Experience Report: Comprehensive Renovation of Single-Family House Built in 1900

We are mostly done with the majority of the work. Fleece wallpaper and paint on the upper floor are still missing, the bathroom still needs to be tiled, the chimney inspection is pending, and a few baseboards here and there. But no major items are coming anymore.

In total, the 100k€ was not quite enough, but we did not have to refinance either. Because around 2k€-3k€ flowed in from income every month, we probably ended up well above the renovation loan. I haven’t calculated the exact amount yet, as I have lacked time in recent months. But that is supposed to happen over the course of the thread ;)

Within Leipzig, there is such a large plot of land with buildings so! cheap?!

If you move away from the center a bit, for us it is about 8 km as the crow flies (or 10 minutes by S-Bahn), you can still occasionally find good offers. Of course, not under such conditions in the inner districts.

... and, it has already been 2 years, the time of purchase ...

Planning/Financing

We have arrived at September 2020 and the planning has meanwhile taken shape. Based on the existing floor plans, the rooms should be divided as follows. The existing floor plans were not yet completely to scale at this point in time, but they suffice for illustration. :)

The ground floor



The upper floor



At the same time, I created an initial plan for the extension, which was discussed as a draft with the building authority. Thanks to short channels of communication, I was given a preliminary oral approval for an extension within a few days, with special consideration of fire protection. This ultimately led to the decision to relocate the existing bathroom from the old house into the extension and to build a children’s/guest bathroom on the upper floor. Accordingly, the living room has become significantly larger and offers direct access to the terrace. The extension is planned for three years from now, and the existing house will be insulated at the same time.



Now to the details of cost planning and financing. Of course, the planned extension is not included here. Sources of information included offers, websites, and consultations with acquaintances and relatives. Since we have electricians, plumbers, carpenters, and structural engineers within our family and circle of friends, some costs can be balanced out with bratwurst and beer. ;)



The next step was to visit Dr. Klein to discuss financing options. At this point, I can only highly recommend hiring a credit broker. We were absolutely positively surprised by the expertise and experience with which we were helped here. Especially on the topic of renovation and KfW loans, we received many suggestions, which is why we ultimately decided to forego KfW.

In the end, we settled with Sparkasse Leipzig, which offered us the best overall package.

Due to the upcoming baby, parental leave for both of us, and job changes, it was important to us that the installment stays below €1,200 and that we have the possibility to make special repayments.

The key figures of the financing:

Household net income:	€5,550	Without bonuses and special payments
Household net income including parental leave	€3,800
Necessary expenses	-€1,170	Car, insurance, groceries, daycare
Optional expenses	-€600	Entertainment, dining out, vacation
Savings plan for retirement	-€800	ETF, stocks
Remaining	€2,980
Total loan	€315,000
Of which renovation loan	€100,000
Interest rate (15 years fixed)	1.29%
Monthly installment	€1,126
Remaining debt after 15 years	€168,000
Possible special repayment per year	€15,000

If you factor in that we can make special repayments of €6,000 annually (bonus payment, 13th salary), after 15 years there will still be a remaining debt of €75,000. We can live with that with a clear conscience and have the house paid off by age 45, should interest rates rise further and we pay the remaining debt out of equity.

Additionally, there is enough leeway to save money for the extension and take out a second financing.

The reason we ultimately chose Sparkasse was that we do not have to provide proof of use for the renovation loan and at the same time it is my house bank.

1.5 months have passed since the first viewing and we have received the bank’s approval. Next, we went to the notary to register the right of way in the land register. The house is accessed by a 20-meter private road, which is used by three parties.

In November 2020, we finally signed the purchase contract.

Very nice, I immediately put the thread under watch. Why? Because we are currently doing exactly the same thing (but in the Dresden metropolitan area) and my idea was, similar to the thread creator, to write a kind of retrospective diary for the users here when moving in. I’m looking forward to the further posts!