silverminer
2020-11-02 01:22:28
- #1
Hello everyone,
this is my first post and therefore I would like to briefly introduce myself/us.
We are a family of four (33, 30, 5, 1) and currently live in a 95m² 4-room condominium (with our own 100m² garden) in Cologne.
Although the size of our apartment is sufficient for us, it is becoming a bit tighter now with the second child regarding the rooms, as I actually need a separate office. With four rooms, that does not work.
Apart from that, we want our very own four walls. The topic of "new construction" was never really an option so far, because our entire environment (family/friends/neighbors/colleagues) has always focused on existing properties and possibly certain prejudices (too lengthy, too risky, too expensive, too complicated, etc.) also led us to specifically look for existing properties.
Therefore, we have been searching for about a year for a house (terraced house, semi-detached house, etc.).
We quickly had to realize that even in the cheaper districts of Cologne, a somewhat acceptable house costs at least 400,000 euros, rather 500,000 euros. When you add purchase price additional costs + renovation costs, you end up at around 700,000 euros, which is well above the budget.
In addition, I am very bothered by the high purchase-related additional costs (around ~50k). On the one hand, this is the amount that banks want to see at least as equity capital and on the other hand, I don't want most real estate agents to have that money because, in my opinion, they did not earn it but only demand it.
In recent weeks, I happened to have a conversation with someone who recently built new with a prefab house provider (Allkauf Haus) and that got the ball rolling. The acquaintance had positive experiences and suggested that I also inquire about it. I was skeptical because I somehow could not identify with prefab houses made of wood (timber frame construction). However, the comparatively low prices piqued our interest. We thought this might be our chance to realize our (affordable) dream house.
In fact, we visited the prefab house world in Frechen near Cologne to really engage with the prefab house topic for the first time. There were really very impressive houses, but when we asked about the prices, the range was between 2,000 - 3,500 euros/m², which dampened the initial euphoria considerably. At those prices, we could just as well build conventionally solid without all the reservations about prefab houses, timber construction, etc.
The last house of the tour was also the Allkauf house. So we gave the salespeople a chance to convince us, and I have to admit that they do their job very well. The salesman had spontaneous time and advised us for about two hours and – as expected – everything sounded so great, simple, and straightforward. You just had to sign quickly to secure certain bonus offers, etc.
Of course, we do not yet have a plot of land, but we were supposed to sign anyway. Allkauf Haus could then support us with the search, and if one did not find anything suitable, one could easily revoke the contract. There and even now, it is a mystery to me why one should contractually commit to a provider and a prefab house at all without a plot of land and therefore without a concrete development plan, etc. I see the significant advantages of such an approach solely on the seller side.
Nevertheless, I have to admit that Allkauf Haus is very inexpensive (at least at first glance) compared to the other providers in the prefab house world. Of course, there must be reasons for this, but the question is whether the alleged "cons" would be relevant to us or not...
Now some more details:
Planned was an Allkauf Haus KfW40 single-family house without cellar with a granny flat on the upper floor and thus double KfW funding. The not yet existing plot was considered with 150,000 euros (up to 40km from Cologne). The single-family house with granny flat on the upper floor is supposed to have a living space of about 200m² and cost around 225k euros without interior finishing, but including materials. The interior finishing was deliberately left out, as we want to do a lot in EL and also have many helpers and known craftsmen/specialists available:
Plot: 150k
Plot additional costs: 13k
Construction additional costs: 80k (e.g., base plate, civil engineering, connection, etc.)
Allkauf Haus Gen. 4 including materials for interior finishing: 225k
Labor for drywall + all trades: 30k
Outdoor facilities: 30k
TOTAL: approx. 530k; minus funding approx. 475k.
If I now consider only the house, I come to just over 1800€/m² without funding, which sounds cheap but not unrealistic. With funding, it is even only 1560€/m², which of course sounds great at first.
Compared to an existing property, we therefore see the following advantages:
-New construction (new is new...) with significantly lower need for repairs
-Energy efficiency
-Floor plan planning
-Modern construction, design, and technology
-Subsidies & lower additional purchase costs
-Larger living space
Disadvantage: location outside of Cologne
Please forgive my following beginner questions, but I wanted to first explain our motivation and way of thinking to you, in order to then initiate, among other things, the next steps with your advice.
Financial situation:
- 4,600 euros income (currently one income) plus 2x child benefit
- 15k equity (yes, very little; invested well elsewhere)
- Budget: 530k euros including ALL COSTS
In advance, what we will NOT do:
- Sign a contract with Allkauf Haus in the short term without having a plot beforehand and without having compared prices with other prefab house providers and regional general contractors!
What we plan:
- Inform ourselves about prefab house providers suitable for us and compare offers
- Request and compare offers for solid construction
What currently bothers us about our condominium:
- Living room with 6.10m x 3.78m too narrow and dark (ground floor, surroundings built up, 2 windows, SE orientation)
- No laundry room
- No office
What we wish for:
- Own, spacious, detached single-family house with granny flat
- Large living/dining area (approx. 45-50m²) plus kitchen
- Bright rooms (floor-to-ceiling windows, SW orientation of the living room and garden)
- Larger entrance/"reception" area with gallery (open ceiling)
- Bedroom, 2 children's rooms, laundry room, dressing room, office, guest room (combining possible)
- 2 garages
- Min. 200m² garden
Our questions:
1. What are the general experiences with Allkauf Haus (including reliability)?
2. What is the difference to Massa Haus (Okal Haus, Allkauf Haus, Massa Haus) basically belong together?
3. Depending on the answer to 2): Would choosing Massa Haus make more sense if you want to do everything inside by yourself anyway?
4. Can you confirm that Allkauf Haus & Massa Haus are the cheapest prefab house providers on the market?
5. Would we be able to realize a new building in solid construction with the same budget?
6. If the answer to 5) is yes: Does this also apply to constructing a KfW40 house to claim funding and for 200m² living space?
7. Is it possible to realize the above room wishes with e.g. 150m² living space instead of 200m²?
7. Do you agree with the arguments regarding the preference for new construction?
8. In your opinion, is the budget/income sufficient to realize our wishes?
Many heartfelt thanks to everyone!!!
Best regards
silverminer
this is my first post and therefore I would like to briefly introduce myself/us.
We are a family of four (33, 30, 5, 1) and currently live in a 95m² 4-room condominium (with our own 100m² garden) in Cologne.
Although the size of our apartment is sufficient for us, it is becoming a bit tighter now with the second child regarding the rooms, as I actually need a separate office. With four rooms, that does not work.
Apart from that, we want our very own four walls. The topic of "new construction" was never really an option so far, because our entire environment (family/friends/neighbors/colleagues) has always focused on existing properties and possibly certain prejudices (too lengthy, too risky, too expensive, too complicated, etc.) also led us to specifically look for existing properties.
Therefore, we have been searching for about a year for a house (terraced house, semi-detached house, etc.).
We quickly had to realize that even in the cheaper districts of Cologne, a somewhat acceptable house costs at least 400,000 euros, rather 500,000 euros. When you add purchase price additional costs + renovation costs, you end up at around 700,000 euros, which is well above the budget.
In addition, I am very bothered by the high purchase-related additional costs (around ~50k). On the one hand, this is the amount that banks want to see at least as equity capital and on the other hand, I don't want most real estate agents to have that money because, in my opinion, they did not earn it but only demand it.
In recent weeks, I happened to have a conversation with someone who recently built new with a prefab house provider (Allkauf Haus) and that got the ball rolling. The acquaintance had positive experiences and suggested that I also inquire about it. I was skeptical because I somehow could not identify with prefab houses made of wood (timber frame construction). However, the comparatively low prices piqued our interest. We thought this might be our chance to realize our (affordable) dream house.
In fact, we visited the prefab house world in Frechen near Cologne to really engage with the prefab house topic for the first time. There were really very impressive houses, but when we asked about the prices, the range was between 2,000 - 3,500 euros/m², which dampened the initial euphoria considerably. At those prices, we could just as well build conventionally solid without all the reservations about prefab houses, timber construction, etc.
The last house of the tour was also the Allkauf house. So we gave the salespeople a chance to convince us, and I have to admit that they do their job very well. The salesman had spontaneous time and advised us for about two hours and – as expected – everything sounded so great, simple, and straightforward. You just had to sign quickly to secure certain bonus offers, etc.
Of course, we do not yet have a plot of land, but we were supposed to sign anyway. Allkauf Haus could then support us with the search, and if one did not find anything suitable, one could easily revoke the contract. There and even now, it is a mystery to me why one should contractually commit to a provider and a prefab house at all without a plot of land and therefore without a concrete development plan, etc. I see the significant advantages of such an approach solely on the seller side.
Nevertheless, I have to admit that Allkauf Haus is very inexpensive (at least at first glance) compared to the other providers in the prefab house world. Of course, there must be reasons for this, but the question is whether the alleged "cons" would be relevant to us or not...
Now some more details:
Planned was an Allkauf Haus KfW40 single-family house without cellar with a granny flat on the upper floor and thus double KfW funding. The not yet existing plot was considered with 150,000 euros (up to 40km from Cologne). The single-family house with granny flat on the upper floor is supposed to have a living space of about 200m² and cost around 225k euros without interior finishing, but including materials. The interior finishing was deliberately left out, as we want to do a lot in EL and also have many helpers and known craftsmen/specialists available:
Plot: 150k
Plot additional costs: 13k
Construction additional costs: 80k (e.g., base plate, civil engineering, connection, etc.)
Allkauf Haus Gen. 4 including materials for interior finishing: 225k
Labor for drywall + all trades: 30k
Outdoor facilities: 30k
TOTAL: approx. 530k; minus funding approx. 475k.
If I now consider only the house, I come to just over 1800€/m² without funding, which sounds cheap but not unrealistic. With funding, it is even only 1560€/m², which of course sounds great at first.
Compared to an existing property, we therefore see the following advantages:
-New construction (new is new...) with significantly lower need for repairs
-Energy efficiency
-Floor plan planning
-Modern construction, design, and technology
-Subsidies & lower additional purchase costs
-Larger living space
Disadvantage: location outside of Cologne
Please forgive my following beginner questions, but I wanted to first explain our motivation and way of thinking to you, in order to then initiate, among other things, the next steps with your advice.
Financial situation:
- 4,600 euros income (currently one income) plus 2x child benefit
- 15k equity (yes, very little; invested well elsewhere)
- Budget: 530k euros including ALL COSTS
In advance, what we will NOT do:
- Sign a contract with Allkauf Haus in the short term without having a plot beforehand and without having compared prices with other prefab house providers and regional general contractors!
What we plan:
- Inform ourselves about prefab house providers suitable for us and compare offers
- Request and compare offers for solid construction
What currently bothers us about our condominium:
- Living room with 6.10m x 3.78m too narrow and dark (ground floor, surroundings built up, 2 windows, SE orientation)
- No laundry room
- No office
What we wish for:
- Own, spacious, detached single-family house with granny flat
- Large living/dining area (approx. 45-50m²) plus kitchen
- Bright rooms (floor-to-ceiling windows, SW orientation of the living room and garden)
- Larger entrance/"reception" area with gallery (open ceiling)
- Bedroom, 2 children's rooms, laundry room, dressing room, office, guest room (combining possible)
- 2 garages
- Min. 200m² garden
Our questions:
1. What are the general experiences with Allkauf Haus (including reliability)?
2. What is the difference to Massa Haus (Okal Haus, Allkauf Haus, Massa Haus) basically belong together?
3. Depending on the answer to 2): Would choosing Massa Haus make more sense if you want to do everything inside by yourself anyway?
4. Can you confirm that Allkauf Haus & Massa Haus are the cheapest prefab house providers on the market?
5. Would we be able to realize a new building in solid construction with the same budget?
6. If the answer to 5) is yes: Does this also apply to constructing a KfW40 house to claim funding and for 200m² living space?
7. Is it possible to realize the above room wishes with e.g. 150m² living space instead of 200m²?
7. Do you agree with the arguments regarding the preference for new construction?
8. In your opinion, is the budget/income sufficient to realize our wishes?
Many heartfelt thanks to everyone!!!
Best regards
silverminer