Costs for building a house in the year 2024

Just my experiences (as already posted elsewhere) regarding construction costs. In my opinion, it all depends on the topic of personal contributions. We started building in spring 23 and recently moved in. Here are a few smaller key data points:

Building location: OWL (NRW)
Plot: Available
Cost for the house: €420,000
Area: 180 sqm living space + garage
Shed roof, heat pump Viessmann, photovoltaic system, 1 main bathroom + 1 guest bathroom with small shower, no basement, "normal" electrics (no KNX or similar).

Below are a few individual items I have in mind right now:

Shell construction + base plate + earthworks: €140,000
Roof/carpentry: €42,000
Sanitary, heating, and air conditioning (SHK): €35,000
Plaster (inside/outside): €35,000 (we really had quality problems here -> better spend a little more or choose the company more wisely)
Photovoltaic system: €13,500
Windows: €40,000
Screed: €9,000 (quick drying)

The floor plan was designed by an architect.

Personal contributions:
Assembly of the photovoltaic system (10 kWp + storage)
Helping with roofing work (screwing rafters, roofing, mounting gutters, garage slope insulation, etc.)
Smoothing the concrete ceiling
Wallpapering/painting the children's room, dressing room, storage room, utility room myself
All chasing work for the electrics done myself (company only marked it out)
All floor work except tiling myself
Vapor barrier + insulation between rafters
Laying floor insulation + underfloor heating pipes
Installation of window sills (inside/outside)
Installed "normal" windows myself (under guidance of a professional) -> the lift and slide door and large elements were done by the contracted company
Roller shutters/motors also myself
Drywall work

But: From June 23 to the end of January 24 I was on site every Saturday (all day) and almost every day after work from 4 pm to at least 8 pm doing something.

Feel free to ask for details. This is just a "rough" overview for now.

I can confirm Matze's experiences so far, they also come from OWL. We plan own contribution in a comparable amount and with (residential) basement we will reach just under 500k€. The house is freely designed and will be built entirely through self-contracting. However, one should not underestimate the effort for planning and coordination, I would not recommend it to everyone.

As a report of experience, we are currently in the final phase: painters, floors, doors, move-in summer 24 are turnkey at about 3300/sqm for 300sqm.

So this is all very individual. For my 211 sqm villa, I ended up with 1300 euros. Once for everything. But I also built the place almost entirely by myself.

So it is all very individual. For my 211 sqm villa, I came to 1300 euros. Once with everything. But I almost built the house by myself.

However, we are talking here about normal construction prices and not about such cringy self-built houses. And normally for companies, it is +/- 3,000€/sqm. Which is also confirmed here.

So, as others have already mentioned here, you can save a lot with personal effort. But once again on the initial figures of the thread creator:

570,000 house --> can be realistic, but it very much depends on the assumptions for the calculation, e.g. earthworks - are they assuming the standard 30 cm for filling? Usually it's significantly more. Then the equipment. As an example bathroom: which fittings, tiles etc. Standard house builders also calculate with the simplest versions, which in 99% of cases nobody wants. Or also the exterior appearance - premium clinker? Especially large-format windows? Sliding doors? White or anthracite frames? What kind of front door? Just these points alone add up to several tens of thousands of euros.

30,000 garage --> sounds okay, but here too the question about the execution - fully brick-clad? Electric garage door? What about the electrical installation in the garage (lighting, sockets)?

20,000 land development --> what is all included here? I’ll give a list of usual incidental building costs with approximate estimates:

Site plan 400 €
Building permit 1,500 €
Building surveying before construction and later surveying certificate, staking out property boundaries: 3,500 €
Soil report: 750 €
Earthworks: depending on the property conditions, but to be safe plan a buffer of 5,000 € - 10,000 €
Construction electricity and construction water: 3,000 €
House connections: (electricity, water, internet) 9,000 €
Rain/sewage water (sewer pipes) 4,000 €
Drainage around the house: 3,000 €
Handover shafts for sewage and rainwater (if necessary): 10,000 - 15,000 €

In total: 30,000 € - 50,000 €
Also remember a kitchen: 20,000 € - open-ended, depending on wishes


30,000 exterior facilities --> depending on the size of the plot, desired paved area, materials (material & size of terrace slabs, same for paving stones) and location (slope, flat etc.). The price can just barely be enough, but you can also easily end up at 50,000 € or open-ended. Personal effort is usually easier to apply here than for the direct house topics. You can save well here.

By the way, you might want a well for garden irrigation (1,500 - 2,000 €) or even a cistern? (4,000 - 6,000 €). Or an outdoor faucet with its own meter (500 €)?

Final tips for cost savings:

[*]Photovoltaics can be added later in an emergency and just take the preparation now: costs 1,000 € instead of xxx € (I don’t know the planned system)
[*]Check if less living space is sufficient (160 sqm for example)
[*]Build to KfW55 standard instead of KfW40, if planned --> almost as good and saves huge costs (-15,000 € - 25,000 €), if there is no subsidy
[*]Possibly omit central ventilation system if planned (-10,000 - 15,000 €)
[*]Carport instead of garage (-10,000 - 15,000 €)
[*]Textured wallpaper instead of fleece could be an option. Or don’t cover all areas with fleece wallpaper. (-3,000 - 5,000 €)
[*]Satellite system, if planned, possibly omit. Often not needed nowadays with internet (-2,000 - 2,500 €)
[*]If you have planned smart home, you can also check how much you really need of it
[*]Check possibility of reducing the number of windows or choosing simpler window formats.
[*]If balcony is planned, possibly omit. You’ll be sitting on the terrace anyway.

So much for my initial thoughts.