Construction defects - Damage control?

Basically, I am of the opinion that people who work well, reliably, responsibly, and seriously themselves, whether as employees, housewives, mothers/fathers, or self-employed, "simply" first assume that other people do the same, since they move in similar milieus. That is why I understand LaurasStern very well, even though I cannot assess the conditions in Austria.

I only learned here in the forum that it seems to be different in the construction industry (I have not yet read a comprehensible explanation for this) and have accordingly adapted our building plans. At least one of us will be on site daily, sometimes during working hours on the construction site, sometimes outside working hours on the construction site.

If I hadn't read so much here in the forum, I would have just let our construction proceed. I have fought against the basic attitude throughout my adult life that only I do a great job and everyone else must be controlled by me because otherwise, nothing works. For the construction, I will probably have to deviate from my own standards.

Exactly right. People who do not have the expertise or the time to build themselves should, for better or worse, be able to rely on the work of the companies. A family we are friends with had a raw attic converted from abroad, and the husband was on the construction site only once during the construction phase, everything else was coordinated via video conference, etc., and everything worked out. As a layperson, you cannot measure everything yourself – that's why there are companies that take care of things... our lives are geared towards relying on others – doctors, teachers, service providers, etc. We understood that not everything would go smoothly – but that SO MUCH would go wrong, or even that the building height would be missed by 50 cm, is really extreme. And that the law is on the side of the construction companies was something we were not aware of until now. Or rather, that you cannot sue due to financial reasons or duration of time... Which family endures a 10-year legal battle both financially and mentally? The children would be almost grown up by then...

Yes, maybe the skeptics also inform themselves before going to the hospital not only about who and where they have the surgery done but also in the [Fachbuch] HOW exactly the tumor is surgically removed.

I wanted to mention that we have spoken with a company regarding construction supervision/construction management during the renovation phase. For a flat rate offer, everything is too complex. They are now making us an offer with estimated hours or hourly rate.

Construction supervision would usually be 1x/week on the construction site. except for critical points possibly more often... some things might also go unnoticed...

The construction supervision would usually be once a week on the construction site. Except at critical points, maybe more often... something might also go unnoticed there...

Neutral construction supervision is really good. You can agree on flat rates but also on hourly billing. With flat rates, surprises are excluded!

In which region are you building?

Construction supervision would usually be once a week on the construction site.

+Preparation +Travel to site +Travel from site +Documentation +Other office work.

All the mentioned points are okay and can be billed. Please already factor this in mentally so that you are not caught off guard by the first invoice.

Maybe a flat rate can be agreed upon for the weekly appointments, and the rest on an hourly basis? Could provide a bit of cost security.