Danwood complete offer vs. separate commissioning architect

Good day,
we are planning a detached single-family house on about 500m² of land in BaWü. Since the plot has a moderate slope, we will build with a basement. After extensive research and comparison, two offers emerged as follows:

[*
Customized catalog prefabricated house from Danwood
[LIST]
[*]Exterior dimensions 10.57x8.92=94.3
[*]Architectural services (fixed price, approx. €8,000) and basement construction to be commissioned separately (i.e. at least three contracts)
[*]Danwood recommends partner basement builder Glatthaar and also architects known to you


[*]Customized catalog prefabricated house from Fingerhaus


[*]Exterior dimensions 9.75x8.35=81.4
[*]Architectural services and basement are included in the offer, i.e. only one contract

In terms of equipment, we have largely aligned both offers (each with interior finishing, i.e. "turnkey," including basement waterproofing, energy standard and many other details are comparable). Now the first offer, despite the larger house size, is about €25,000 cheaper. Since Danwood produces in Poland and Fingerhaus in Germany, this may explain the price difference.

Now to the actual question: What worries us a little is that with Danwood we have to commission architect and basement separately. For the earthworks/civil engineering, a fourth company might also be added if Glatthaar is too expensive here. Our concern is that in this constellation, we as builders might get worn down, or may have to act as construction managers at times without professional expertise (because Danwood’s specialist construction manager will, of course, only be responsible for the Danwood house, not necessarily for the basement/house interface). How likely is such a scenario based on your experience? What would the security and comfort of the complete package be worth to you?

Thank you for your advice!

Basically, the collaboration between Danwood and Glatthaar works relatively well – they are long-standing, well-coordinated partners. If you have no special requirements for the basement (such as semi-open, living basement, etc.), everything should work relatively smoothly. They already have a catalog of finished detailed plans that cover the usual cases, so it is relatively unlikely that anything will not fit. They also trust each other enough to plan the manufacturing of the house and the installation scheduling in parallel with the basement construction to avoid delays in the construction process.

However, we built with Danwood and another basement builder because Glatthaar is relatively expensive (we had received a detailed offer). The earthworks were our responsibility anyway or had to be organized by us. I would not necessarily recommend our setup to you, especially if you do not want to have to follow up with the tradespeople. For example, Danwood is much more cautious and does not plan manufacturing or share installation appointments before the basement has been approved by the Danwood site manager. In the end, it worked out for us as well, and I think we both saved money and got better quality than with Glatthaar, but you really have to check every detail.

With Danwood in general, everything stands and falls with the sales department and their architects – so inform yourself beforehand and take into account the experience of other homeowners accordingly.

In principle, you should definitely check all the details of the construction service description to be sure that the comparison between Danwood and Fingerhaus is really similar – Danwood is quite transparent in this regard, with Fingerhaus I do not know.

However, you basically also have to organize some things yourself with Danwood that are usually included with most other prefabricated house companies. Did you receive a corresponding instruction/list from the Danwood sales department?

Oh, by the way: as a rule, I would recommend realizing the house design with an independent architect first, and only then approaching prefab house companies and obtaining quotes. This way, you can be fairly certain that, on the one hand, the comparison is truly relevant and, on the other hand, that the best possible outcome is squeezed out of the plot and rough budget. Provided the architect is reasonably capable and has some experience with timber prefab house construction, the biggest cost traps can already be avoided during the design phase. You can then confidently place the detailed and execution planning with the prefab house builders and their architects.

Thank you for your answer.

The basement is to be partially used for residential purposes, i.e. the house entrance area and the home office will be located in the basement.

but you really have to check every detail.

Can you name a few points here? My understanding would be that the basement builder provides the basement based on plans from Danwood or the architect. These specifications should then also become part of the contract. My idea is that as soon as the planning is finalized, the basement including earthworks will be put out to tender and awarded to the best bidder. Ideally, this would be Glatthaar, due to the familiarity between Glatthaar and Danwood that you mentioned.

Did you receive a corresponding instruction/list from the Danwood sales department?

I have received a list of additional construction costs from Danwood. This includes several points from cistern, entrance platform, MSH through earthworks to basement plaster and surveyor, totaling over €90,000 (with a house and basement value of approx. €400,000). That should put me in a good position, right, or which points do you mean specifically?

Thanks for the tip about the independent architect. It is indeed my plan to have the planning checked by an architect/construction expert before signing the contract in order to avoid planning errors.

However, you basically have to organize some things yourself at Danwood

If you mean things like site setup, meter cabinet, ground survey, etc., I have that on my radar :)

Hello - why can you already have an offer for the house when the architect has to be commissioned for the planning first?
GD