Anyone who becomes the proud owner of a condominium usually has their own ideas about how the interior or furnishings should look. Sometimes owners want the floor tiles in the new apartment to be replaced with parquet flooring or additional electrical installations to be installed. The Bauherren-Schutzbund e. V. (BSB) advises homeowners when buying their new apartment to communicate their ideas and wishes during the planning stage and to record them in writing and in detail in the construction and performance specifications and in the purchase contract. Particularly when it comes to special requests, such as replacing the floor, changing the opening direction of the door or changes in the area of electrics, caution is advised.
This is because, in order to avoid additional costs, all change requests should be discussed and specified in advance, ideally before the purchase contract is signed. If owners only communicate during the construction phase that they wish to make changes to the fittings, this will have a significant impact on the costs. If the purchase agreement has already been concluded, these changes must be subsequently recorded and certified by a notary public. In addition, the BSB points out that, at best, the work should be carried out by the developer. In this way, warranty periods remain with one contractual partner and the work is integrated into the construction process.
If another craftsman's company is commissioned for the modification work, the owners must conclude another work contract with the craftsmen. In this case, the work will run separately, so delays may occur. The reason for this is that work by one company must be completed before others can be resumed. If owners want to carry out individual jobs themselves, painting and wallpapering or laying the floor are particularly suitable options. Because the material costs are the same, large price differences develop however between the hourly rate of a craftsman and the own work input. These works should be carried out only if owners have a certain level of craftsmanship.
Source: BSB
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