Construction company halts work despite overpayment

Life risk? Personal bad luck? Bite the bullet? Make the best of it?
Be glad that you planned a buffer and didn’t plan right to the limit?

In any case, in the end, there is no mutualization of damages from private contracts through tax money.
Then we might as well put house construction under state care, because that works so well ;-)

...."buffer and not to the limit"....where are you supposed to suddenly get several thousand euros from?! Robbing a bank still makes little sense today.

...."Buffer and not on the edge".... where should one suddenly get several thousand euros from?! Robbing a bank still makes little sense today.

Have it beforehand and hold it back as a risk buffer. If not possible, don't build.

We have already had cases here where not even €2,000 could be advanced for an expert. So more than whining was left for the OP, he had zero options.

Sorry, but then you simply don't build new.

I would like to summarize again: The general contractor refuses to continue construction in Dec. 2018. The clients sue him for continuation of the construction. In Sept. 2019, a settlement is reached. The general contractor pays the legal costs and the contractual penalty due so far and commits to continue construction with a completion date of 30.11.2019, but only starts the continuation (shell construction) in mid-October. It was already clear at the time of signing the settlement that this date was not realistic. Construction is stopped again in mid-November because he immediately charges for the roof truss work as soon as it starts, the shell construction is not completed, there are numerous serious defects (according to an expert report), and the invoice is therefore rejected by the clients. Subsequently, the general contractor sends two registered letters simultaneously in mid-December, which arrive on the same day: one is a demand for payment of the roof truss invoice, and the other is his termination of the construction contract. On the advice of their lawyer, the clients reject the termination but agree to an appointment to determine the construction status in mid-January. At the same time, they apply to the court for enforcement of the settlement and for the general contractor to bear the additional costs of a replacement company. On 31.12.2019, the general contractor sells the company and leaves it. So if this is not settlement fraud, I don’t know what else it could be.

The comparison is between you and the company. The company still exists. It will be exciting to see how the new owner will proceed and whether he was aware of the risks.

On the internet, you can also find nice instructions for such deals from kind gentlemen who call themselves management consultants.

Managing Director Liability
With the change of managing director, you are released from managing director liability. You are discharged and can no longer be held liable for damages claims under the GmbH Act. All creditors can only negotiate with the new management.

Registered Office / Company Name
At your request, the successor company can relocate the registered office and change the company name. No one will then associate your former GmbH with you anymore, and you will have completely left your GmbH crisis behind. A change of legal form is also possible thanks to new EU laws. Converting into a Ltd. is popular. We will be happy to inform you about further options and the exact procedure in a personal consultation.

and that the performance bond becomes obsolete with the sale of the company.

As you correctly pointed out in some posts earlier, the sale does not change the legal entity company. If the previous managing director committed fraud in a settlement, it remains a criminal matter for his natural person.