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Perth builders - who to pick?
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Author:  OHMS [ Jan 27, 2008 12:54 am ]
Post subject:  Perth builders - who to pick?

Hi All. My wife and I want to build on a block we have in Melville, Perth, WA. To do so we will be demolishing our old home and subdividing the block to side by side survey strata. We want to build two side by side at the same time. Our frontages will be narrow but not too narrow to build on. The thing is, I have heard so many horror stories that I have become tentative about making a decision on which builder. I have met with reps from Dale Alcock Homes, Ross North Homes, Scott Park Homes and I am thinking of meeting with a rep from APG homes. The reps all seem honest, interested and quite helpful, but I believe once they have signed you up you are in the hands of the builder and the supervisor, etc. So there seems to be a lot of trust on my part and I can't base it on their displays as they (and as to be expected) are their best work put forward. Can anyone share their experiences with these builders (or other builders) from beyond the sales with us? Cheers.[/code]

Author:  Arc [ Jan 28, 2008 4:23 pm ]
Post subject: 

I'm in the process of building now (walls should be finished in a few weeks). I'm building with Dale Alcock and I'm pretty happy, the only thing that's bothered me was the length of time it took from putting down a deposit to signing the contract. However, everyone I've dealt with has been personable and friendly. If it continues through to completion, and I'm happy with the results, I'd build with them again.

Scott Park were another builder I was considering, they have a reputation for good customer service.

I also looked at Ross North but had the impression they would be too expensive, however I now suspect the cost would not be much different to Dale Alcocks.

Personally, those three builders were at the top of my list and I went with Dale's based on some friends experience. Of course, your experience may vary, I doubt any builder has a perfect record.

Author:  OHMS [ Jan 29, 2008 12:08 am ]
Post subject: 

Yes, pretty much what I was thinking - can I ask how long did it take to get from deposit to signing and then signing to pad? I have a feeling that they have so many builds that it's first in first served. The sales rep, Liz, seemed very knowledgeable and gave us some good tips on subdivision and on our plans in general. What I have learnt is that there is a basic construction price and then there is the quality to finish and add ons which can be as much as 50K on top plus, not to mention the site costs, etc.

Author:  Arc [ Jan 29, 2008 11:01 pm ]
Post subject: 

It was about 5 months from deposit to contract, I suspect it would have been longer if I hadn't prompted them. Drawings always seemed to take a while. Once signed things have started moving pretty quickly, slab was down in about four - five weeks.

It's amazing how quickly the budget is blown. I have a couple of big ticket items, but all those 'minor' things sure do add up fast. As long as you don't go nuts, 40K - 50K over the base price is probably not too far off, but add more if you want floor/window treatments, painting, etc.

Good luck.

Author:  TheGardenWhisperer [ Jan 31, 2008 11:14 am ]
Post subject: 

I have been talking to a few people on jobs and a lady said the same thing at my nursery about the hassels being had with Attrium Homes. not going to go into details but really not cool things being seen and heard :(
Sorry Attrium :(

Author:  kirribilli [ Mar 14, 2008 7:58 pm ]
Post subject: 

[Arc: Personally, those three builders were at the top of my list and I went with Dale's based on some friends experience. Of course, your experience may vary, I doubt any builder has a perfect record.]

It's true everybody has different experiences, with us we would never recommend Dale, it has been a complete nightmare, we are into our 18 th week of bricklaying :shock: , all our rooms aren't square, walls not straight, recesses and door height wrong heights, windows crooked to name a few, we've reached plate height yesterday and got an independant inspector (again) and it looks like more walls will have to be rebuilt. Worst experience of our lives. My advice go with a different builder, we could have saved ourselves over 50k with a cheaper builder and probably got better quality too! :x

Author:  Pebble [ Mar 27, 2008 11:05 am ]
Post subject: 

We're not quite in Perth but it could be worth looking at Rural Building Co (WA Country Builders). I know they have some designs which suit narrow blocks.

We really liked a plan from Rural Building & Plunkett, but Plunkett was going to be too expensive on the siteworks and overall cost, probably due to our location. We have just signed the contract with WA Country Builders and have done the Pre-Start, so exciting times yet to come. I can't recommend them as yet of course but so far no hassles and I haven't come across any horror stories as yet either.

Good luck, being first timers ourselves I know choosing a builder we were happy with was one of the biggest steps!

Author:  jimbob888 [ Apr 17, 2008 4:56 pm ]
Post subject: 

I can reccommend which one NOT to use: IN-VOGUE (or should I say In-Vague)

Author:  Frank Ockwell [ Sep 17, 2008 3:18 pm ]
Post subject:  BUILDING A NEW HOME

Curious to know what builder you selected. We are currently building with one of those listed and are less than happy.

Author:  babes1 [ Apr 29, 2009 7:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

We are building with the Rural Building Company. I wouldn't recommend this experience to everyone. We are 12 months overdue at present.

It's so sad, the situation and the experiences have been horrendous. Who ever you choose, make sure you have access to the top person.

Dale Alcock can be reached. No-one within the JWH group has been accommodating. I would say, check out what group your builder is associated with and speak to people. Banks, friends, anyone in the retail sector of the building industry.

Go with the recommendations you get from people- no business is perfect but its how they deal with you when there is a problem that sorts the men from the boys. I invite anyone to view our houses in Nollamara, see the correspondence and view the contract dates. Sometimes you really have to see it to believe it.

Author:  Frank Ockwell [ Apr 30, 2009 11:28 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

Hi,

We are almost done and dusted with our building experience. Would I recommend the builder "Scott Park Homes" ?????

Anyone considering them should talk with us direct. If you sign up thereafter, then at least you will be fully informed about how to get the best possible outcome by learning from our experience.

Please 'E' mail any inquiries.

Author:  Pebble [ Apr 30, 2009 7:39 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

Must say I have so far been happy with the quality of work that WACB has done. Yes it's been taking a long time though, that could use some improvement, but it's like I say to my son when he's wiping the dishes " I want a good job rather than a fast job".

It's hard to rate a builder though, the same company that's bad in one area may be fine in another area where a different supervisor is in charge etc. And in regards to quality of workmanship one has to realize that different areas would probably use different tradies as well (WACB tend to use localish people in particular)

So it's like others have already said - speak to those who have built in the area that you are looking at building in, then the feedback should be reliable.

Author:  Falconbrook [ May 01, 2009 12:39 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

I can only reiterate what Pebble has written. I have just done a first inspection with my builder with whom I am very CONTENT, just some minor things that need doing. I feel we are very lucky with our tradies in the South West and my S.S. (J) has been very competent.

Author:  Pebble [ May 01, 2009 7:54 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

A question for those where building has taken a lot longer than originally stated in the contract, do you end up getting a payout of the agreed compensation figure?

In our paperwork it states that building should commence 45 days after signing, and then after that the building process should take 250 days (so in total WACB give a time frame of 295 days). It also states there is a $35 / day compensation fee, if it's not finished withing the time frame (of course clauses of unforseen delays etc apply).

So I'm just wondering if companies actually do pay out the compensation or if they explain away the delays (like weather, availability of tradesmen etc etc). I guess considering ours should have been finished by Jan15 (maybe end of Jan if you take into account Xmas period), getting $35 a day for say 3 months worth seems too good to be true. (it's supposed to be finished by end of May now).

Author:  babes1 [ May 03, 2009 2:43 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

Yes they do pay it but it doesn't necessarily cover all your costs. For example, if they break the contract in any way you can press for more damages (such as rent etc) but every contract is different so you MUST get legal advice. I would recommend paying a fortune for decent advice BEFORE signing on the bottom line because some contracts aren't lawful. And there are builders who want you to sign away nearly all your rights - it's insane.

I would also recommend taking photos regularly, putting all conversations into writing and email or send in a letter and keeping a diary of EVERYTHING. Until something goes wrong, you don't know how much you actually need it.

It's also a useful reference tool during the process - you can refer to conversations you have had and things you have agreed upon.

We are having a bit of a legal wrangle at the moment and because of the inept handling of our house building process (we have had 6 supervisors in 2 years of building) the building company has actually lost some information. If I hadn't kept everything, it would have cost us more money when it came time to calculate the damages.

Treat it like any other business decision and keep your records. Best of luck and here's hoping you don't need to call in the $35 per day. :D

Author:  stockt12 [ Sep 01, 2009 12:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

babes1 babes1
We are building with the Rural Building Company. I wouldn't recommend this experience to everyone. We are 12 months overdue at present.

It's so sad, the situation and the experiences have been horrendous. Who ever you choose, make sure you have access to the top person.

Dale Alcock can be reached. No-one within the JWH group has been accommodating. I would say, check out what group your builder is associated with and speak to people. Banks, friends, anyone in the retail sector of the building industry.

Go with the recommendations you get from people- no business is perfect but its how they deal with you when there is a problem that sorts the men from the boys. I invite anyone to view our houses in Nollamara, see the correspondence and view the contract dates. Sometimes you really have to see it to believe it.



I'd be keen to hear more information about this.

One of the options I'm considering for the next place is the cape view. I have found little about pricing online /experiences from other people who have built with them and in particular this plan.

Any feedback appreciated.

Author:  CarolineJ [ Sep 01, 2009 2:03 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Perth builders - who to pick?

We are really happy with WBN.

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