Assessment of total costs for new single-family house construction

The annoying thing is that now you have to pay for many things that you have to live with for the next 20 years or even for life. Normally, you don’t replace a staircase in your lifetime, the roof will probably outlast you, and with good care the kitchen will last 15-20 years (with the replacement of some appliances). It goes the same way with doors/windows/plumbing, etc. and you want to save money during the best years of your life?

As with so many other things, there is a habituation effect. Also with income, for example. You might be happy about 200 EUR more net at first, but after a few months the new net salary becomes the psychological anchor point. It’s the same with bathroom fixtures, interior doors, etc.

A few years ago, I moved out of my parents' house into an old apartment building, and for me, the doors in my parents’ house as well as the bathroom ceramics were just standard until then. Now in the old building, interior doors naturally look quite different, but unfortunately the bathroom ceramics (renovated xx years ago) are no longer quite up to current standards. And suddenly I got used to it, and the interior doors in my parents' house seem like strange cardboard boxes during visits, while I keep being amazed by the great bathroom ceramics.

So, first and foremost, pay attention to functionality (interior doors: sound insulation, turn locks in bathroom and toilet, the general color and combination with floor, wall, and furniture; bathroom ceramics e.g. whether the tub drain is in the middle or at the edge or the size of the shower – but not with the motto “what looks cool,” but what I need for comfort reasons) and you get used to the tactile feel and appearance quite quickly, as long as it doesn’t deviate too much from the new construction standard.

Sorry , but what you are describing is called operational blindness to one's own little world

So, exceptionally, I have to somehow agree with Grym - you do get used to many things without losing your zest for life every time you go to the bathroom because it’s not the latest wood look. I feel sorry for people who grumble all day because they don’t have the new Nolte kitchen or the BMW 5 Series GT parked in front of the house.

Of course you get used to many things. But if you build as a normal person, you probably do it only once, at least only once in your "best" years. And then you want to give up such great things for which you are actually building? If I take a house directly from the construction company as they offer it, you might end up living worse than before as a tenant. Even obvious things are missing in upscale equipment, which you will never, ever get included without additional costs in the trades. I really know thrifty people who built, they gave up a lot and still had €10,000 extra costs for the trades. Whoever calculates this nicely here will end up bitterly disappointed.

... I really know thrifty people in construction who really gave up a lot and still had €10,000 extra costs for the trades.

It always depends on who is chosen as the temporary construction partner. If the number in the lower right is the be-all and end-all, your statement is certainly correct. If it is a construction partner who already offers many of these "nice to have" items in the standard, the situation looks quite different. However, in my experience, the majority of additional purchases are made in the electrical trade; at the end of the day, quite ugly numbers can appear there. Rhineland greetings

if I take a house directly from the construction company as they offer it, you might end up living worse than before as a tenant. There are also obvious things missing in upscale fittings that you will never, ever get through without additional costs for the trades.

Tell me, what all is missing...