Short answer: As a building owner you bear responsibility from the moment you sign the contract for safety, insurance and decisions on your building site – the most important duties and aids at a glance.
What is a building owner (Bauherr)?
A building owner is someone who has a construction project carried out in their own name and at their own expense, thereby bearing the legal responsibility towards authorities, contracting firms and third parties. The building owner commissions those involved in the construction, initiates the necessary permits and is responsible for compliance with the public-law regulations – regardless of whether they build themselves or a prefabricated house provider, a construction company or a property developer carries out the work.
Which topics are important for building owners?
Duties & the building site
Traffic safety obligations, monitoring the building progress and your responsibility as the client on your own building site.
Insurance
Which policies make sense before, during and after construction – from protection against property damage to liability towards third parties.
Contracts & rights
Construction contract, specification of works and your rights in case of defects – before you sign and when deviations occur.
Checklists & tools
Structured lists for every construction phase, so that no deadline and no inspection step is missed.
Own contribution
How much you can save through your own work and which trades are suitable for it.
Offers & decision
Have existing offers checked and compare suitable offers from providers.
How do I plan my house as a building owner?
Before contracts are signed, it is worth doing an initial rough plan of size, floor plan and fittings. In the configurator you can plan your house online and use the results as a basis for provider discussions. Anyone thinking specifically in terms of system construction can equally plan a prefabricated house there and run through variants.
Frequently asked questions from building owners
What does “Bauherr” mean?
“Bauherr” is the German term for the building owner or client – the person who has a construction project carried out in their own name and at their own expense. In German the singular is “der Bauherr”, and it takes the form “Bauherrn” in the genitive, dative and accusative; the plural is “die Bauherren”. In this guide we use “building owner” for the same role.
From when am I legally the building owner?
As a rule, you take on the building owner role when you sign the contract and construction begins. From that point on, as the client you bear responsibility for decisions, deadlines and safety on your building site – even if the contracting firms carry out the work.
What duties do I have as a building owner?
The central duties include traffic safety on the building site, monitoring the building progress, releasing payments on time, and complying with the public-law requirements from the building permit and building regulations. You will find details in the guide to the building site during house construction.
Which insurance do building owners need?
Frequently mentioned are building owner liability insurance, construction performance insurance and fire shell insurance. Which policies make sense for your project depends on the construction method, own contribution and execution. The guides to building owner insurance and to building owner liability insurance provide an overview.
How do I check my construction contract?
Pay attention to a complete specification of works, a clear fixed-price commitment, construction time, securities and rules on variations and defects. The guide on checking the construction contract takes you through the most important clauses point by point.
Where is the best place to start as a building owner?
A structured start via checklists and a schedule makes sense. This way you first clarify the budget, plot and provider selection before contracts and the start of construction follow.
From an overview to a concrete offer
You know your duties and tools – for prices and fittings in your region you need concrete offers. Request suitable offers free of charge or have an existing offer checked.
