This construction company business plan is a full sample for a renovation company in Berlin, set up as a GmbH by a master mason and a civil engineer. It shows how a small firm wins refurbishment work from property managers and landlords, what it costs to get started and how the numbers develop over three and five years.
Use it as a model, or as a simpler construction business plan, if you’re starting a building, renovation or fit-out company anywhere. Swap in your own job types, average job values and crew size, and keep the tables consistent with the text.
- Business: Haselgrund Bausanierung GmbH, a residential renovation company
- City: Berlin-Lichtenberg, Germany
- Legal form: Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung (GmbH)
- Start-up capital: €290,000
- Funding mix: €100,000 owner equity + €190,000 bank loan
- Year 1 revenue: €998,000
- Break-even: Year 2 (net profit of €75,180)
Table of Contents
Executive summary of the construction company business plan
Haselgrund Bausanierung GmbH will refurbish older Berlin apartments between tenancies, renovate bathrooms and carry out energy-efficiency upgrades for property managers (Hausverwaltungen), private landlords and owner-occupiers. The yard and office are in Lichtenberg, within 30 minutes of most inner-city districts.
The founders are Jonas Weber, a master mason (Maurermeister) with 15 years on Berlin sites, and Aylin Demir, a civil engineer who has spent eight years estimating and managing refurbishment projects for a mid-sized contractor.
The company needs €290,000: €100,000 from the founders and a €190,000 bank loan over six years. Revenue grows from €998,000 in Year 1 to €1,724,542 in Year 3. After a small loss of €48,280 in Year 1, net profit reaches €75,180 in Year 2 and €86,730 in Year 3.
Company overview
Haselgrund is a renovation company set up as a GmbH, owned 50:50 by Jonas and Aylin. Jonas’s master craftsman qualification allows the company to be entered in the trades register for a licensed trade, which customers and property managers check before awarding work.
Mission
Turn flats around on time, with one point of contact and a fixed price. Property managers lose rent every week a flat stands empty, so speed and reliability matter more to them than the lowest quote.
Three-year goals
- Sign framework agreements with at least eight property management firms by the end of Year 2.
- Complete 19 full apartment refurbishments and 26 bathrooms in Year 3.
- Grow the site crew from 4 to 6 employed tradespeople.
- Keep the gross margin above 27% on every job type.
Products and services
Every job gets a written fixed-price quote after a site visit. Prices below are typical averages and exclude VAT.
| Service | Average job value (Year 1) | What’s included |
|---|---|---|
| Full apartment refurbishment | €42,000 | Plastering, screed, floors, doors, painting, bathroom refresh; electrics and plumbing via partners |
| Bathroom renovation | €18,000 | Strip-out, waterproofing, tiling, sanitaryware, plumbing via partner |
| Energy-efficiency upgrade | €30,000 | Interior insulation, window replacement and heating changes with partner firms |
| Maintenance and repairs | Hourly or framework rates | Damp repairs, plaster, small masonry jobs for property managers |
Haselgrund is a renovation company, not a builder of new homes, so it won’t take on new-build shells, roofs or structural steel. Staying in interior renovation keeps the crew’s skills focused and the insurance simpler.
Payment is staged: 30% on order, 40% at a midpoint and 30% on handover. Prices rise 3% a year in the plan.
Market analysis
A construction company business plan has to answer one question for the bank: is there steady work for a construction company this size? In Berlin, the answer comes from the existing housing stock, not new building.
Berlin
Berlin had 2,069,432 dwellings at the end of 2025, according to Statistik Berlin-Brandenburg. Most are rented flats, a large share of them in pre-war and post-war blocks that often need full refurbishment when a long tenancy ends.
That creates a steady flow of empty flats needing new floors, bathrooms and electrics. Owners also face pressure to improve energy performance, which brings insulation and window work.
Property managers in Berlin typically handle hundreds of flats each, and many complain about the same thing: small contractors who quote fast but start late. A firm that answers within 48 hours and hands over on the promised date gets the next flat without a tender.
Germany
New building is recovering slowly. Germany approved 238,500 new dwellings in 2025, 10.8% more than in 2024, according to figures reported by the German Bundestag. Haselgrund doesn’t depend on that recovery, since renovation work continues whatever happens to new-build permits.
Target customers
- Property management firms managing rented blocks for owners. About 55% of revenue, through repeat orders and framework agreements.
- Private landlords with one to twenty flats.
- Owner-occupiers buying older flats and renovating before moving in.
Competition
| Competitor | Strength | Weakness Haselgrund targets |
|---|---|---|
| Large general contractors | Capacity for big projects | Little interest in single flats, slow to start small jobs |
| Single-trade firms | Low prices in their trade | Customer must coordinate several firms |
| Informal crews | Cheapest quotes | No trades register entry, no warranty, no exemption certificate |
As a renovation company, Haselgrund’s pitch is one contract, one site manager and a fixed handover date. Property managers pay a little more for that because empty weeks cost them rent.
Marketing and sales
- Direct sales to property managers: Aylin’s existing contacts, plus visits to firms managing blocks in Lichtenberg, Friedrichshain, Pankow and Neukölln.
- Trial jobs: one flat at a sharp price to prove speed and quality before a framework agreement.
- Online: a German and English website with before-and-after photos and a Google Business Profile.
- Referrals: architects, energy advisers and estate agents who see renovation needs first.
- Signage: branded vans and site boards on every job.
Marketing costs €12,000 in Year 1 and €10,000 in Year 2.
Operations
Premises and equipment
The company rents a small yard with a 60 m² office and covered storage in Lichtenberg for €26,400 a year. Three panel vans carry crews and materials; tools, scaffold towers and dust extraction are owned, and larger scaffolding is hired per job.
How a flat turnaround works
- Site visit within 48 hours of the property manager’s request, with photos and measurements.
- Fixed-price quote within five working days, broken down by room and trade.
- Strip-out and first fix in week one, with partner electricians and plumbers booked in advance.
- Plaster, screed, tiling and floors in weeks two to four.
- Painting, snagging and handover with a photo report, so the flat can be relet straight away.
A standard 70 m² flat takes four to five weeks from start to handover. Large jobs run in parallel, so the crew moves between two or three sites at once.
Suppliers and subcontractors
Materials come from two builders’ merchants on 30-day trade accounts. Electrics, plumbing, heating and window installation go to four partner firms that Jonas has worked with for years. Subcontractor costs are budgeted at 20% of project revenue and materials at 28%.
Registrations and licences
- GmbH formation before a notary and entry in the commercial register, with share capital of €25,000.
- Trade registration (Gewerbeanmeldung) with the district office.
- Entry in the trades register with the Handwerkskammer Berlin. Licensed trades need a master craftsman qualification or an equivalent, held by the owner or a technical manager, as the Berlin service portal explains.
- Registration with BG BAU, the statutory accident insurer for construction, within one week of starting.
- An exemption certificate under section 48b of the Income Tax Act from the tax office, so business customers don’t withhold 15% construction tax from invoices.
- Registration with the tax office for corporation tax, trade tax, VAT and payroll.
Management and team
Jonas Weber, managing director (technical), runs sites, quality and the crew, and is the master craftsman for the trades register.
Aylin Demir, managing director (commercial), handles estimating, customers, purchasing and finance.
Each founder draws a salary of €62,000 in Year 1. A part-time office administrator joins at launch and goes full time in Year 2, and a site manager joins in Year 3 so Jonas can spend more time on sales and quality. The site crew grows from 4 to 6 tradespeople, budgeted at €56,000 each in Year 1 including employer contributions.
A tax adviser (Steuerberater) handles bookkeeping, payroll and annual accounts. The founders also meet their bank adviser twice a year to review results against this plan.
Between them, Jonas and Aylin cover the two places a small construction company usually fails: site quality and commercial control. Neither has to do the other’s job, which keeps the business running when one of them is on holiday.
Start-up costs
The biggest items in this construction company business plan are vans and working capital. Materials are bought before the customer pays the final stage, so cash has to be in the bank first.
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| Three panel vans (two new, one used) | €104,000 |
| Tools and site equipment (scaffold towers, saws, dust extraction) | €38,000 |
| Yard racking, office fit-out and IT | €12,000 |
| Rent deposit (3 months) | €6,600 |
| One-off launch costs (expensed in Year 1) | €15,000 |
| Working capital (opening cash) | €90,000 |
| Contingency | €24,400 |
| Total start-up capital | €290,000 |
The €15,000 of launch costs covers notary and register fees, trades register entry, branding, the website and first marketing. It’s included in Year 1 operating expenses.
Financial plan
Key assumptions
- Apartment refurbishments: 12 in Year 1, 16 in Year 2, 19 in Year 3, 20 in Year 4 and 21 in Year 5, at €42,000 on average in Year 1.
- Bathrooms: 18, 22 and 26 in Years 1 to 3 at €18,000. Energy upgrades: 4, 7 and 9 at €30,000.
- Maintenance work of €50,000 in Year 1, rising to €95,000 in Year 3.
- Job prices and wages rise 3% a year.
- Materials at 28% of project revenue, subcontractors at 20%, waste disposal at 2% of all revenue.
- Vans, tools and fit-out depreciated over five years.
- A €190,000 loan over six years at 6%.
- Tax: corporation tax of 15% in 2027, falling by one point a year from 2028, plus the 5.5% solidarity surcharge and Berlin trade tax at a multiplier of 410%. Losses are carried forward.
Three-year profit and loss
| Line | Year 1 (2027) | Year 2 (2028) | Year 3 (2029) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | €998,000 | €1,391,340 | €1,724,542 |
| Cost of sales | €709,000 | €963,070 | €1,192,133 |
| Gross profit | €289,000 | €428,270 | €532,409 |
| Operating expenses | €295,080 | €301,738 | €373,442 |
| EBITDA | -€6,080 | €126,532 | €158,967 |
| Depreciation | €30,800 | €30,800 | €30,800 |
| Interest | €11,400 | €9,500 | €7,600 |
| Tax | €0 | €11,052 | €33,837 |
| Net profit | -€48,280 | €75,180 | €86,730 |
Gross margin is 29% in Year 1 and 31% in Year 3, as the crew gets fuller diaries and fixed costs are spread across more jobs. The tax rate drops each year from 2028 because of the corporation tax cuts Germany passed in 2025.
Operating expenses in detail
| Operating expense | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Founders, office and site management salaries | €179,080 | €200,860 | €269,830 |
| Yard and office rent | €26,400 | €26,400 | €27,200 |
| Van running costs (fuel, insurance, tax, servicing) | €21,000 | €21,630 | €22,279 |
| Small tools and consumables | €8,000 | €8,240 | €8,487 |
| Business insurance | €11,000 | €11,330 | €11,670 |
| Software, phones and IT | €8,100 | €8,343 | €8,593 |
| Marketing | €12,000 | €10,000 | €10,000 |
| Tax adviser, legal and chamber fees | €14,500 | €14,935 | €15,383 |
| One-off launch costs | €15,000 | €0 | €0 |
| Total operating expenses | €295,080 | €301,738 | €373,442 |
Five-year summary
| Y1 (2027) | Y2 (2028) | Y3 (2029) | Y4 (2030) | Y5 (2031) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | €998,000 | €1,391,340 | €1,724,542 | €1,881,774 | €2,041,373 |
| Net profit | -€48,280 | €75,180 | €86,730 | €88,930 | €134,073 |
| Closing cash | €80,253 | €154,566 | €240,429 | €328,492 | €461,698 |
What drives profit in a construction company business plan
Two things: keeping the crew busy and quoting accurately. An idle week for a crew of 4 costs roughly €4,870 in wages. That’s why framework agreements with property managers matter so much: they fill the gaps between bigger jobs.
Closing cash is €80,253 at the end of Year 1, €240,429 at the end of Year 3 and €461,698 by Year 5.
Monthly numbers the founders review
- Quoted against actual cost on every finished job.
- Crew utilisation: billable days as a share of available days.
- Order book for the next three months, by customer.
- Money owed by customers, and any stage payment more than 14 days late.
These four figures show early whether the year is tracking this construction company business plan.
Funding request and use of funds
The company is asking for a €190,000 loan over six years. The founders are investing €100,000, 34% of the total, which includes the €25,000 share capital.
| Use of funds | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Vans, tools and fit-out | €154,000 | 53% |
| Deposit and launch costs | €21,600 | 7% |
| Working capital and contingency | €114,400 | 39% |
| Total | €290,000 | 100% |
Capital repayments are €31,667 a year plus interest. The loan balance falls to €31,665 by the end of Year 5.
Risks and mitigation
| Risk | Mitigation |
|---|---|
| Underpricing jobs | Standard estimating templates, a site visit before every quote and a monthly review of quoted against actual costs. |
| Materials price rises | Quotes valid for 30 days, price adjustment clauses on longer jobs and trade accounts with two merchants. |
| Late payment | Staged payments, 14-day terms and a firm stop on work if stage payments are missed. |
| Shortage of skilled tradespeople | Pay above the local rate, train an apprentice from Year 2 and keep good subcontractor relationships. |
| Site accidents | Safety briefings, BG BAU guidance, proper equipment and full business liability insurance. |
How to adapt this plan for the UK, Europe, US or elsewhere
This construction company business plan follows German rules. Here’s what to change elsewhere.
UK: a construction company set up as a limited company needs no minimum capital. There’s no master craftsman requirement for general building, but gas work must be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer, notifiable electrical work must meet Building Regulations, and the Construction Industry Scheme affects payments to subcontractors.
Elsewhere in Europe: check whether your trade needs a qualification or registration, how construction VAT works and what employer social charges add to wages. Some countries have reverse-charge VAT between contractors.
Ireland: companies register with the Companies Registration Office and pay 12.5% corporation tax on trading profits, well below Germany’s combined rate, so rework the tax line and price in euros as here.
US: contractor licensing is set by each state and sometimes each city, and bonding and insurance requirements vary. Many small contractors form an LLC, and lenders expect a construction business plan with state-specific costs.
Want to build your own construction company business plan? The Business Plan Generator for construction firms creates the full plan with 1 to 5 year projections. For local guidance, read our pages on a business plan in Germany and a business plan in Berlin. You can also use the business plan template, learn how to build financial projections for a business plan, or browse more sample business plans.
Construction Company Business Plan FAQs
How much does it cost to start a construction company?
This Berlin sample needs €290,000: €154,000 for vans, tools and fit-out, plus a deposit, launch costs, €90,000 of working capital and a contingency.
Do I need a master craftsman qualification to start a construction company in Germany?
For licensed trades such as masonry, the business must be entered in the trades register, which normally needs a master craftsman qualification or an equivalent held by the owner or a technical manager.
What gross margin should a renovation contractor aim for?
This plan runs at 29% in Year 1 and 31% in Year 3, with site wages, materials and subcontractors counted as cost of sales.
What is the exemption certificate for construction work in Germany?
Business customers must withhold 15% of construction invoices for the tax office unless the contractor gives them a valid exemption certificate under section 48b of the Income Tax Act. Certificates last up to three years.
Can I use this construction company business plan outside Germany?
Yes. Keep the structure, then change the tax rates, licences and wage costs for your country. The Business Plan Generator can rebuild the numbers for you.