than first starting from "+0 cm" and then measuring/checking/examining again (costs!) to then raise it to "+37 cm" (appointments, delay, second visit, etc.). Ultimately, the information provided here is, IMHO, by far not sufficient even to remotely reliably assess the situation.

Typical example of being too cheap.... Afterwards I got everything smaller but finer and at the normal price..

I should show the forum to Henrik sometime