Which downdraft vent? For a new kitchen? Who can recommend something?

Exactly my understanding, also the awareness that this would not necessarily create a feeling of lack. As a repeat builder, I am always amazed at the dimensions that young builders nowadays consider as virtually indispensable standards and what pressure may possibly build up to have this or that as well in order not to get an inferior house. Maybe one simply doesn’t remember enough the past; moreover, back then there was usually only what was available locally....unfortunately...but also fortunately. -

Oops, how out of it am I - what on earth is a Dekton countertop??? Never heard of it...

but that is also the German mentality. Marketing works perfectly in DE. The keyword is "fashion," and the masses orient themselves by it, because very few have the ability to estimate how something will look finished, or whether they really need and will benefit from the item (e.g., DGC in the kitchen). I have lived in DE for 47 years and witnessed how much pressure one is exposed to, because people talk about you if you do something different. Germans are known abroad for being very critical and for expressing it. People play it safe by building and planning the house and interior so that they don't fall outside the "frame." Except for the already high-priced properties.

I live in Australia, where there is hardly any "fashion," because it cannot be enforced. The cultures are too different. For example, everyone in DE believes that a kitchen without a Dekton countertop is not a kitchen, no matter how small it is, whether there are "only" IKEA cabinets underneath or the studio apartment is rented out.

I also don't understand why everyone is so eager to build NOW. Probably because you have to "keep up" with colleagues and friends. There is a lack of qualified personnel, everything is overpriced, you can't find an architect, and there is a lot of botched work on the construction sites. I have already experienced 3 boom and bust cycles; the last boom here ended in 2014/2015. Those who bought/built back then now get up to 20% less for the property. The last bust in DE was in 1998 (Asian financial crisis), and then no one built in DE for ages.