Behavior/Consequences towards Construction Company

That's how it is
You have zero leverage

Well, I would leave this assessment to a specialist lawyer.

Thank you for your reply!

I don’t quite see it the way you do. Especially since oral side agreements (“all the talk around it”) can very well be legally effective, especially since we have not established a written form requirement. Why should I voluntarily sign the contract with the clause if then I have no place to stay for 4 months? At signing, it was said that it must be finished by summer at the latest. That was agreed upon. Along with the signed construction plan.

We will contact a lawyer tomorrow and have a nice letter drafted. Maybe that will have an effect.

Only the written agreement counts. What the general contractor promised or assured in passing will not hold up in court. And having the apartment within the regular construction period (until 12/2022) is your construction site’s problem, not the general contractor’s.

In our case, the construction period guarantee will probably not be met due to the geothermal heat pump. But I would never take action against the GC because I am satisfied that he stuck to the prices and did not just add 10% on top. He could have done that nowadays...

Thank you for your answer!

I don’t quite see it the way you do. Especially since oral side agreements (“all the talk around it”) can indeed be legally effective, especially as we have not established a written form requirement. Why should I voluntarily sign the contract with the clause if then I have no place to stay for 4 months? We did say at signing that it MUST be finished by summer at the latest. That was agreed. Along with the signed construction plan.

We will contact a lawyer tomorrow and have a proper letter drafted. Maybe that will have an effect.

"Whoever wants peace should prepare for war." I don’t always really follow this either, I haven’t finished learning yet. I am more of an optimist (some would say "naive"). That means in your case, contracts with penalties would have been a good idea. The following includes me! I am always amazed at how careless and trusting people approach what is usually the most expensive decision in life. By the way, I am not the one who wrote this sentence down for the first time here in the forum.
Unfortunately: oral side agreements would first have to be proven. In court, by the way, after years of waiting for a trial date following a failed amicable settlement, there is a settlement where both parties lose, and the third (lawyers) wins.

So, sorry, really a lousy situation for you. Get help by making sure the set deadline (12.22) is met by applying "friendly" pressure (through professionals, not by yourselves with emails or calls!) From my own bitter experience I say: those are absolutely ineffective, definitely!

Thank you for your answer! I don’t quite see it the way you do. Especially since oral side agreements (“all the talk around it”) can very well be legally effective, especially as we have not established a written form requirement. Why should I voluntarily sign the contract with the clause if then I have no place to stay for 4 months? We did say at signing that it MUST be finished by summer at the latest. That was agreed. Along with the signed construction plan. We will contact a lawyer tomorrow and have a nice letter drafted. Maybe that will have an effect.

Take a look at the contract clauses: Does it perhaps say there that no oral side agreements, etc. were made? It was definitely included in ours.

I would also have a specialist lawyer review this. But otherwise, prepare yourself for what happens if it is not finished by the end of August. That means looking into where you can store the current furniture and where you can find a temporary living solution. Ideally, everything will be finished on time and you won’t need the solution, but then you won’t have to rush and look for the first best option if it does turn out that way. The next best case would probably be that the construction company covers your additional costs (but as an absolute layperson, I also assume they are probably not obliged to before 12/22 - but someone with expertise can probably give you a better assessment).

I probably wouldn't do anything except a (somewhat) friendly inquiry. 12/22 is already in 6 months. And if basically only the shell is standing now, how much faster should it go? The company would have to plan that extra anyway. Old farmer's wisdom: fast and good rarely happen at the same time. Prepare yourself for an interim move. It's annoying but there are worse things.