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How long does building a SIP house take? A realistic stage-by-stage calendar
From plot to moving in: how long each stage really takes, where the months actually go (spoiler: paperwork, not the site), and how we compress the calendar by running production in parallel with permitting.
Published: September 2, 20263 min read
The short answer: the structure of a SIP-panel house is ready 2–4 weeks after order confirmation, and a turnkey house takes at most 3 months from advance payment and permit. But the full journey — from "I have a plot" to "I moved in" — usually takes 6–9 months, and most of that is not construction. It is paperwork.
Below: the typical calendar stage by stage, where time is really lost, what we run in parallel to compress the total, and the questions about timelines we hear most often.
The typical calendar, stage by stage
Urbanism certificate: 2–4 weeks from filing at the town hall. Project and technical documentation: 2–4 weeks for a catalogue project (the documentation largely exists) or 6–8 for individual adaptations. Permits and approvals requested through the certificate: 2–6 weeks depending on the plot and the utility providers. The building permit itself: legally up to 30 days from a complete file.
Only then does the "visible" part begin: the foundation — 1–2 weeks plus concrete curing; SIP structure assembly — usually under a week on a prepared foundation; roof, windows, closing up — another 1–2 weeks. For turnkey, installations and finishes follow: 6–10 weeks. The permitting road is covered step by step in our permit guide.
Where the months really go
Not on site. The structure grows in days, but files sit for weeks: one delayed approval, one requested addition to the dossier, one summer holiday at the town hall — each adds time during which nobody is building anything.
The second classic delay: postponed client decisions. Every "we are still thinking about the finishes" after works begin means days of waiting or redone work. That is why we fix the specification in the quotation, before production — changes on paper are free, changes on site cost time and money.
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How we compress the calendar: production in parallel with permitting
The advantage of factory construction is that we do not have to wait for the permit to start working: while your file sits at the town hall, the panels are already being cut in production. When the permit arrives, the structure is ready to ship — and the site starts immediately, not a month later.
In practice this means the stage "from permit to closed house" is measured in weeks: the foundation is poured right after the works-commencement notice, and assembling the kit takes days. Winter does not stop the process: panels can be assembled in the cold, and interior work continues in any weather.
Timelines by variant: kit vs turnkey
House kit: 2–4 weeks of production plus days of assembly. From order to a closed house, with the foundation ready: roughly a month and a half. The rest depends on the pace of your finishing crew.
Turnkey: at most 3 months from advance payment and permit — installations, finishes, bathrooms and a basic kitchen included. What each stage costs is broken down in our turnkey price guide.
What shortens or stretches the timeline on your plot
Shortens: utilities already at the plot boundary (every new connection adds weeks of approvals), an access road usable by a truck and crane, flat terrain (simple foundation), an unmodified catalogue project and one decision-maker in the family — it sounds trivial, but quick consensus on finishes is a real accelerator.
Stretches: a plot in a protected zone or one requiring special approvals (heritage, environment), a steep slope (complex foundation, adapted project), project changes after the file is submitted — every documentation rework restarts town-hall clocks — and ordering at peak season: summer sites are full and approvers are on holiday. An autumn–winter order meets spring with the permit already in hand.
Frequently asked timeline questions
Can you build in winter? Yes — SIP assembly does not require positive temperatures; only the foundation pour is planned around frost. An autumn order means a closed house before the holidays and interior work over winter.
What is the fastest realistic scenario? A plot with utilities, an unmodified catalogue project, a complete file submitted first time: 4–5 months from plot to moving in. The most common trap? Buying a plot without an urbanism certificate — see what you can and cannot legally build. Want the exact calendar for your plot? Message us on WhatsApp — we will map it week by week, free.
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