Construction Cost Estimate Single-Family House

Hello everyone,

we will soon be tackling the topic of building, but we cannot estimate the actual expected costs, as we have no experience with it. I have only asked around a bit and read a lot on the internet.
In about 3 weeks we have appointments with 2 architects, but we don’t want to go there with completely wrong expectations — that’s why I’m already asking for opinions in advance.

The plan is to build the house with an architect (who would then take care of everything — so service phases 1-9). The building site is in BaWü.

Features of the house as we would like it:

[*]Solid construction
[*]KFW Efficiency House 70
[*]approx. 140 sqm living space
[*]1.5 stories with gable roof
[*]floor plan relatively simple to save costs (no bay windows, no gables, no other frills)
[*]equipment rather normal/average, nothing luxurious
[*]no basement
[*]heating-wise we are still very undecided. The first thought goes in the direction of a heat pump, but I also read about many cases where electricity costs got out of hand and people ended up paying extra monthly instead of saving.
[*]controlled residential ventilation
[*]double garage with additional space/storage (since no basement)

My layman’s estimate would look something like this:

[*]construction costs house 140 sqm * €1600/sqm = €225,000
[*]additional costs €40,000
[*]architect’s fee (or fee Horror? :D) €25,000
[*]garage €30,000
[*]outdoor area (just the essentials) €10,000
[*]backup €20,000
[*]all in all €350,000

Now I ask you for a very honest assessment whether this can be roughly correct or, if not, what I might have forgotten or misestimated.
(Land here is not included — the costs will of course come on top)

Regarding own work: We have a carpenter in the family, what do you think could still be saved through own work?

Many thanks in advance.

Best regards McMarco

Hello,
since we are building roughly the same thing, only with Kfw55 and without the garage, I have to say your price quotes are realistic. You could probably save quite a bit if you compare prices.

We are building a prefab house, with a rather expensive provider actually.
We pay 225,000€ for the house without floor coverings.

But that already includes the architect. However, we basically had to take a standard house :)

Hello McMarco,

Your price expectations are realistic, except for the architect's fee - add another TEUR 2, and it fits.

Regarding the statements "by word of mouth" about the air-to-water heat pump - this certainly refers to the competitor's exhaust air heat pump with the red logo. Because only in this case, or if the calculations were done "roughly," is it correct.

EL: only what a carpenter can also create. For example, interior doors, sliding doors, or stair railings. The savings increase with rising demands :-)

Kind regards

Great, thank you very much for your answers.

Regarding the statements "heard by word of mouth" about air-to-water heat pumps - this certainly refers to the competitor's exhaust air heat pump with the red logo. Because only in this case, or if the calculations were done "roughly," is it accurate.

Are you referring to what appears as the first result when you enter "exhaust air heat pump" into a well-known search engine?
Regarding the calculation: Does it often happen that it is incorrect? I myself cannot understand or verify what the architect calculates, as I have no knowledge of it at all.

One more question: If I were to build a comparable house with a general contractor, I would save the architect's fee and therefore come out cheaper. However, I keep reading that you do not (necessarily) end up more expensive with an architect. Does that mean that a comparable house would cost, for example, 250,000 instead of 225,000 with a general contractor, or what is the truth here?

PS: Just to be sure: We are talking about gross prices, right?

Hello,

Do you mean the first result that appears when you enter "Abluftwärmepumpe" in a well-known search engine?

No, that's just "one" manufacturer. I probably should have mentioned that these exhaust air heat pumps only make sense in the area of passive houses.

Regarding the calculation: Does it often happen that it is incorrect? I can't trace or verify what the architect has calculated myself, as I have no knowledge of it at all.

Apart from the fact that these kinds of calculations are done by the structural engineer, you just need to feed the local search function with "€uro" and you will find out first-hand how thermal protection certificates can come about ;)

One more question: If I were to build a comparable house with a general contractor (GU), I would save the architect’s fee and thus be cheaper. However, I keep reading that you don’t necessarily end up more expensive with an architect. Does this mean that a comparable house with a GU would cost, for example, 250,000 instead of 225,000, or what is the truth here?

That depends crucially on the GU you choose; the same applies to the choice of architect. One is cheap, the next affordable, and the third candidate outrageously expensive – each measured against the offer or the building specification.

PS: Just to be sure: We're talking about gross prices here, right?

In business transactions with private individuals, prices "must" always be quoted gross/gross.

Kind regards