House from the 1930s. Renovate or rebuild?

It was worth it here as well. You just have to weigh it individually. We had intensively dealt with new construction according to our wishes beforehand and would have ended up paying the same amount of money or probably even 30,000€ more with a gifted plot of land and the new build than we did now with the renovated old building (about 285,000 including incidental purchase costs), which, however, is in a city location. The gifted plot would have been in a small town. A new build as desired would have cost us about 450,000€ in the desired city location – and we still wouldn't have gotten a plot of land. Since the location was the most important thing for us, the choice fell on buying the townhouse and we absolutely don’t regret it. But everyone can see it differently, as everyone has different views and a different starting point. If the structure can only be saved with a lot of effort or if the overall condition is so bad that you can basically only use the shell, then demolition with new construction is probably the better choice. In our case, however, the worst was okay (roof, facade, basement, etc.) and the structure is very good.

I would definitely consult an expert and have the substance of the old building assessed by a professional. Everything else is like looking into a crystal ball. As a layperson, you can easily be very mistaken.

The other question: if I read that correctly, the ground floor is high, as it was done in the past: the basement protrudes from the ground and to get into the ground floor, you have to go up stairs. In the 1930s, people did not necessarily value a terrace or outdoor living. Today they do. Would that basically be okay for you to live like that? I would think about that carefully. This is also an issue for accessibility...

You live in Munich, but want to renovate or build in SH. And live in Munich for the time being and then do own work? Or did I miss something? That seems very daring to me... how is that supposed to work? Even if relatives live nearby. I would already have concerns if my construction site was at the other end of the country and I am doing it with a general contractor. But maybe everyone sees that differently.

Honestly: if the house is not a 1930s jewel, I would probably tear it down and build new. With all the advantages: rooms and their layout just the way I want them, modern building materials (better insulation, better building technology if you plan it from scratch, etc.), terrace and transition to the garden at ground level.

What would your budget even be?