Buy building plot and budget planning for a semi-detached house

Hello everyone,

I have already read a bit in the forum here, but I am still not 100% sure if our construction project is realistic. Before I start going around to architects in my area, I wanted to first ask the experts here.

A couple of friends and we want to buy a 500 m² (250 m² each) building plot and put a semi-detached house on it. The living space should be about 120 m² per semi-detached house unit on two floors. A basement will probably be unavoidable since the plot is on a slope and the entrance is at ground floor level, garden at basement exit level.

The building plot will cost each party about €85,000. The budget amounts to €370,000 (excluding the building plot, so €285,000 for the semi-detached house) for each house. Kitchen and furnishings are excluded. However, the rest should be covered by the budget.

It doesn’t have to be anything special. What would be great, though: Kfw 70, underfloor heating, fireplace & carport for 2 cars as well as a balcony at ground floor level.

Do you think the construction project is feasible with our budget? We would prefer to build solidly with an architect (due to the slope).

Thanks in advance for the feedback!

Best regards force

Hello,
it's getting tight.
My amateur calculation for a solid house:

Plot: 85,000
Notary + tax: 6,000
House: approx. 200,000 (for approx. 120m² living space), possibly cheaper for a semi-detached house
Utility basement: approx. 35,000 (without tub), possibly cheaper for a semi-detached house
Outdoor facilities with simple retaining wall: at least 20,000
Additional construction costs: 20,000
Simple prefabricated garage: 10,000
Floors/walls: approx. 8,000 (material)

So roughly a total of 384,000 without buffer, kitchen, furniture, frills.
I would estimate at least 400,000 €.

buy a 500 m² (250 m² each) building plot and put a semi-detached house on it.

The building plot will cost each party about €85,000.

I don't consider it unrealistic.

However, I would be interested to know if this plot definitely exists and if you have checked the development plan regarding floor area ratio and semi-detached housing?

Best regards, Yvonne

Good morning,

A couple of friends and we want to buy a 500 m² (250 m² each) building plot and put a semi-detached house on it. The living area should be about 120 m² per semi-detached house on two floors. A cellar will probably be unavoidable since the plot is on a slope and the entrance is at ground floor level, garden at cellar exit level.

The plot will cost about €85,000 for each party. The budget is €370,000 (excluding the plot, so €285,000 for the semi-detached house) for each house. Kitchen and furnishings are excluded. However, the rest should be covered by the budget.

It does not have to be anything special. What would be great though: KfW 70, underfloor heating, fireplace & carport for 2 cars as well as a balcony on ground floor level.

As a KfW 70 efficiency house, the above-ground part will cost about €192,000; with a residential cellar – which is advisable on a slope – the costs should be set higher than ‘Patchwork’ indicated. Exposed masonry, which needs plastering, residential quality, and so on will certainly call for about €60,000. If the soil survey shows poor soil quality, the above estimate can easily increase by €10,000 or more. A prefabricated garage does not cost the world, but the required strip foundations and earthworks should be quite expensive.

So far this means:

Land: €85,000
Semi-detached house, with cellar: €252,000
Balcony, depending on size and design: from €5,000
Painting/floor coverings included: €15,000
Outdoor facilities included: €10,000 (only the essentials)
Chimney flue: €5,000
Reserve for extras: €10,000
Additional building costs: €40,000
Prefabricated garage 3.00 x 6.00 m: €6,000 (without foundations + earthworks)

Totals so far: €428,000

We can also contribute some of the work ourselves, such as plastering & tile laying. Furthermore, my buddy with whom I want to build works at a sanitary wholesale company. So we get, for example, heating and bathroom fixtures relatively cheaply. So maybe we might manage with our budget.

No, I don’t think so; the earthworks will be the kicker. Besides – even if you can partly contribute materials as equity, it still has to be installed and – in terms of sanitary trades – approved by a master craftsman ;)

With a level plot on the other hand, you will be able to stay within your desired budget.

Rhenish regards

Wow, that's quite a lot coming together. I based myself on the price of a couple of friends who will be building in the same development. They received a cost estimate from the architect for 135 m² of living space with some extras. It amounts to €430,000 plus or minus €10,000. Because of that, I thought we might possibly manage with our budget. (Also a semi-detached house with a garage attached to the house which, due to the slope of the land, even counts as garden space. So the roof of the garage. And otherwise rather upscale fittings) : I already knew that it also has to be installed. :) However, I do think there is some potential for savings because of that. Bathroom & heating can indeed turn out to be cost drivers during a construction project. At least that's what I've read. :D

They received a cost estimate from the architect for 135 m² of living space with some extras. This amounts to €430,000 plus or minus €10,000.

Read up a bit here on the forum. Then you'll find that it is not uncommon for there to be worlds between cost estimates and reality ;)

Rhenish greetings