House construction 1.5 stories: Are the costs realistic?

Dear house construction forum,

we (32 and 34 years old) are currently planning our house construction in the state of Brandenburg, in a small town about an hour's drive from Berlin. We already own the plot of land and all utilities are available at the street. It is a rear plot, 1,200 m² in size, with its own access road 38 meters long and 4 meters wide. The plot is on a slope with about 30 cm height difference in the building area (own measurement result ;) ).

We want to build with a local construction company that builds single-family homes in the region and has a good reputation. Friends of ours have already built 2 houses with the company and had no complaints. Now we have the offer for our house and would like to inquire whether the estimated costs for our project are realistic. Here are the key data:

[*]1.5 stories
[*]117 m² living space
[*]No basement
[*]Ground floor: hallway, living/dining area, open kitchen, utility room, guest WC (toilet and sink)
[*]Upper floor: 3 rooms and bathroom with bathtub and barrier-free shower
[*]Chimney with fireplace connection
[*]No roof windows on the upper floor, all windows installed on the gable sides
[*]Attic, accessible via pull-down ladder and with triangular windows on the gables for natural light
[*]Underfloor heating on the ground floor, radiators on the upper floor
[*]Gas condensing boiler and solar water heating on the roof
[*]Electric shutters
[*]Plaster facade
[*]All architectural services, statics, building application, etc. are included
[*]Construction site setup, scaffolding, etc. are also included

The house will be delivered completed except for painting and floor coverings in the 3 rooms on the upper floor, the hallway, and the living/dining area. All tiling work (guest WC, bathroom upper floor, utility room and kitchen) will be carried out by the construction company and the walls will be prepared for painting or wallpapering.

The price for the house is 265,000 EUR including VAT. This price also includes the groundwork for leveling the building area.

In addition to the 265,000 EUR gross house price, we still calculate:

[*]650 EUR soil survey
[*]2,000 EUR building permit
[*]900 EUR construction electricity
[*]2,400 EUR surveying/official site plan
[*]11,000 EUR connection costs for 4 utilities
[*]30,000 EUR for carport, paving work and terrace in the outdoor area
[*]20,000 EUR buffer

That brings us to a total of around 332,000 EUR. Is this a realistic price?

Thanks for your assessment and experience! We will gladly provide additional information if needed!

Best regards
Lisa

In addition to the gross house price of 265,000 EUR, we also calculate:

[*]650 EUR soil survey
[*]2,000 EUR building permit
[*]900 EUR construction electricity
[*]2,400 EUR surveying/ official site plan
[*]11,000 EUR connection costs for 4 utilities
[*]30,000 EUR for carport, paving work, and terrace in the outdoor area
[*]20,000 EUR buffer

Is the building permit that expensive where you are?
For construction electricity, construction water also comes to mind.
Overall with electricity, I would estimate it at 2,000.
Connection sockets can be somewhat more expensive for over 38 meters. But you can inquire about that with the providers.
Don’t forget the floor coverings and the paint for painter work, that can also run into five figures, especially the small stuff and adhesives cost money too.
Earthworks are probably included in the price up to 30 cm. Expect additional effort! I hardly know anyone who hasn’t already spent their buffer at the foundation slab. Earthworks for rainwater drainage also come to mind.
What is your driveway like? Does it have to be paved?

I hope it's okay if I just show you a list of the items we currently have on our radar. We are building a prefabricated house.

"Actually," it is a nice Excel table, sorted meaningfully, but I don’t know how to get it in here better. I have crossed out a few items as they are probably not relevant for you, but there are certainly still one or two unnecessary ones included. Please excuse this.

Property tax (notice)
Gas connection
Public drinking water supply
Telephone connection
Public sewer system
Electricity connection
Soil investigation
Surveying
Sewer connection
Structural engineering
Assignment of house number
Transmission of data from land registry map
Cost accounting notarization of mortgage
Review of offer/contract by expert
Kitchen
Garage/carport with workshop/tool shed
Outdoor facilities
Garden tool shed (if carport tool shed is insufficient)
Travel costs to the construction site
Refreshments for craftsmen
Tips for craftsmen
Double burden of rent and loan payments
Move
Construction supervisor/construction expert/building surveyor
Topping-out ceremony
Housewarming
Building application
Building permit (simple?)
Structural engineer for inspection
Police street closure
Confirmation of KfW funding criteria
Lawn/hedges/shrubs

Builder’s liability insurance

Construction performance insurance

Accident insurance for construction helpers

Home and property liability insurance

Fire - shell construction insurance

Completion insurance

Builder’s legal protection Arc fault (?) And according to the offer and construction performance description, this seems to be included with our house:

Roof pitch 30° instead of 22°

Increase in floor height by 20 cm on the ground floor and upper floor

Additional interior wall

Additional interior door

Additional glass interior door

Additional shower

Windows according to our plan

Electric shutters instead of manual

Central control

Intercom system

Network sockets

High-voltage connection

Additional outdoor water tap

Floor drain

Diffusion-open wall construction

Surcharge for underfloor heating

Flat plate collectors solar system

Chimney

Photovoltaic system

Plastering work

Wallpapering work

Floor coverings ground floor 65 sqm

Floor coverings upper floor 57 sqm

Pull-down attic ladder

Grilles for all windows/doors

Window casings

Window shutters

Concrete slab

Permit fees

Structural engineering and, if applicable, inspection structural engineering

Surveying and fees

Construction site setup

Construction electricity, construction water, energy costs

Earthworks

Sewer works

Waste disposal, containers

House connections

Inspection of building ground, regulations, soil report

Building application and architect services

Structural engineering

Individual exterior wall design

Sample selection travel costs

Building permit fee

The property description sounds to me overall as if a mass-produced solid house model (Flair 113) would be the ideal candidate for a price comparison. A plot of land not only has an elevation profile but also soil conditions. There I see the relatively greatest "uncertainties" lurking (or can be minimized through clarifications).

Hello you three!

Thank you very much for your comments and remarks. The costs for the building permit were communicated to us by the construction company. I will include the construction water in our calculation and also add some buffer for the utilities. Yes, you are right about the driveway! There are currently 3 small fruit trees there, which we are expected to cut down by the end of the month. Surely the driveway needs to be paved for the machines of the construction company. I will inquire about that with the construction company.

Thanks Pinkiponk for the list. There are a few interesting points there that we have not yet factored in:

- Allocation of house number
- Review of offer/contract by expert
- Generally a building surveyor for support
- various insurances

I will include those.

I just had a look at the Flair. A good tip! According to the house company’s website, this model would be available turnkey in our region from 175,000 EUR. According to the website, even the base plate and earthworks are included. Our floor plan differs from the Flair 113 and at first glance more material is used in ours (interior walls) and we have 3 more windows. The floor area for us is 9m x 9.75m. When I look at the other models, it is close to the Flair 125. This model is available in our district from 182,000 Euros. However, in terms of basic dimensions, ours is still somewhat larger than the 125.

Very interesting! Then it seems we are doing well regarding the price. The house builder told us that, regardless of the result of the soil survey, the construction company will cover additional costs for the earthworks. Now I don’t know how tightly a family business calculates compared to a big player. Whereas the latter has to finance a marketing department and show houses... The price difference between the two is quite considerable.

The home builder told us that regardless of the result of the soil report, the construction company will cover additional costs for the earthworks.

Check whether this is also stated in writing in the contract, especially whether all earthworks are included or only a certain amount / height.