Hello,
we are currently in the middle of negotiations to purchase a turnkey semi-detached house offered by a real estate agent.
Does that mean you have no influence on the features?
The problem is that she apparently does not yet have a building permit for the semi-detached house. She says it can only be obtained by the owner of the plot or then by the construction company on behalf of the owners. She is sure that the house can be built as planned and refers to paragraph 34.
That is common practice and initially not a problem. § 34 refers to the admissibility of projects within the locally developed parts of a municipality. This means that the new building must adapt to the existing development; otherwise, there is no development plan available to serve as a guideline.
(1) Within the locally developed parts of a municipality, a project is admissible if it fits into the character of the immediate surroundings in terms of the type and extent of structural use, building style, and the plot area to be built upon, and if the development infrastructure is secured. The requirements for healthy living and working conditions must be maintained; the townscape must not be impaired.
(2) If the character of the immediate surroundings corresponds to one of the building zones designated in the ordinance issued pursuant to § 9a, the admissibility of the project is judged solely by whether it would generally be permitted in that building zone according to the ordinance; the exceptions allowed by the ordinance are subject to § 31 paragraph 1, otherwise § 31 paragraph 2 applies accordingly.
(3) Projects according to paragraphs 1 or 2 must not be expected to have harmful effects on central supply areas within the municipality or other municipalities.
(3a) The requirement to fit into the character of the immediate surroundings according to paragraph 1 sentence 1 may be deviated from in individual cases if the deviation
1. serves the extension, alteration, change of use, or renewal of a permissibly established commercial or craft business or the extension, alteration, or renewal of a permissibly established building for residential purposes,
2. is justifiable in terms of urban planning, and
3. is compatible with public interests even considering neighborly interests.
Sentence 1 does not apply to retail businesses that may impair the consumer-related supply of the population or have harmful effects on central supply areas within the municipality or other municipalities.
(4) The municipality may, by statute,
1. define the boundaries for locally developed parts of municipalities,
2. designate built-up areas in external zones as locally developed parts if these areas are represented as building land in the land use plan,
3. include individual external areas into the locally developed parts if the included areas are correspondingly characterized by the structural use of the adjacent area.
The statutes may be combined with each other.
(5) The prerequisites for establishing statutes according to paragraph 4 sentence 1 numbers 2 and 3 are that
1. they are compatible with an orderly urban development,
2. the admissibility of projects subject to an environmental impact assessment obligation under Annex 1 of the Environmental Impact Assessment Act or under state law is not established, and
3. there are no indications of impairment to the protected assets mentioned in § 1 paragraph 6 number 7 letter b.
Specific provisions according to § 9 paragraphs 1 and 3 sentence 1 as well as paragraph 4 may be made in the statutes according to paragraph 4 sentence 1 numbers 2 and 3. § 9 paragraph 6 applies accordingly. § 1a paragraphs 2 and 3 and § 9 paragraph 1a apply additionally to the statute according to paragraph 4 sentence 1 number 3; a rationale with details according to § 2a sentence 2 number 1 must be attached.
(6) In drawing up the statutes according to paragraph 4 sentence 1 numbers 2 and 3, the provisions on public and authority participation pursuant to § 13 paragraph 2 sentence 1 numbers 2 and 3 as well as sentence 2 shall apply accordingly. § 10 paragraph 3 applies accordingly to the statutes according to paragraph 4 sentence 1 numbers 1 to 3.
It is important to know that both semi-detached houses must be identical in external dimensions and appearance and must adapt to the existing development; sometimes offset halves can also be approved. What irritates me is the statement "offered by a real estate agent." Is this real estate agent acting purely as a land agent with the incidental aspect that the new building must also be sold? Or is she a house seller and can answer all questions related to construction? In the latter case, experience counts – as a rule, experienced sellers can reliably provide information about possible development.
Has anyone ever been in the situation of buying a planned house without a building permit having been issued? We are very concerned that after we buy the land and the current house is demolished, the city will say no, the house cannot be built like that, and we end up with a smaller house. I would be very grateful for your opinions.
There are various ways to minimize this risk. Here, too, I am irritated that the real estate agent/the future owner did not approach the building authority and clarify the possibilities of development within a reasonably reliable framework?
You can submit a preliminary building inquiry to the building authority at your own expense, regardless of whether you are the owner or not. However, if I were you, I would not do that. Go personally to the planning office – here in the Rhineland, it is usually open for public visits on Thursdays – and ask whether and what form of development of the preferred plot can be approved; then you will have much clearer insight, also regarding whether single-family house development is permitted at all.
The other alternative is to include a right of withdrawal in the purchase contract in case the purchased plan is not approvable. Then you only bear the risk of the fees for the building application – assuming the withdrawal right is formulated accordingly.
Kind regards