After here, regarding the topic "from whom do I get everything from a single source or at least the regulars know each other well enough for successful team play," in my opinion, once again a big batch of "myths in bags" has been dispensed, I would like to explain this again fundamentally:
General contractors (GU) for (brick by brick or also timber construction)
site-built houses are (at least in small and medium size) basically bricklayers and concrete workers or carpenters and, for reasons of trade law, cannot help but cooperate with subs concerning some trades. The GUs sailing under the flag of big names are regularly those of often small rather than medium size. Only really large GUs with several hundred employees in the technical area actually cover – and then actually even into the finishing trades – the whole or almost whole range.
GUs for
largely prefabricated houses regularly have a fixed core team for the work in the hall and for the setting and only know their subs well where they build in the vicinity of a factory location. Subs are regularly not traveling nationwide and therefore at more distant construction sites are not permanent team members. An exception are those "manufacturers" who, as I would nicely say, "tender their subcontractor business Europe-wide."
Architects and GUs – if each from near the construction site – differ in no way regarding the degree of knowledge of their regulars and consequently their interaction. In single awarding, one must distinguish between owner self-awarding (mostly with permission plans circulated by email) and architect single awarding (after professional tendering). With a GU, you can end up not only because you consciously address only GUs – but also because GUs also respond to a tender!
It is therefore possible to give a general recommendation to some extent depending on the buyer type.
Not only that, but also according to the nature of the object: a middle house – if not as an existing property – is best sought as a developer object. Also, with the house forms "semi-detached or terraced house," it is best to go to the developer and secondly, to a joint planner. Only for the detached, newly built single-family house, all routes are equally good according to the house form (and then the "type" of builder decides which way fits best). Here, too, the rule applies for a middle house: architect (possibly with GU) if one sees
sampling as pleasure, and GU without architect if one perceives
sampling as a burden. It also applies that for an existing property the GU would be per se the best choice only if one wants to afford stinginess and laziness by skipping the topic "measurement of the existing property."