Save costs without (manual) own efforts?

Hello everyone,

one often reads that some people save money on house construction by doing work themselves. I am not skilled in handiwork. Therefore, that is out of the question. However, I wanted to ask if you know or have found other ways to save money.

For example, is it worthwhile to search for cheap purchasing options for materials yourself (tiles, bathroom fixtures, or similar)?

Can certain official matters be taken over from the construction company in exchange for reducing the personnel costs that the construction company calculates for this?

Or is it possible in a completely different way? I would be interested in your experiences...

Thank you!

Official errands are all yours; for an additional charge, the BU will do that. Material? How do you want to get better conditions? And what about the BU's "margin"? You can save costs by building smaller or not at all. Otherwise, rely on simple equipment.

Wait for Karsten. He has written several times already about where exactly costs can be saved.

In general, most craftsmen do not agree to you buying and providing the materials yourself. They lose a lot of money that way.
Often it is also not worth separating the individual trades, as the credit is often ridiculous.
You can try awarding contracts individually, but even then you have to invest a lot, a lot of time.

For me, it starts with the price negotiations before signing the contract. It should end with you there as well.

Alltours, everything but cheap... well, it doesn’t quite work like that. Analysis, what do we want, what do we need. That is a. Whoever doesn’t do that lets all kinds of nice to haves be sold to them without asking the question, do I want that or should I want it? Build clearly in structure. Right angles, no bay windows. Build with standard window openings, all the same. Build according to the 2016 Energy Saving Ordinance and forget the KfW stuff. Find a builder without a sample center, so you can buy tiles etc. wherever you want. Don’t build cheaply, but cost-effectively. No fear of windows from Poland, don’t sink money into five-digit aluminum front doors that are made of plastic and are also airtight. Kitchen, Ikea, concrete roof tiles, don’t forget to budget money for garden, paths, terrace, if you do it yourself, that alone costs thousands in materials, if you hire labor, you must have fifteen thousand available. Think of enough sockets and switches, but no smart home. Function, not fun. Don’t save on wall or roof construction, not on heating, good products pay off there, it should last. Our builder practically builds the house a second time in the development. The model will be tens of thousands more expensive than ours. Difference is, gray windows, glazed roof tiles, shutters, windows not from Stettin but from around the corner, controlled residential ventilation instead of Helios with Regelair, more expensive tiles, air-water heat pump instead of gas heating. Is the model that costs tens of thousands more better in everyday use than ours? Karsten

Only before signing the contract should all wishes be negotiated as cost-neutrally as possible (was my favorite word). After that, you are at the mercy of the BU if there are special requests. They can be expensive, but also fair.