Is a new construction possible with our cost estimates?

Hello everyone,

we are currently planning our single-family house and are in the process of planning the financial feasibility.
The plan is for an approx. 135m² single-family house through a turnkey developer.

The basic house costs approx. €212,000.
We have planned approx. €44,000 for additional services.
No costs are planned for outdoor facilities because this cost factor is being gifted to us by the family.
We also have no land costs since the family wants to enlarge their plot and then gift us half of it.
We only have to demolish the barn (dimensions 11 x 13m) – we estimate approx. €17,500 for this.
For other ancillary costs (development, earthworks, house connections, surveyor) we estimate costs of approx. €30,000.
As a buffer (approx. 7.5% of the previous total) for unforeseen expenses, we are planning approx. €23,000.

This brings us to a loan amount of approx. €326,000.

We would like to fully finance this amount and expect a rate of approx. €1,500.

The further costs for kitchen, flooring, and painting work we would like to pay from our own equity.
This is not very high due to various circumstances, but the amount should be considerably higher by the planned start of construction (spring ’25).

Are the listed costs for the new building including demolition of the barn still realistic for 2024 or are we overlooking something here?

Thank you!

General information about you:

[*]How old are you? He 28 years, She 28 years (not married yet, planned)
[*]Do you have children? No
[*]Are children planned? Possibly 1 child in 2-3 years
[*]What do you do professionally? Commercial employee / teacher
[*]Are you employed, self-employed, retired, housewife, househusband, etc.? Employed and civil servant
[*]How many hours do you work? He 38 hours, She normally 39 hours

Income and asset situation:

[*]What income do you have (gross/net)? He €2,150 net, She €3,700 net (13th monthly salary of €2,150 and profit sharing not considered)
[*]How much child benefit do you receive? €0
[*]Other transfer payments such as parental allowance, sick pay, etc.? - €0
[*]How much equity do you have? €30,000
[*]How much equity do you want to invest in the house project? €30,000

Housing costs:

[*]Current warm rent €570
[*]Telephone, internet, mobile phone €125

Mobility costs:

[*]Insurance €120
[*]Fuel €240
[*]Is there a second car, motorcycle, scooter? Please provide all items again! Yes, 2 cars
[*]Financing until 03/25 in the amount of €250

Insurance costs:

[*]Accident insurance €13
[*]Liability including pets €19.50
[*]Private health insurance €240
[*]Household insurance €6
[*]Foreign health insurance €2.50
[*]Nursing care insurance €32

Living expenses:

[*]Groceries €550
[*]Restaurant costs €50
[*]Care/drugstore €75
[*]Clothing €75
[*]Pets €250
[*]Miscellaneous €30

Income and expenditure totals:

[*]Total income €5,850
[*]Total expenses €2,648
[*]Balance €3,202

Construction costs are more than low (currently an average of €3,000/sqm living space). You need to check very carefully what else may come up for you.

Otherwise, financially it is quite relaxed for you.

We also have no land costs, as the family wants to enlarge their plot and then gift us half of it.

Since the land should then be registered in your name, depending on the degree of kinship, acquisition tax and especially gift tax may be due.

The basic house costs about €212,000.
For additional services, we have planned approx. €44,000.

This corresponds to about €1,900 per sqm for 135 sqm.

For the other incidental costs (development, earthworks, house connections, surveyor) we estimate costs of approx. €30,000.

Rear plot? Higher connection costs could be due there. And a stable access route is also needed during the construction phase for the construction vehicles. In house building, usually only a maximum excavation of 30 cm is included; depending on soil conditions, more extensive earthworks might also be required.

Since the property should then be registered in your name, depending on the degree of kinship, acquisition tax and especially gift tax may possibly be due.

This corresponds to around 1900 euros/sqm for 135 sqm.

Rear property? Higher connection costs could be due there. And a stable access route is also needed during the construction phase for the construction vehicles. In house construction, usually only a maximum excavation of 30 cm is included; depending on the soil condition, more extensive earthworks might be necessary.

To my knowledge, the gift tax does not apply since it is the parents' property. As far as I know, only the usual notary and land registry fees would be due and no further taxes.

Are 1900 euros/sqm very unrealistic for "practically" just building the house?

Our house would be a house in the second row.
For this, I have planned about another 15 meters in addition to the existing 15 meters included and aligned myself with the prices of the utility providers and taken that into account accordingly.
For internet/phone, I thought of a conduit to make the bridging meters more cost-effective.

The driveway is about 3.70 m wide at the narrowest point (entrance area) and becomes wider afterwards and is still paved.
Thus, it should be passable for a 40-ton tractor-trailer (as required in the construction service description).

I am only concerned about the 20 cm precast reinforced concrete slab and the mobile crane.
I still want to discuss in detail with the developer whether the implementation is possible or whether it will be more complicated and costly.

The earthworks include 30 cm excavation and 30 cm backfilling with gravel and compaction.
I spoke with neighbors who built a semi-detached house and roughly estimated 8,500 € for additional earthworks.

But basically, I will still go through everything in detail and discuss whether anything is missing / needs to be considered.
So far, demolition work and the mobile crane are my biggest construction worries.

The gift tax does not apply to my knowledge, as it concerns the parents' property. To my knowledge, only the normal notary and land registry fees are due and no further taxes.

Correct. And since you can gift the building rights to yourself, the costs are negligible.

Is 1900 euros / sqm very unrealistic for "almost" just the pure construction of the house?

Let's put it this way. In my job as a banker, I haven't seen such a price with my clients in recent years (these are commercial construction clients who on average pay rather 3,500-4,000€/sqm). Realistic only with an enormous amount of own work. Even Town & Country or other similar companies no longer offer such prices (as starting prices).

Planned is an approx. 135m² single-family house through a turnkey developer.

Just for your information: A developer sells house and land as a package according to broker and developer regulations. You are building with a general contractor/general executive contractor. Then most likely a consumer construction contract according to the building code. Make sure that you also receive the legally required documents and information or are not taken advantage of in the payment schedule (not to mention the services "on site"). ==> urgent advice: please have the building description and everything around it checked by a professional (or post info here). Who is the builder?

Correct. And since you can skip the AV, the costs are not worth mentioning.

Let’s put it this way. In my job as a banker, I haven’t seen such a price from my client in recent years (they are commercial construction clients who on average pay rather 3,500-4,000€/sqm).
Realistically only with an insane amount of own work. Even Town & Country or other competitors no longer offer such prices (as starting prices).

Just for your information: A developer sells house and plot as a package according to the broker and developer regulation. You are building with a general contractor/general entrepreneur. Then probably a consumer construction contract according to the Building Code. Make sure that you also receive the legally required documents and information or that you are not tricked with the payment plan (not to mention the “construction side” services).
==> urgent advice: please have the construction description and the whole surrounding checked by a professional (or post info here).

Who is the builder?

So far, we are interested in Team Massivhaus from Northern Germany.
House type single-family house with half-hipped roof or perhaps a Frisian house.

That is a good hint to have the construction specification and possibly also the building law contract checked beforehand.
As construction supervision, we were considering bringing in TÜV-Nord to get a safer feeling.