Financial planning for new construction with good income and little equity

What I don't quite understand, where do you most likely see a problem here?

Full financing well above the collateral value with "weak" creditworthiness – hardly any banks do that anymore, as it is very risky (as I said, they would also reject you after 30 seconds).

let's say another 35,000 EUR as an installment loan

84 months term at about 6.5% interest are roughly another 500€ monthly burden. However, if I see your creditworthiness with the house installment and then negative equity, you will likely end up with 8.5–10% interest.

+ Friendly craftsmen, own work where certain costs for interior and exterior finishing can be saved. + Setting priorities, sure you want preferably a garage, fence + electric driveway gate, fittings from Grohe and not DIY store quality and so on and so forth. Or would a simple setup do, including laying pavement with a skilled friend for the driveway and parking space, and laying the lawn yourself with a few borrowed tools? If you have the choice between a house in a simpler version or none at all...

You can still play with that. But if you are already dealing with Town & Country, there is not much left (in terms of house construction) for EL.

So we come to the situation where all costs related to living amount to just under 3,000 EUR.

Nope, you will be above that.

Or is there a big gap in my calculation that I don’t see?

Desire to have children ideally after building the house, in 2-3 years

A salary will shrink in the medium term when having children.

City villa with 150m2, finished except for floor coverings and wallpaper, incl. additional shower as special equipment: 318,750 EUR
- Land for that from them 52,000 EUR

A standard single-family house costs about 3000€ per living space meter.
Only Town & Country is heroic and offers a house with just over 2000€.
Many may believe it, enlightened people don’t. There is nothing for free, and a standard price is not raised either.
The construction service description from Town & Country is very incomplete. You have to “buy many things additionally” to get even a contemporary medium standard.
It may be that Town & Country has potential for savings and you end up frustrated at 2700€/sqm. That would be 410,000€.

+ Set priorities, sure you want ideally a garage, fence + electric driveway gate, ... etc.

No, that is then of course not covered, because that concerns the land, not the ordered house.
With natural and cost-effective outdoor facilities (terrace, driveway, garden house and carport) you then are at a minimum of 50,000€.

Or is a simple finish sufficient, incl. paving laying with a skilled friend for driveway and parking space, and laying the lawn yourself with a few borrowed tools? When you have the choice between a house in simpler execution or none at all...

That’s what we are talking about.

410,000€ house,
52,000€ land,
Additional purchase costs 3-5,000€?
Property transfer tax 50,000€
Additional construction costs 50,000€
Kitchen, outdoor lighting etc. 30,000€
Outdoor facilities 50,000€
Buffer
__________
650,000€
And then you come with 10,000€ equity, of which the additional purchase costs are paid, the rest is used as a consumption buffer.

That’s what you don’t see and what was not mentioned here.
What some bankers answered here, you can also ask a freelance financing advisor yourself. But in terms of the amount, you won’t come down significantly.

A salary will shrink in the medium term when having children.

A standard single-family house costs around 3000€ per living area square meter.
Only Town & Country is heroic and offers a house slightly above that at 2000€.
Many may believe it, the enlightened do not. Nothing is free, and a standard price is not increased either.
The construction service description from Town & Country is very incomplete. You have to „buy extras“ to at least get a contemporary middle standard.
It may be that Town & Country has savings potential and you give up at 2700€/sqm. That then amounts to 410,000€.

No, that is of course not included at all, because that concerns the plot, not the ordered house.
With natural and cost-effective outdoor facilities (terrace, driveway, garden house, and carport), you then have at least 50,000€.

This is what we are talking about.

410,000€ house,
52,000€ land,
KNK 3-5000€?
Property transfer tax 50,000€
Additional construction costs 50,000€
Kitchen, outdoor lighting etc. 30,000€
Outdoor facilities 50,000€
Buffer
__________
650,000€
And then you come with 10,000€ equity, from which the incidental purchase costs are paid, the rest serves as a consumption buffer.

This is what you don’t see and was not mentioned here.
Some bankers have answered here, you can ask a free financial advisor yourself. But regarding the amount, you won’t come down significantly.

Thanks again for the answers!
Many things sound logical; somewhere you feel that some offers are too good to be true at the current market prices.

What’s important to me is to understand it a bit more concretely – not because I want to hear otherwise in the end, but also to have concrete arguments for my wife, who is already mentally living there…
This example here, specifically, where between the price Town & Country named for a turnkey house except for floor coverings and wallpapering and the assessment here that you have to shell out at least 410,000 EUR for such a house – is a gap of about 90,000 EUR.
What would be a „classic“ example of serious additional costs that are not included in the typical construction service descriptions of prefabricated house providers?
Thanks

but also to have concrete arguments for the wife, who already lives there in her mind…

I understand, acquiring knowledge and taking care of salary and expenses is nowadays not a privilege of a man.

What would be such a "classic" that means serious additional costs

Earthworks between 30 and 80 cm, foundation additional costs for the slab according to geotechnical report, rainwater connection and sewer. These can be the first 30 thousand. For Town & Country, thicker walls instead of 24 cm, smaller hot water storage... possibly additional technology that is not mentioned. Roller shutters, all electric or not, roof windows, ventilation, security. Interior fittings in the construction service description differ significantly from the mainstream taste of today. You only build once, and you want to see that. You see it in bathroom showrooms: Billigheimer’s fittings are, alongside other house building companies, actually somewhat outdated in design. No one has a great washbasin with cabinet, shower enclosure etc. included. If then a shower tray, walk-in shower or the like is desired (nothing extravagant), that can be a mid five-figure price for all bathrooms. Electrical: hardly anyone has sockets of sufficient standard. LAN, SAT, change-over switches, dimmers, outdoor electrics: not included. Nobody wants 30 x 30 cm tiles anymore. Many consider additional costs from 30 x 60 cm to be exorbitant prices. Costs for additional window changes. Construction power and water can also amount to a five-figure sum. The standard plaster turns green after 3 years, etc. One must not forget the double burden of standby interest and rent costs for hopefully only 1/3 of the construction period. Own work is overestimated: some can tile or lay parquet, others despair at the whiteness of ceilings and walls, have to call in a professional or need 2-3 months where others need only one month (annual vacation). The 3000 €/sqm living space refer to an average standard. It can be cheaper, but that is not desired. Then there are, for example, entrance platforms, entrance canopies and reinforcement of some walls to attach something later. Every item can be upgraded, not necessarily, but often desired and some substantial ones are also upgraded. The greatest misery is actually the internet with the glossy photos that advertise that a pantry is absolutely necessary, joints are no longer in fashion or a kitchen is not a kitchen if you do not have a 3-meter tall cabinet wall behind the aircraft carrier island. Faucets are now only installed in black; of course, a general contractor can charge very well for that…

Hm…
It's true that for many cost points one should generally assume a maximum.
But I see the job more like this – now looking at it very generally – to go through every point with the developer before signing the contract, doing preliminary sampling, etc.
I don’t want to advertise for Town & Country Haus, especially since from what I heard here, I really tend not to rush anything and to consider alternatives like terraced houses in larger residential projects or even apartments.
Still – it might be interesting for others who read this. Construction service description of Town & Country with regard to what was written above:
- Soil survey is available, they promise a price guarantee for earthworks, foundations, concrete slab.
- Bathroom fittings – yes absolutely right, the stuff calculated is what you find at DIY stores from €25 per fixture or €50 for a washbasin. But hey, you rather have to say you just have to live with it or replace it yourself outside the sampling – according to a Town & Country franchisee it’s possible individually, you give up the standard fitting, get €25 credited and bring a cheap Grohe for €120 to the construction site. Even times 4-5 for 2 bathrooms, you’re still in the triple digits range.
- Floor-level shower is included
- 30/60 tiles included up to €30/m2
- Double burden with rent can be reduced if you move, for example, to your parents for the last few months. Cumbersome but it’s possible.
- Kitchen: I saw figures here, €30,000 and more – a new kitchen in Germany cost on average €6,500-7,500 one or two years ago. Sure, the statistics also probably included kitchenettes for singles at €600, but still no one can say you get nothing for €12,000-15,000.
- Lights, there are design studios with several thousand euros per lamp, or Obi where you can find something for €50 already.

In my opinion, one should distinguish in cost estimates between things where you have no choice (additional costs for the concrete slab for example, where the builder has to be extremely careful) and where you do have a choice.
In the second case, it’s basically quite simple: you have €12,000 and not a cent more and want a new car. And with that you just get a Dacia in base trim. So you have 3 options:
- keep taking the bus
- consider a used car
- take the base Dacia because your own priorities are like that.

You simply can’t advise – “no, come on, with so many extra options in the configurator, where without built-in navigation or at least a screen you’re not up-to-date either, forget it, better keep taking the bus.”

I think you’re really not 100% in the “game” yet...

You really have to immerse yourself and read up on absolutely EVERYTHING if you want a certain cost transparency.

We spent almost a year comparing construction service descriptions, creating Excel spreadsheets, and in the end, we really almost stuck to the amount that was agreed upon – but that is rather rare and requires a lot of effort.

Trust me, every prefab house company tells you during the offer phase how easy everything is – no problem at all...

As soon as construction starts (usually even beforehand) you’ll experience a rude awakening.

When people here talk about buffers and set the incidental construction costs even higher, there is 100% truth to it – absolutely certain. Don’t calculate too tight. The price you are quoted is really 0.0 realistic.

I also wrote at the beginning that you will almost certainly end up over 500k – but that doesn’t even include outdoor facilities or special features yet.