Is building a house becoming cheaper now?

Why should building become cheaper? Single-family houses are likely to make up only a small part of construction activity; the majority consists of industry, commerce, the public sector, and multi-family houses. Building materials and wages will hardly become significantly cheaper again, with some exceptions. Non-modernized or outdated existing houses will certainly become cheaper, but I see no reason for that in new construction.

For the "<20 years old poorly insulated houses" I personally see prices declining in the future. I saw my parents-in-law’s utility bill over the weekend. What can I say? You really have to be able to afford to live in such a property, even if it is completely paid off.

Exactly, that is it. Whoever pays a four-digit amount per month in utility costs for their <200 m2 now either has enough cushion for old age or has to move out. This will greatly increase the supply of houses and the rents for correspondingly energy-efficient living space as well. Because how many houses with 40 years on the clock have been added online here lately is really astonishing. Of course, at adventurous prices. Apparently, some have not sufficiently observed the current market yet. These moon prices will also drop sharply. Because even new single-family houses in new development areas have been listed here for 2 months already, which would have been gone immediately a year ago. But in the current times, you also first have to find someone willing to spend over €700,000 for a house that is just 150 m2.

Why should everyone sell their old houses? However, old houses have the advantage that you can also heat some rooms less because open living concepts are rare. My grandparents only heated the bathroom, living room, and dining room in winter with stoves and an electric heater. The kitchen was at most tempered. The other rooms were not heated. Doors were closed and people dressed warmer. And the windows had single glazing. Every autumn, storm windows were installed to have double glazing. And people dressed warmer. And that is still the case in many old houses in the USA, GB, and Europe today.

Will building get cheaper?

I actually don’t believe so in the long term.

The demand is just super high. Even if building materials should become cheaper again (sometime), the high demand for land and the desire for a new home remain.

The prices of recent years have always been paid. Since a relevant part of our population actually becomes wealthier through inheritances, I believe that a lot of money will continue to be spent to fulfill the dream of a new house.
Now nobody is buying anymore because we have high prices and high interest rates.
So it is quite possible that the overheated prices will go down, but the overall burden from costs and interest rates will remain about the same.

Land prices will remain high depending on the region.

In my opinion, renovating is becoming less and less attractive. Expensive old houses and then I’m supposed to put in a few hundred thousand more? Better to keep paying rent...

Why should everyone sell their old houses? But old houses have the advantage that you can also heat some rooms less because open floor plans are rare. My grandparents only heated the bathroom, living room, and dining room in winter with stoves and an electric heater. The kitchen was at most tempered. The remaining rooms were not heated. Doors were closed and people dressed warmer. And the windows had single glazing. Every autumn the storm windows were installed to have double glazing. And people dressed warmer. And this is still the case in many old houses in the USA, GB, and Europe today.

You can certainly try that in a newer house – mold says hello. My grandparents heated their farmhouse just as you described and ultimately had a huge mold problem behind all the cabinets. Whether that was the trigger for my grandmother’s respiratory problems I do not want to judge.

I am not telling anyone to sell their house. I just assume that many first owners of such houses simply will no longer be alive in the coming years. In my father’s neighborhood, at 79 years old he is the youngest. The street has become a real old people’s ghetto, but the residential population will probably be completely replaced within the next ten years.

However, I recommend that people sell their old house if they simply can no longer afford the maintenance. This includes not only ongoing renovations that serve to preserve the substance but also maintenance costs such as electricity and heating. Why should I only heat two rooms in a 200 m2 house and ignore the rest when I can temper all rooms as I want for less money per month in a 3-room apartment?

Example: My father needs on average 3,000 liters of heating oil for his house and complains louder each year about the heating costs. Our neighbor across the street is the same age and pays 40 euros per month for heating his apartment. I have never heard him complain...

I recommend that people sell their old house if they simply can no longer afford its maintenance. This includes not only ongoing renovations that serve to preserve the structure but also maintenance costs such as electricity and heating. Why should I only heat two rooms in a 200 m2 house and just rough-calculate the rest when I can heat all rooms in a 3-room apartment the way I want for less money per month?

Because the quality of life in a 3-room apartment is not comparable to that in a house. At least not for everyone. Especially as I get older, I don’t want to have to give up my house, into which I’ve put a lot of work (and especially in this generation, much of it was done by oneself), which I have arranged so that I feel comfortable in it, where I have my own space in the garden. And then move into an apartment where others trample all over me, where I cannot leave the doors open...