Building cheaply - this is how it can be done too!

Including ancillary costs, excluding land. Architect's fee is therefore included. Controlled residential ventilation (approximately €17k estimated), KNX (approximately €15k surcharge) and kitchen (approximately €28k) are extra.

Including additional costs, excluding land. Architect's fee is therefore included.

Controlled residential ventilation (estimated at about €17k), KNX (about €15k additional cost) and kitchen (about €28k) are extra.

Do you also do things yourself or do you have everything done?

Hi,

Well, whether a craftsman's botch job should be a reason to generally steer clear of concealed fittings is for everyone to decide ... for me, I see no causal connection with the concealed fitting itself. You yourself write that it was poorly installed... so what?

LOL again.... let me guess: You still have the construction phase ahead of you? Right?

If so, then you still have a lot to learn about the quality of craftsmen, especially nowadays, when they already have their books full for the next 2 years.
Example:
The electrician showed up in a brand-new A8 (eight, you read that right) and grinned stupidly at my wife when she complained about his botch job (he also messed up in several places) and said verbatim: "I don't care, I already have enough jobs." He was lucky she had her hands full with the baby at that moment, otherwise he wouldn’t have gotten away unscathed...
The plumbing botcher hasn’t even bothered to apologize to this day. (Right now the dressing room is being torn out, children's rooms will be done this weekend, and it looks like we'll have to live on the bare screed until the new year.

That’s reality, so who’s naive here...?

Good luck with your rose-colored glasses!

Best regards,

Andreas

First rule: Look for good craftsmen! Beware, they are not always the cheapest, but also not always the most expensive. When things go really wrong: Usually the craftsman has an interest in getting paid. Complaints about defects should be made in writing, and withholding payment on the invoice.

Hi,

First rule: Look for good craftsmen! Beware, they are not always the cheapest, but also not always the most expensive.

If things go really wrong:
Normally the craftsman has an interest in getting paid. Notify defects in writing, withhold payment on the invoice.

If you build with a general contractor, you have little influence on the choice of craftsmen....
Apart from the plumber, their workmanship was not bad, but the business conduct of most is completely indescribable.

The damage only occurred 3 months AFTER moving in, I still haven’t paid the last 10k€ to the GC to this day, but he doesn’t really seem to care.

The guys here don’t really care about money anymore. No idea how it is in other regions, but here in the Nuremberg area you should be glad if you even get any offer at all. The luxury of paying attention to price or quality is no longer affordable here if you want to finish your house in this life.

Best regards,
Andreas

I had not considered building with a general contractor (GU). We build through individual contracts, but even in the Munich area, it is difficult to get offers. Usually, it still works out, and especially with small craft companies, you as a "private customer" have an advantage over GUs who mainly want to push the price down by politely asking.

We have often found that good companies are quite happy when you keep them up to date on the construction progress and allow some flexibility. They are always looking for construction sites where they can do small jobs (half a day) in between to avoid downtime despite having full order books. So far, almost all work in our projects has been completed ahead of the construction schedule. This only works if the tradespeople/workers on site know each other, meaning with regional companies.

And to get back to the topic here, finishing faster also saves money (rent, scaffolding, rental fees, frost protection, submersible pumps, etc...) and also a lot of nerves! We have calculated for ourselves that one month costs us about 1,500 euros extra.