Is financing feasible or are we overextending ourselves?

I also think that with some discipline, commission and salary come together. What is still not clear to me: In the 430k is a plot included in an area where 125m² apartments cost 790k? 250k for the plot? Or is it already from an inheritance/similar?

I also think that with a bit of discipline, mortgage and income come together. What is still not clear to me: In the 430k there is a plot of land in an area where a 125m² apartment costs 790k? 250k for the plot? Or is it already inherited/something like that?

here comes the difficult part (not that it isn’t already tricky):

In DD the land price is beyond 500 euros/sqm. We can’t manage that. We searched for a plot in a nearby town.

That is around 150k euros. That is extremely much for our budget and we are aware of that. Therefore, we decided to play with open cards with the construction companies and communicated from the start how tight our budget is.

We wanted to stay at max 460k euros. The plot is all in 165,000 euros.
- No broker fees
- fully developed
- flat
- utilities connected
- soil survey done
- fully measured

Besides that 250k euros for the house, 30k euros additional costs and 15k euros for outdoor facilities.

- Earthworks + base slab + shell construction + roof truss + roof estimated by the company (offer outstanding) 120k euros - solid masonry with sand-lime bricks + insulation
- Electrical work done by ourselves (material + inspection only)
- Insulation done by ourselves / exterior plastering we have a friend’s plastering crew, material we get from equity
- Sanitary company belongs to family -> gas boiler + solar thermal + underfloor heating ground + upper floor + sanitary equipment + labor costs 30k
- We let the tiles be laid on the ground floor + laminate on the upper floor done by ourselves
- Painting work done by ourselves

The only “special equipment” are the electric shutters, a slightly bigger dormer, the walk-in shower and the underfloor heating. We could still do without the electric shutters if there is noticeable saving potential. Dormer and shower are “must haves” for my wife. I already did the expensive extras calculations for her ^^ and we cut those out then. But those were rather “nice to have” things. Regarding the living standard, we are not extremely demanding either. The location is more important to us here.

We hope to squeeze it into the budget this way. We are still waiting for important offers. Then we will decide if it works like this or what else can be cut. More expensive is out of the question.

If desired, I can gladly continue to report on the development?

How big should the house be? 120sqm, ok, that should be doable. If it should be 160, you should have another 60-70k€ in reserve.

According to the drawing, 145 sqm. So in the middle. We know that this is very tight. But the requirements are based on the budget. That means plain-colored plastic windows, standard electrical work, and no smart home and so on are enough for us. Once we have all the offers, we will see where this is going. However, we are aware that it could also become a "this is too expensive" situation. Although the boss of the construction company actually sounded optimistic that he can manage it. But I will report on it when we have the figures.

We need to see about the outside. My best friend is a timber construction engineer and would do the drawings for the carport and terrace roof (if Madame wants it, a parasol is enough for me). We would only have to pay for material and muscle power. I have to see if we can pave the terrace. I rather think not. We will have to invest money here. For the garden, there will be lawn first. The borders for the flowerbeds will come later. I have to see if the hedge can be shared with the neighbors (they are already building their house).

60-70k more is out of the question. Either it fits or we have to cancel. If it still doesn’t fit, we will do without. I want to avoid at all costs being caught in the "oh, you only build once" spiral and ending up with 530k euros in the end.

Oh, one more thing I forgot: we only bought the kitchen 6 months ago (for our apartment, shortly after we found the [property]) – it is also fully paid for.

I have already spoken with the kitchen studio. We will take the new kitchen with us and adapt it. So new countertops and 2-3 cabinets will be added. The appliances and existing cabinets will fit into the new kitchen. It should amount to a maximum of 3-5k euros.

So a good chunk of money is already saved here.

Hm... well, I do see the personal contributions as already being within the feasible range. You can’t trust the general contractor’s statements about costs ("it’s fine") at all. They don’t care whether you have to finance three times more. Nevertheless, with a proper plan, a lot of personal contribution, and discipline during the construction phase (NO changes / upgrades), it’s doable.

What you really need to seriously calculate again is the outdoor area. "It’s just going to be lawn first." Well, sowing grass costs almost nothing, but getting the plot into a condition where you can sow depends on its state and after construction can quickly cost five figures. You need an entrance platform, you need a terrace, you need an excavator or a lot of endurance and many hardworking shovelers. You need some kind of driveway / parking space. I don’t see the terrace roof and the carport happening in the next few years; that will come later. But you have to factor in the other items now, they’re fixed, and it doesn’t make sense to push them aside and say "it will work out."

Are there no options to somehow get more equity? Advanced inheritances or even a private loan or something along those lines?