Old building renovations can become costly traps. In conversation with Business Insider, Mary and Hendrik Utler reveal tips on how to mitigate this expensive risk. Alongside heritage protection, Instagram also plays a role, as you can read with BI+.
Mary and Hendrik Utler are renovating a house from 1897 for a total of 350,000 euros. They are investing a lot of time and love into the project.
The couple advises hiring an appraiser for historical properties before purchasing and considering heritage protection in all measures.
Other advice includes working with local craftsmen, utilizing social media for networking, and applying for KfW loans early.
Old houses often have a special charm. However, properties from an earlier building year can lead to both positive surprises and pitfalls. Depending on their age, an old building can also easily turn into a financial trap. Mary and Hendrik Utler were aware of this from the beginning.
The couple is renovating a house from 1897. They received the brick house, located in Hesse, from Hendrik’s family. The teachers plan a total budget of 350,000 euros for the renovation. They are contributing 50,000 euros in equity. Each will provide 150,000 euros through a KfW loan for energy renovations and through a real estate loan from Commerzbank.
“Since the KfW loan has a rather low interest rate, there is a manageable interest burden of 2.8 percent despite the expensive Commerzbank loan,” says Hendrik Utler. The couple will also receive a repayment subsidy of about 15,000 euros from KfW upon completion of the renovation.
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The Utlers have meticulously calculated the finances for the renovation. The project has been underway for about three years, and everything indicates that they will remain within budget. This is no coincidence. While the couple admits there is no foolproof recipe to avoid nasty surprises, they are confident that there are several tricks to reduce the risk of financial pitfalls.