Semi-detached house, upscale fittings: Are the additional costs correct?

Hello, first of all thank you very much for the answers. I will try to ask all the questions from the architect.

So the property is a building gap. That means there have been other houses there for a long time (also on this "slope"). The architect uses "waterproof concrete", house wall and also basement and under the basement slab such a waterproof foil. The creek should be about at the same level as half of the basement, however the creek is about 3m away from the house wall. The creek has a riverbed of at least 1.5-2m wide and about one meter deep. Allegedly there has been no flooding there in the last 20 years. The creek comes from under the street through a kind of tunnel.

My wife just said, he probably said we would achieve KFW70 with underfloor heating + air heat pump. Why this is not included in the "upscale" equipment, I will inquire.

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At the request of the TE, I have deleted the name of the provider as well as the architect.

Rhenish greetings
Building expert

Why this is not included in the "upscale" equipment, I will inquire

The "upscale" equipment refers to sanitary fittings, electrical plastic, and tile price.
It is not uncommon that Villeroy & Boch is listed, but that the models are not up to date. For tiles, the tile price is usually over €20 (under €30, but rarely a laying price for 60 x 60 is included).
You can see for yourself what is listed there. That is used to lure customers.

By "upscale" the building services are not meant. What would be considered upscale there? Contemporary or energy-saving technology, according to EnEV XXX, would be more of a classic term...

Regards, Yvonne

If you want, I can gladly scan the construction service description (somewhat sparse) and upload it as a PDF. However, it is actually not allowed to pass this on to third parties and they threaten with damages, etc., as it is protected by copyright.

You also have to consider that the real estate transfer tax applies to everything. So again about 5 to 6 percent on the total amount. For me, all of this sounds a bit unclear at first. How expensive are plots of land with you so that you can estimate how expensive the house really is.

Hello,

we met with an architect yesterday who showed us a plot for a semi-detached house. The other half is already built. The house has 140 sqm of living space, with a large part of the basement already included since it is habitable (with a window).

Does that mean ground floor - 50 sqm, upper floor - 50 sqm, and basement - 40 sqm? For which house size?

The house’s fittings are supposed to be upscale (I’ll copy the Immobilienscout ad here at the end).

Let’s see then...

The architect will be the general contractor and will work with regional craftsmen.

Means 5% real estate transfer tax from €289,820.00

Additional services like extra sockets, different bathroom fittings etc. I have to contact his respective craftsmen and they then tell me the costs.

And how many sockets per room, which sanitary fittings are contractually guaranteed from the start?

Only a gas heating system with radiators in the rooms is installed.

No wonder at the offered price.

According to Immowelt, the average land price in BW for a plot of at least 300 sqm is €195.10/sqm; likely even more, as portal values rarely reflect the current market. For simplicity, I still calculate with this value. That means the monetary land share is €81,942.00; about €207,878.00 remains for the semi-detached house share in Bauhaus style with a living basement. I surely don’t need to break down that this cannot come close to "upscale" fittings; I am even convinced it will rather be at the lower end of the standards.

He said if I want underfloor heating, it would be operated with an air-source heat pump. Additional costs for this system + underfloor heating amount to approx. €15,000.

Based on the above calculation and 3 floors, that sounds about right.

And he kept saying this air-source heat pump was solar technology?? Since it extracts heat from the air.

You better ask again; I’m sure you’re mixing up the information here.

Additional costs of approx. €18,000 for earthwork, sewer work and house connections.

Including backfilling? If it’s merely the cost for excavation and house connection, it seems quite high to me. Is backfilling included or is the semi detached house built in the second row and therefore has long pipe routes...?

What about a soil report and potential additional foundation costs resulting from it?

We could install a heat recovery system with air filter and such for approx. €15,000. Like in passive prefab houses, for allergy sufferers.

Is the system gold-plated?

With that, he estimates, KFW would even drop from 70 (which it normally is) to 55.

More likely KfW 70 combined with gas condensing boiler & solar domestic hot water system.

I forgot to ask about costs for electric shutters. What would you say? And how much does a garage cost approximately?

Given the current price structure, I would say he (the architect) will give you a “pretty” sum.

The plot is on a slight slope. That means about half of the basement is underground, or put another way, a few steps down from the terrace to the garden.

That could explain the position of the comparatively high earthworks.

And on the left side, the other semi-detached house, on the right side a stream and behind the garden, i.e., directly adjacent without space, the forest slope goes up.

What does the soil report say? Seepage water? Unusual rises of the stream over recent years?

Idyllically located by a stream, secluded at the forest edge...

So basically in the middle of nowhere; so €195.10/sqm land price can well be realistic.

A projected, attractive, single-family residential house, including a key-ready basement and solid construction,

There is nothing about a living basement...

In this generously designed and modern energy-saving house, your personal needs will be met.

“Generous” you will arrange your life on 3 floors from now on every day...

Together with the architect, you can define changes to the floor plan and fittings for your "dream house" according to your individual wishes.

Here lies the subtle hint that your wish list will adjust the house price to the required energy-saving ordinance and market conditions.

- generous and sunny bright open living / dining area - lots of glazing with garden and terrace views -

Nothing special... interesting to know would be the value of the glazing including frames to be installed.

generous living/workroom on garden level

How do you get from your living room to the garden with a view of the forest?

finished basement

Finished in which parts and for what purpose?

- energy-saving, breathable, natural brickwork, with additional full thermal insulation, for energy-conscious comfort

Interesting. On one hand, properties of the perforated bricks are promoted, only to cover them up in the same sentence with full thermal insulation systems...?

- heating system with efficient gas condensing technology

That is just KFW 100...

Availability: construction time approx. 16 weeks after construction start

Including drying times for screed? What does construction start mean? Start of excavation? Pouring of basement slab?

Rhenish regards

You also have to consider that the real estate transfer tax applies to everything. So about 5 to 6 percent on the entire amount again.
To me, it all sounds a bit unclear at first.
How expensive are plots of land where you are so that you can estimate how expensive the house really is.

So the plot with about 460sqm costs €60,000, which is super cheap in our region (Mannheim) even though it doesn’t belong to Mannheim. It’s a small town on the Bergstraße. The standard land value for the street is actually €210/sqm, so we are still cheaper here.
The house would thus cost €230,000.

We know that real estate transfer tax has to be paid on everything. The architect knows that too, however, he said that so far it has always worked to pay only on the plot.
The plot is handled by a completely different broker. And he would also arrange it so that we would start building the house at a later time, significantly after the land purchase.