Building Tips for Beginners

An experienced company is one thing, but if the consultant responsible for you is not good, it can still go wrong. So if a consultant already seems unlikable to me, I don’t take another step with him. I would always bring in an independent (i.e. sought and commissioned by you) building expert, and that already for checking the contract and the description of the construction services – BEFORE signing. Then the question is how much time you have besides work. I am a fan of Viebrockhaus, building with them for the second time, but they build so fast that on some days I have to drop everything at work because the installer NOW needs to know exactly where I want the shower rod. Or the tiles. And even during the shell construction phase we were on site every day with plans and a tape measure, checking what they had done. I would also post the first plans in this forum, because on your own you quickly become blind to the process. Friends and family get annoying when you explain the plan to them, why you do and arrange things as you do – and at some points you realize that another solution is cheaper or closer to personal preferences. So yes, I would also build on my own, but my financial cushion would then have to be significantly larger for me to dare that. And definitely a building expert involved and listen to your gut feeling when choosing the company alongside a lot of internet research.

Hello,

if you want an "all-round carefree package," it is probably best if you buy a house from a developer.

They take care of the purchase of the land, the development, insurances, and the construction. However, in this case, you also pay the real estate transfer tax on the entire price and not just the price of the land, and of course, the developer charges for their services.

If you buy the land yourself and then commission the house construction, you are (depending on the construction company) more or less responsible yourself.

Possible tasks to be done yourself might include:

- Surveying
- Soil report
- House connections
- Provision of construction electricity and/or construction water
- Necessary insurances
- ...

We built a turnkey (ready to move in) house and were somewhat surprised at times by what we still had to organize ourselves. However, you grow with your tasks – looking back, the planning and construction phase was a very exciting and interesting time, and we are very proud that we got through it relatively smoothly with the desired result.

Where in BW do you want to build?

If you're interested, I can gladly forward you the link to our construction blog so you can see how things went for us.

Best regards,

Dirk

Is there still a way to realize such a project without it going wrong or completely exhausting me?

Either honest reliable people to whom you delegate your tasks (you can delegate tasks, but unfortunately not responsibility). Or you buy something finished. Finished new houses are available from the property developer (it is only a real property developer if the house and land are sold in one transaction). When buying from a property developer, you need legal advice (specialist lawyer for construction law) and expert construction advice (architect, expert, ...). Then not much can really go wrong, if the financing is secure.

If you want an "all-inclusive package," it's probably best if you buy a house from a developer.

Are those the ones sometimes listed as "projected" houses on ImmobilienScout?

We built a turnkey (ready-to-move-in) house and were partly surprised at what we still had to organize ourselves

Do they at least explain exactly what you have to do and where you have to turn for it? For example, I would have no idea how to organize surveying or the provision of construction power.

Where in BW do you want to build?

I work in Böblingen, so far live in Stuttgart. I would have preferred the Filder area, but it's too expensive there. Everything around Stuttgart and Böblingen is expensive. It will probably come down to the Calw or Tübingen district, although I didn't really want to live there. But what can I do.
I have since found out that Huf-Haus is too expensive. My budget would only cover the house itself, not everything else. Crazy, but now I know why they don't publish prices on the internet.

What budget do you have and what did you roughly have in mind?

Hello,

Hello! I am very unsure whether I can manage such a project, as I have absolutely no clue about anything, I am not particularly articulate or assertive, have no organizational talent, am not very stress-resistant, and am alone.

Is there still a way to realize such a project without it failing or completely wearing me out?

The first important step is the concrete decision about _which_ system exactly you want to build: prefab or solid house. Once this decision is made, first visit the show home parks in your area to get a feeling for what is possible and what is not. Of course, this presupposes that you know your budget!

Even as a layperson, you will recognize who only wants your best (money) and who is also interested in building a good reference. For example, the classic low-cost builders – even though I do see a legitimate reason for their existence – primarily offer you an apparently unbeatable deal. However, if you add all the equipment details that are important to you – starting with your preferred efficiency house rating and ending with, for example, a floor-to-ceiling shower – you will quickly realize that they also _only_ cook with water and offer a price roughly equal to a provider who already includes these items in the initial offer. This means you move closer and closer to your goal by a process of elimination.

You should also seek a conversation with an architect – maybe that is the right decision for you. If not, your gut will tell you during the initial consultation at the latest. Just make sure to explicitly ask for a non-binding consultation and its costs. Otherwise, an inadvertent word from you could trigger a contract!

At the same time, you should search for a plot of land via the internet or a real estate agent; of course, there is also the option to purchase a building plot through a general contractor (GU). Here, you just have to consider that real estate transfer tax will be due on both land and house if there is an economic connection.

Having gone through all these steps, you should know what you want and can make a first decision, namely how you want to build your house: with an architect in individual contracting, via GU, or designs by an architect and construction via GU. If you decide on GU, pick a maximum of 3 comparable providers and have them price the exact same design for you. Always the same because otherwise you cannot compare. If an architect is supposed to plan for you, this step must naturally come first.

Once you have made a final decision – which requires a build-ready plot as well as your temporary construction partner found – you should involve external expertise to review all documents _before_ signing the contract. This could be a lawyer, the Association of Private Homeowners, the VBZ, the energy agency, or an independent expert. You can also ask them what external construction supervision would cost or commission TÜV® or DEKRA® – as examples – to oversee the construction project.

Taken together, all this will not completely protect your construction project from errors – an incredible number of people are involved in construction, and people do make mistakes. However, it will help limit the error rate to an acceptable minimum.

Good luck!

Rhineland greetings