Request for quote regional general contractor tips?

Hello dear forum,

we would like to build and have already received individual offers from regional general contractors as well as offers from prefab house manufacturers, also to be able to compare.

My partner would prefer to build solidly, I personally lean towards wood because of the climate, but I can also very well accept solid construction. Our mutual tendency, however, is rather towards the regional general contractor and not the prefab builder.

All offers from regional general contractors, whether solid or wood construction, have so far clearly surpassed those from the prefab house providers. However, I have often read that regional general contractors are at least on par in price.

What tips do you have for finding regional general contractors that also approach the price range of prefab house providers? Or can I basically forget about it? Regarding construction services, of course, we have compared like with like.

PS. We want to build in the Main Kinzig district, near the Fulda district.

It is more likely that the offers are not comparable. As a layperson, it is also difficult to get an overview of this. How high are the offers for what?

If you compare, for example, only the shell house, meaning the envelope with heating, electricity, and screed, then there are significant price differences to be found.

The regional GUs charge prices that are about 20,000 to 30,000 euros more expensive for the basic framework of the house.

Another question: How can a layperson reasonably compare?

How can a layperson reasonably compare?

Classic Excel table. List all individual items down column A, with the providers across the top row. Then mark accordingly in the provider's column. The more detailed, the better. Foundation slab included? Ok. Is the excavation for the foundation slab also included? Is the disposal of the excavation included as well? Completely or limited to xy cubic meters? And so on, and so on.

We will try that.
As far as the foundation slab/floor work is concerned, these have not been calculated anywhere yet, since we are building with a basement and this will be outsourced externally.
That means we are currently only comparing the houses with each other.

What tips do you have for finding regional general contractors that also align with the price range of prefabricated house providers? Or can I pretty much forget about that? Regarding construction services, we have of course compared apples to apples.

Do you want an off-the-shelf house, meaning a catalog house, or an architect-designed house?

With a catalog house, you can only compare if the scope of work descriptions from all general contractors are comparable – so probably never. Or rather, only once you have a price for all additional work/special requests as well. But even then, it will not work 100%.

With an architect-designed house, you specify the scope of work, so that each general contractor gives you a price for exactly the house you want. Then there is complete transparency.