Developer or general contractor! Safety?

dear forum, We have a question! We thought we were buying a complete package of land with a house on it! That was a developer for us! Now it is such that we are supposed to buy the land separately and the house construction is carried out by a general contractor! That may have been the case all along and we didn’t understand it! Now we are extremely uncertain because we don’t exactly know what this means for us! We would then probably be principal builders, which we actually never wanted, and wonder what has actually changed for us, or whether we are overreacting? For us, the issue of security, as far as possible, is very very important!! So the question is, what can we do for the greatest possible security? I hope I haven’t written too confusingly, but my head is already a bit overthought, Thank you very much for your answers and sunny greetings Tradelia

It is correct that developers sell house and land from a single source in one contract. The risk only passes to the buyer upon completion (acceptance). There is a fixed price. The purchase is not subject to VAT, but all fees (notary, land registry) and the real estate transfer tax are based on the total price.

What you describe, buying the land and then a work contract (not a purchase contract) with a general contractor for the house construction, where the land seller and the general contractor are identical or closely connected, is also known as a "hidden builder model." In my view, the buyer only has disadvantages in this case. One combines the bad aspects of the models: with the developer, the fact that they own the dream plot, and with the GC, the fact that you act as the builder yourself and bear the corresponding risks.

That of course does not argue against building a house on your own land with a freely chosen GC!

Nun ist es aber so, dass wir das Grundstück separat kaufen sollen

If you "should," that alone should already be a cause for concern.

The greatest security would be to look at a house, buy it, and pay for it. In other situations, attention should be paid to the solidity of the executing company and the payment terms should be carefully assessed to avoid overburdening through too much advance payment. A good construction supervisor would be advisable.

Thank you very much!!
We would pay in construction phases after acceptance! A site manager from the general contractor is of course involved! We would have an independent building expert from TÜV or DEKRA carry out the acceptance each time!
The contract for work will also be notarized! Real estate transfer tax is paid on the total amount, so it is obviously not a concealed client model!
VAT is included in the contract for work!
We would take out client liability insurance, construction performance insurance, and fire structural insurance! Is that sufficient coverage?

Bieber0815 has already summarized the differences excellently in my opinion! In the depicted constellation, unlike with a developer purchase, you probably do not have a fixed price above all.

And bear all risks arising from the property. If additional effort arises there, this would be at your expense. Furthermore, additional items may need to be provided by you, e.g. connections, construction electricity/water, etc.