Land Purchase, House Construction Costs 2022 / 2023 Decision Aid

The situation would be good for us since we know the circumstances, but for outsiders it already has a few obvious disadvantages, so I am rather skeptical about a possible increase in value.

Would you like to explain the disadvantages from your point of view? One hour away from Hamburg sounds very good.

I'm from the southern part of the NDS area myself... which district is it? We're still quite cheap in house construction :)

Heidekreis, so not really far south.

How big is the house supposed to be? That should work.

~125m², nothing big.

Would you like to explain the disadvantages from your point of view?

Mixed-use area with an industrial plant directly on the other side of the street. We know that the air quality is not impaired and that it is not loud there because we live here, but for outsiders it first seems off-putting. You can't even see anything of this complex from the property, and on our side there are only the parking lots. Then of course the apartment building we live in now, not everyone wants that on the neighboring property either. But it's only 4 years old and rather upscale with very quiet tenants. And one side borders a cemetery, nice and quiet. On the plus side, there are no road improvement charges when the street needs to be renewed, no street cleaning fees, you can reach 3 supermarkets and the only train station in town within 5 minutes on foot, making it possible to get to Hamburg in about an hour by car or train. The location suits us well.

I will gladly fill out the questionnaire, but basically I already think I have a good idea of how much monthly installment we can/want to afford over which term. Together with our existing equity, this results in a realistic amount of €300,000 remaining for the pure house, plus all other costs.

The point is not which installment you can probably afford, but the second part. Which ancillary construction costs you have depends heavily on the plot of land and the house builder, with the tendency that "cheap" providers have higher ancillary costs because they shift more onto the builder and also some trades are not included in the standard. For example, painters and flooring are not included with them, but these are not part of the ancillary costs. You also will not find photovoltaics as standard, but it makes sense to consider a possible photovoltaic obligation in case it is not already planned with you (it is still a matter for each federal state so far). And suddenly the calculation may look very different.

Mixed-use area with an industrial facility directly on the other side of the street. We know that the air quality is not impaired and that it is not noisy there because we live here, but for outsiders it initially seems off-putting. However, from the property you cannot even see anything of this complex, and only parking lots lie in our direction. Then of course the apartment building we now live in; not everyone wants one on the neighboring property either. But it is only 4 years old and rather upscale with very quiet tenants. And one side borders a cemetery, nice and quiet. For that, there are no residents’ fees when the street needs to be renewed, no street cleaning charges, you can reach 3 supermarkets and the only train station in town within a 5-minute walk, which means you can get to Hamburg by car or train in around 1 hour. For us, the location fits well.

For me, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, but of course that is subjective. Do you see any alternatives if you want to purchase property and live in it?

I think that if you save a bit here and there, a house with about 125 sqm for 300,000 is doable. In my assessment, most forum members here build on a (also financial) level that is not so important to me personally. Maybe it’s the same with you. (Our kitchen (pictures will follow after completion), for example, will only cost a maximum of 5,000-6,000 and we will still like it better than other more expensive kitchens, without us sugarcoating it. ;-) As for the outdoor facilities, I cannot comment competently yet, maybe toward the end of the year or next year. The numbers cited here also seem enormously high to me. We’ll see.

The 300K for the house might be achievable with discipline. In my opinion, the danger is underestimating the additional costs and outdoor facilities. At [Pfeiffenkopf], long lines and paths are necessary. They aren't free.

For me, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages, but that is obviously subjective. Do you see any alternatives if you want to acquire property and live in it?

For us, the advantages also outweigh the disadvantages. My wife already said when we moved into our apartment that she never wants to leave here again, except that we currently have at least one room too few. There are few alternatives; so far we have never looked for alternatives in the €400,000+ range, but rather in the cheaper range where you almost had to consider major renovations, as I always thought you could save money that way. But nothing has come from that either.

The €300K for the house might be achievable with discipline. The risk, in my opinion, is underestimating the ancillary costs and outdoor facilities. At Pfeiffenkopf, long lines and distances are necessary. Those aren’t free.

Long lines, but connection possibly via the selling neighbor’s property, over his existing lines since his property appears to already have double connections. Apparently, there is a possibility, but don’t ask me how something like that could work and how it would behave in case of a malfunction. From the street, it would be 16 meters to the front edge of a possible building.