Cost-effective building without loss of quality, architect's house

I don’t know if we are talking past each other. I was only referring to the general statement that a basement in solid construction and an upper floor in wood is, in my view, more expensive than, for example, completely in solid construction. Whether that is the case, I don’t know; I have given my reasoning for the claim.

I can only repeat myself. We planned with an office from Innsbruck. Austria is more expensive than Germany. Your plot also needs to be developed. Just our water supply cost 32k€. Your sewage pipe, water, electricity, cistern, etc. etc. will have to be built into the rock. No one here will tell you that your 400 are enough because it simply doesn’t work, because this is not standard. Find a local planner from Austria who should give you a solid cost estimate. Everything else is guesswork.

I can only repeat. We planned with an office from Innsbruck. Austria is more expensive than Germany. Your plot also needs to be developed. Alone our water supply cost 32k€. Your sewage pipe, water, electricity, cistern, etc. etc. will have to be built into the rock. No one here will tell you that your 400 are enough because it simply doesn't work since it isn't run-of-the-mill. Find a local planner from Austria who should give you a solid cost estimate. Everything else is guesswork.

My 400,000€ is only for the house. For the development + foundation slab (or whatever else is needed to build a house) 100,000€ are additionally available. If it’s 150,000€ that’s also okay. At 200,000€ the fun stops though. In my opinion, you will very well get a house for that. Also a nice one. Unfortunately, a few numbers have been mixed up here over the last pages.

Then all your questions are answered. Good luck!

On the picture to the left, geographically exactly south, so perfect hillside location.

As I said, unfortunately I can’t provide more at the moment. The topographic plan is in progress.

There is no basement though, after 1m of trench you hit rock.

No one wants to build 3 full floors for 400k€ either...

My idea at the moment is to have only the wall directly on the hillside made of concrete on the ground floor – build the rest out of wood. (No idea if that is structurally possible.)

It is possible like that. Concrete on the hillside side, the rest solid wood.

If you come from the Alpine region, then take something regional. They know about hillsides

Mmh. Where can you save? That of course depends a lot on your priorities. I would first say where in my opinion not to save: namely on the architect. You simply have to budget that money. It doesn't help at all to plan something yourself, on the contrary. It only becomes worse and more expensive.

In general, the "selection of materials" is of course a saving factor and was already made clear by in #39.

I would like to mention 3 factors here that in my opinion save money. The first is time. Those who are not under pressure to finish something save money and nerves. On the one hand, you can do some things yourself because you have time, and on the other hand, you can search longer for affordable offers. You wouldn’t have to pay for expensive dry heating if you simply leave the place standing in summer first. But that is rather uncommon nowadays.

Next, I would mention experience. Of course, those who have never built a house have none. But there are others you can possibly ask. This already starts with choosing the architect and contract design. Expensive is especially everything you have to sue for afterward. So better have the contracts checked before signing than afterward. A consulting advisor you trust is worth gold with the "first house." That can also be a relative who knows about it or a paid expert. It is also good if you deal with every trade and its execution. Ideally, as the builder, you are regularly on the construction site and keep an eye on the execution.

Third, you often save much more if you intensively compare, weigh, and negotiate loan offers instead of deciding against a laundry chute (which I would by the way consider insignificant in relation to the overall project).

I would also like to add that on difficult terrain like yours, it is best to work with local companies that are familiar with it and preferably have even built the neighboring house. Anything that makes the construction run smoothly because the planners and executing companies properly assess and master the conditions directly saves money.