Construction costs are currently skyrocketing

Had a brief look into the one thread, 2 full floors plus basement just above groundwater surely drives up the price even without luxury fittings

Is there actually a definition of what is basic standard and what is upscale? I know, I’m building with Town & Country turnkey for just under 2,000 EUR/m², clearly below the standard of a Russian sobering-up cell from the tsarist era. But a few Grohe faucets and Villeroy sinks instead of Vigour, tiles for 25 EUR instead of 75 EUR/m², and aluminum windows instead of plastic... that can’t be the reason why others pay almost twice as much in the end. Do you get better bricks? I have Ytong. Better concrete? Better heating? I get Vaillant. Where’s the difference? Botched craftsmen? The craftsmen are from the region, they are the same ones who also show up at the architect’s house.

Is there actually a definition of what is simple standard and what is upscale? I know, I build turnkey with Town & Country at just under 2,000 EUR/m², clearly below the standard of a Russian sobriety cell from the Tsarist era. But a few faucets from Grohe and sinks from Villeroy, instead of Vigour, tiles for 25 EUR instead of 75 EUR/m² and aluminum windows instead of plastic... that can't be the reason why others pay almost double in the end.

Do you get better bricks? I have Ytong. Better concrete? Better heating? I get Vaillant.

Where is the difference? Shoddy craftsmen? The craftsmen are from the region, they are the same ones who also show up at the architect's house.

I think with Town & Country more services are provided by the client on site. They may only be small things, but they cost the clients many hours. Also, the planning of the services provided on site is the responsibility of the clients, something like "construction management light". Maybe then 10cm ceiling height, slightly different insulation values and the limited possibilities of individual adjustments are added on top and that is the difference. The architect with the general contractor is permanently employed, that is proportionally less than the freelance architect gets. The margin is perhaps (because it is possible?) somewhat higher with individually planned houses?

These are my thoughts on it, they don't have to be correct.

Freely planned houses can also be significantly cheaper than "off-the-shelf" houses, there are definitely threads where the brain and muscle sweat of the clients pushed the price toward 1,200-1,400 € per m² (but these threads are somewhat in the past).

Yes, of course not everyone gives great thought to the world and doesn’t have to. But when I look at what has been financed on the edge in recent years, the salary increases of the coming years are already anticipated and inflation is ignored. That leaves little reserve if things go wrong, and then it quickly becomes dangerous.

Well, you can see it in two ways. We’d probably be better off if a few years ago we had “simply” financed 110%. As long as you don’t approach it completely naively, I don’t think there’s much against taking certain risks. I tend to think through the worst-case scenarios (which some acquaintances find quite crazy), and then something like “If all else fails, then we just have to sell it, and in the worst case we still have debts without any collateral left. And in the absolute worst case, that means bankruptcy.” You can try a) to reduce the probability of that happening or b) hedge against it or c) just be aware that it’s a risk that exists and accept it. Before “if all else fails” there are still 20 other scenarios that turn out better ;)

It’s a bit unfortunate when you’ve convinced yourself too much and then your world falls apart if things don’t go as planned. But sometimes it’s just a matter of “adapting to the new situation.”

Okay, we didn't need an architect. The floor plan suited us as it was, so the general contractor could handle it.

I don't really know what "Bauleitung light" means either. Our site manager is an expert, but even if you hire an external one, what does that cost? 5,000 EUR?

For us, foundation deeper than 30cm, surveying, house connections/sewage connection, construction power/water, and of course everything related to the outdoor area are not included.

But even if I include our rather complex deep foundation and the rest mentioned above, I don't get over 2,250 EUR/m².

And I'm sure I can get 2 WCs, a bathtub, a walk-in shower. No pit toilet and no wash tub heated by wood fire.

PS:
Where are the remaining 750 EUR/m² hidden that I’m missing even for the simplest standard?

PS: Where are the remaining 750 EUR/m² hiding, which I lack even for the simplest standard?

Definitely not in the builder's wallet. And they won't be flushed down the golden toilet either. Honestly, anyone who pays 4000 bucks/sqm for standard is beyond help.