Assessment of whether house construction and loan installment are realistic or not?

Great equity, great salary! There’s a lot possible, even if leisure time and clothing are missing from the living expenses. However: Who comes up with the idea that a 180 sqm house nowadays only costs so much that with incidental building costs, flooring, and outdoor facilities (carport/garage, terrace/driveway, garden, etc.) you end up with €50,000? The milkmaid’s calculation: House €550,000 Incidental building costs (NDS) €50,000 Garden landscaper €50,000 Kitchen and carport €50,000 Lamps, lawnmower, and mailbox can be paid from ongoing salaries. It’s quite general, but very often it fits quite well. You can do a lot yourself, but with a lucrative side job you should rather spend your time differently than putting up fences ;) And you shouldn’t count on acquaintances at all. They also have to be paid. The acquaintance bonus ends anyway when a weekend has to be sacrificed. The friend bonus is probably when friend companies put you as an employer on the schedule.

You can assume all that, but for many it can also be done significantly cheaper. Not everyone has a lucrative side job, but can contribute a lot of personal effort. Many things in house building don’t require extensive training (and I don’t want to belittle the craft services here, but some things are preparatory work and some can be learned with a bit of skill). And some also have friends and acquaintances who actually sacrifice their free time. Still common in rural areas today. Kitchen and carport can cost €50,000, but it can also be done much cheaper. Likewise garden and landscaping. Much can be done by oneself and cheaper if desired (depending on the property, securing a slope rather not, but in flat terrain you can do a lot yourself). As you say, it’s general, fitting for some, not for others. But if the OP thinks he has friends and relatives who help, you can take it like that.

I fully agree with you... Just as it sounds with the OP, he is completely open to enormous savings efforts. Setting €550k for the house I don’t find wrong... That already includes some upgrades, which will definitely come. Kitchen and carport for €50k... That’s a hefty sum — it can definitely be done much cheaper! The same applies to outdoor facilities... I wonder how people nowadays come up with €50k? We ended up at €30k and basically had everything done to our fullest satisfaction... No idea if the terrace will be gold-plated? With some personal effort and a bit of craftsmanship (in my opinion necessary in the long run anyway as a homeowner… Building the house comes in handy exactly to learn this), you can still save some bucks. In my opinion, the OP’s estimate isn’t far off.

Kitchen and carport for 50k... That’s quite a sum – it can definitely be done much cheaper!

Sure – but is that what you want?

The same applies to outdoor facilities... I wonder how people nowadays come up with 50k?

1. Especially nowadays, it can add up quickly 2. 50k euros is not that much. It goes terribly fast. Wooden terrace 70 sqm for the first 15k euros. Paving the driveway 15k euros including substructure. Landscaping 5k euros including topsoil. Putting up a fence 5k euros. Laying turf 5k euros. Trees, shrubs, flowers with flowerbeds done for 20k euros. Installing garden irrigation 10k euros. Doing electricity and lamps outside 3k euros. The list can be continued indefinitely. Whether all of that is really necessary? No idea. But those who want to have nice and high-quality outdoor facilities can spend a lot of money on it. It wouldn’t be my thing, but it’s normal.

I don’t really think that’s common. These days, very few construction projects have that much budget left at the end to afford lavish outdoor areas. I see the same in our new development. The houses are all standing, but the surroundings are still quite raw. Most people do that gradually. This time we planned a bit more for the outdoor area, but other wishes are already taking precedence again. We’ll see if there’s anything left for it in the end.

I don’t really believe that this is common. These days, very few construction projects still have enough budget left at the end to afford lavish outdoor facilities. I see the same in our new development area. All the houses are standing, but the surroundings are still quite raw. Most people do this gradually.
This time we planned a bit more for the outdoor area, but other wishes are already taking precedence again. We’ll see if anything is left for it in the end.

Yes, exactly that’s the point. The outdoor facilities are initially calculated in a “rough” way and then everything is gradually completed bit by bit. I don’t see anything wrong with that. Nowadays, you can get a fully designed outdoor facility without lawn and planting for 30k. If you want to do some work yourself, you can easily do that on your own.

Sure – but do you even want that?

1. Especially nowadays that goes quickly
2. 50k euros is not much. That goes terribly fast. Wooden terrace 70 sqm for the first 15k euros. Paving driveway 15k euros with substructure. Shaping terrain 5k euros including topsoil. Installing fence 5k euros. Laying roll lawn 5k euros. Trees, shrubs, flowers with beds done 20k euros. Installing garden irrigation 10k euros. Electricity and outdoor lamps done 3k euros. The list can go on indefinitely. Does it all have to be like that? No idea. But whoever wants nice and valuable outdoor facilities can really spend a lot of money on it. It wouldn’t be my thing, but it’s normal.

The question of “do you even want that” is always very difficult to answer... It’s not just about the kitchen, but all added extras for the whole house.

- Do I treat myself to controlled living space ventilation?
- Do I treat myself to the expensive staircase?
- What about tiles, parquet, windows, front door...

It just goes on forever :D

In the end, it basically depends on the home equipment, which I think many builders nowadays have to cut back on – it just can’t be helped...

So most likely there won’t be 50k left for carport and kitchen either.

But I understand your approach... We built last year and were very, very lucky with the prices and interest rate level. Today we could never afford the house we built :D

But I would also find it hard to give up any of it...

You just have to know: Do I want to build → then really mostly sparsely and with standard equipment – or: I don’t build at all for now.

Sure - but do people actually want that?

1. Especially nowadays, it can be done quickly
2. €50K is not that much. It goes terribly fast. Wooden terrace 70 sqm for the first €15K. Paving the driveway €15K including base. Landscaping €5K including topsoil. Installing a fence €5K. Laying sod €5K. Planting trees, shrubs, flowers with beds €20K. Installing garden irrigation €10K. Installing outdoor electricity and lamps €3K. The list can go on indefinitely. Whether all of this is necessary? No idea. But whoever wants beautiful and high-quality outdoor facilities can spend a lot of money on it. Not my thing, but it’s normal.

Sorry, but I don’t find that normal. That is already an extremely high standard. Who has a 70 sqm terrace? And having beds etc. installed? Why even have a garden if you don’t want to do it yourself?

50k for a carport and kitchen seems a bit excessive to me. You can certainly get that done if you want, with a 30k kitchen and a 20k glass-aluminum carport. But even at today's prices, you can get a good kitchen for 20k and a carport kit can be assembled by a layperson. Then you're at half the price. The same goes for outdoor facilities. Of course, you can have a 70sqm wooden terrace built, but that's not really the standard. Same with fully automatic irrigation for 10k, roll-out lawn, etc.
What is important here, however, is to clarify your wishes beforehand. For us, the garden will be a bit more expensive than planned because over time we've moved towards a more complex and high-quality garden. Bricks instead of 20€ concrete pavers and stone walls (completely unplanned) do take a toll on the budget, as does the originally unplanned terrace roofing.