Construction obligation in the purchase contract

In our new development area, it was even the case that you are obliged to live in the house yourself for 10 years. If you want to sell it earlier for any reason (e.g. due to divorce, which has happened before), you have to pay a not inconsiderable fine to the city. This is meant to prevent speculators but can also hit you hard for actually legitimate reasons. Renting it out is also not possible.

That’s really tough. I wouldn’t sign that... no one can plan 10 years ahead in today’s world. I also find it borderline to include something like that contractually.

But that would be excluded in my case, or at least nothing is mentioned about that, right?

No, that can't happen to you. It would have to be agreed upon, many contracts only contain both, which is why the clauses are often linked in many minds (including mine )

By the way, how harsh and unacceptable the clause sounds depends on how it is phrased:
1. Purchase price X, buyer commits to self-use for at least 10 years. If the buyer violates this obligation, a penalty of €25/sqm is due. For each completed year of self-use, the contractual penalty is reduced by 10%.
2. Purchase price Y, for each completed year of self-use the selling municipality reimburses a self-use bonus of €2.50/sqm (max. 10 years)
1 reads harsh and 2 nice, right? In the end, 1 is far more buyer-friendly! (2: Higher loan, worse loan-to-value ratio, more interest, more property transfer tax…) So of course only if y=x+A*25€/sqm.

Officialese is mean. They just want to cover themselves. It has already been mentioned.
With us, you had to build within three years. That meant: start building. One builder simply paused for a year... of course not nice for the neighbors, having to live with the dust from a neighboring construction site for another year after completion.

The goal is of course to develop the property and live there. But it could be that I get the ultimate job offer " months after signing the contract, where I would have to think about relocating or changing my place.

One should know their own construction sites, including those of job hunting. I can't really imagine sending initial applications during construction, but if the ULTIMATE job offer should come, the "penalty fee," i.e., the buyback, would be annoying but doable.

The devil is a squirrel and you can’t think as stupid as life sometimes plays out. One dies, one divorces, a contractor implodes shortly before construction starts and you have to start over somewhere else, which makes the project more expensive and puts the financing back in limbo, pick your poison. Sure not very likely, but there are even people who have won the lottery. I've heard.

The latter a pleasant evil

Overseeing your whole life is usually hard to manage. At least you should be in good faith that only the house construction marks a (positive) turning point in life.

If the house is not quite finished by then, nothing will happen at all.

Don’t worry so much about it, plan your build and go ahead.

That’s how it is. Good luck!

well if you get a great offer you will be able to swallow the few euros reversal