Building a home is often a dream project — but for many Cyprus homeowners, it can become a frustrating and expensive experience due to poor planning or avoidable mistakes. From hiring the wrong consultants to construction errors and delays, here are some common pitfalls to watch out for when you set out to build your house in Cyprus.

1. Choosing Consultants Based on Cost Alone

Selecting an architect or engineer based solely on low fees can backfire. A cheaper consultant may lack experience, creativity, or attention to detail. Instead, choose professionals based on reputation, past work, and clear communication.

Do not simply rely on friends’ recommendations, but rather seek to see past designs of the architect and observe the creativity and the extent of detail in the drawings. Ensure that there is good chemistry between yourself and the professional and that he will be responding promptly to your requests and concerns throughout the course of the project. If he is overwhelmed with work and too busy, he may not be responsive or cause delays and this may be very frustrating.

Make sure you have a clear written contract between yourself and the consultant, describing precisely what design and supervision work will be carried out, at what stages, and what fees will be paid at different stages of the project.

2. Insufficient Design Detail and Specifications

Lack of clear and detailed drawings and specifications can result in problems at the construction stage and can be a source of conflict between you, the building contractor, and the architect. Make sure that nothing material remains unspecified, such as for instance the methodology and materials for the construction of the roof’s water insulation and thermal insulation.

Ensure that a comprehensive Bill of Quantities is prepared that breaks down the whole project into specified quantities of the materials to be used, such as concrete, steel, brick walls, flooring, etc.

3. Underestimating Project Costs

Make sure you have a good understanding of the project’s expected total cost, including consultants’ fees, construction costs, and the applicable VAT. Building costs have risen a lot in Cyprus in the past few years and owners often go through the design phase with unrealistic cost expectations, resulting in a nasty surprise when they receive tenders from construction companies. Many building projects in Cyprus end up having to be redesigned to reduce scale or features in order to bring the cost down, resulting in delays, extra bureaucracy and costs.

A way to minimise the risk of overshooting your budget is to hire a Quantity Surveyor to carry out a professional cost assessment from a very early stage, that is, once you have the architectural drawings (and before commanding the creation of the additional structural, mechanical, electrical plans).

4. Poor Communication with Consultants

Failure to maintain regular and open communication with your architect or engineer can lead to misunderstandings, delays, and costly design changes. Schedule check-ins and ask for updates at key milestones.

5. Failing to Get Truly Competitive Tenders from Construction Companies

For most people, building a house constitutes the biggest investment of their lives. It stands to reason that the owner should ensure that he doesn’t overpay for the construction work. Getting tenders from 4-5 Contractors that have been mentioned to us by friends, colleagues or even consultants does not ensure a competitive bidding process (it may be the case that these 4-5 are amongst the most well-known contractors in town, have lots of ongoing projects, and may not have an incentive to bid competitively).

Open competitive tendering through a platform like Projects.cy ensures broad projection of the project to the construction industry and a competitive bidding process, resulting in better tenders and cost savings. That is why governments use eProcurement systems to source bids for their projects or for sourcing goods and services.

6. Not Screening the Building Contractors Properly

Once you have a shortlist of tenderers, ensure that you check that they have a valid license from the Cyprus Council for the Registration and Control of Contractors, that they are financially stable and healthy (consider obtaining financial statements), and also visit previous projects. Ask around for any feedback on their work quality and reliability, and meet them in person and gauge their answers to your questions, demands and concerns.

7. Changing Plans After Construction Starts

Late-stage changes to layouts, materials, or systems can delay the project and significantly inflate costs. Many owners regret not finalizing decisions early. Lock in your selections before construction begins.

Also, make sure you understand what is expected of you and when, such as your choices of floor tiles, parquet floors, sanitary appliances, kitchen and carpentry, so as to avoid any project delays attributed to you.

8. Inadequate Supervision or Site Visits

Owners who rely solely on contractors or consultants and do not regularly visit the site and inspect the work being done risk unpleasant surprises. Insist that the architect and other consultants regularly visit the site and report back to you, and ensure that inspections take place at all material stages of the construction process (i.e, before pouring concrete, or before covering insulations).

The owner must make sure he understands the work to be done so that he can inspect the site and assess whether things are done according to the drawings and the various specifications in the Bill of Quantities (i.e, the areas that must be water-proofed and the materials to be used). It is considered useful for the owner to prepare, on the basis of the above-mentioned documents, his own checklist of say, 50 key elements, so that he can easily check if and how each one of them is done (i.e, the compaction and smoothness of the soil on which the house foundations will be built).

Final Thoughts

Building a home in Cyprus is a lengthy process involves hundreds of decisions and close coordination among the owner, the consultants, contractors, and subcontractors. While this can be very demanding and stressful, planning ahead and understanding and avoiding common pitfalls can make the whole process a lot smoother and more rewarding.