Hi Everyone!

My partner and I are at the beginning stages of building our dream house! This is the second house for each of us, so we have a fairly good idea, and I work in the building industry so have a bit of experience with part of the house but other things i am completely clueless!

We met with the sales guy yesterday and went through the process and the house in detail for 2 hours yesterday and he was fantastic, and then meet with him tomorrow night when he will have our plans drawn up and costed and we will hopefully sign up officially and work towards getting the building contract! With any luck we will be handed over by xmas 2012 if the paperwork all goes through! The pre-approval is done and block sorted just waiting on settlement

We have pretty much left the Wisteria as is apart from making the Alfresco a Games Room and using the large WIR space to make a massive walk in pantry with space for fridge and extra bench (a mini scullery almost, just no sink) and then put in a sliding door robe between the office and B1 which still gives over 3m of hanging space! (I currently have 2m plus shoes so he should fit too!)

We are lucky in that our block has 20m frontage and is 630m!

So there will be ample side entertaining area!

Looking forward to sharing the journey!

Plans
[ img ]

First colour selections P2
Elevation Selections P4
2nd colour selections P5
Prestart Summary P7


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Build Timeline

18/04/2011 - Decided to build & started process of block transfer
16/10/2011 - Signed with Scott Park Homes
18/10/2011 - Received draft plans
06/11/2011 - Signed pre-contract quotation
14/12/2011 - Settlement on block
15/12/2011 - Changed to Cat 1 with SPH
23/03/2012 - Received first working plans
26/04/2012 - Prestart
15/05/2012 - Contracts signed
28/05/2012 - Unconditional finance approval
01/06/2012 - Received final plans
08/06/2012 - Received amended final plans
11/06/2012 - Building licence issued by CoC
07/07/2012 - Tap
18/07/2012 - Official Construction Letter Received
20/07/2012 - Block cleared and sandpad!
23/07/2012 - Temp power installed and rebar delivered
27/07/2012 - Prelay & footings done
30/07/2012 - SLABBED!!!!!!!
01/08/2012 - Soakwells delivered
03/08/2012 - Soakwells installed
07/08/2012 - Site cleared
08/08/2012 - Toilet & Shed delivered
08/08/2012 - Electrical and Telstra lines run in
10/08/2012 - Window frames delivered
10/08/2012 - Bricks delivered
13/08/2012 - Entry door frame delivered
14/08/2012 - Bin delivered
15/08/2012 - Lintels and tie down straps delivered
17/08/2012 - Brickies scaffold dropped off
20/08/2012 - Walls marked on slab
20/08/2012 - Internal door frames delivered
22/08/2012 - Brickies started
23/08/2012 - Onsite brickie meeting
01/09/2012 - Brickies finished
03/09/2012 - Site cleaned
04/09/2012 - Steel posts and beams delivered
05/09/2012 - Roof timbers delivered
05/09/2012 - Roof carpenters start
10/09/2012 - Eaves started
11/09/2012 - Eaves completed
11/09/2012 - Gables started
13/09/2012 - Gables finished
13/09/2012 - Garage ceiling done
18/09/2012 - Electrical, water, gas and data started
19/09/2012 - Gutters and down pipes installed
20/09/2012 - Colorbond started!
22/09/2012 - Planter done
24/09/2012 - Colorbond & run in's complete complete
24/09/2012 - Meital beading for plaster installed
25/09/2012 - Grey Float Started
27/09/2012 - Grey Float completed
29/09/2012 - Render completed
02/10/2012 - Plasterboard and cornice delivered
02/10/2012 - Roof completed
03/10/2012 - Ceilings and cornice done
08/10/2012 - Render moulding done
08/10/2012 - Whiteset started
13/10/2012 - White set complete
15/10/2012 - Glazing
15/10/2012 - Finials installed
15/10/2012 - Doors delivered
15/10/2012 - Cornice and ceilings sanded
15/10/2012 - Cupboard shelves measured
16/10/2012 - Doors installed
16/10/2012 - LOCKUP!!
17/10/2012 - Brick clean
18/10/2012 - Undercoats painted
19/10/2012 - Bathtubs installed
23/10/2012 - Base Cupboards installed
24/10/2012 - Wet areas screeded and hobs installed
24/10/2012 - Bathroom, ensuite & laundry benches installed and vanities installed
26/10/2012 - Tile meeting
29/10/2012 - Tiling started
02/11/2012 - Feature doors and shelving installed
05/11/2012 - Corian bench tops installed
05/11/2012 - Overhead cupboards installed
06/11/2012 - Sink delivered
06/11/2012 - Storm water done
08/11/2012 - Grouting started
10/11/2012 - Grouting and tiling complete!
12/11/2012 - Appliances delivered
13/11/2012 - Data Points installed
13/11/2012 - Electrical Points installed
13/11/2012 - Phone Point installed
13/11/2012 - Lighting installed
13/11/2012 - Oven installed
14/11/2012 - Taps & shower heads installed
14/11/2012 - Hot Water Unit installed
14/11/2012 - Toilets installed
14/11/2012 - Pavers delivered and prepped
15/11/2012 - Cooktop installed
16/11/2012 - Rangehood installed
16/11/2012 - Air Con installed
16/11/2012 - Insulation Delivered
19/11/2012 - Insulation installed
20/11/2012 - Garage door installed
21/11/2012 - Paving started
22/11/2012 - Paving finished
23/11/2012 - Minor rooms robe doors installed
23/11/2012 - Shower Screens installed
23/11/2012 - Mirrors installed
23/11/2012 - Eaves and garage painted
23/11/2012 - First coat of paint on posts done
23/11/2012 - Data box install begun
26/11/2012 - Toilet holders/towel rails installed
27/11/2012 - Light covers and bulbs installed
27/11/2012 - Plaster touch up
27/11/2012 - Front render painted
28/11/2012 - Doors and ceiling painted
28/11/2012 - Glass splashback installed
29/11/2012 - Front door stained
30/11/2012 - B1 & Laundry sliding robes installed
04/12/2012 - Data termination box finished
05/12/2012 - Data points labelled
06/12/2012 - Front door stain second coat
10/12/2012 - Shelf edging delivered
10/12/2012 - Door Handles installed
11/12/2012 - Gables stained
11/12/2012 - Front door varnished
14/12/2012 - Kitchen Sink installed
04/01/2013 - Roof Sheeting Replaced (over xmas break)
07/01/2013 - House Cleaned
07/01/2013 - Shelf Edge Complete
07/01/2013 - Towel ring to powder installed
09/01/2013 - Dishwasher delivered
09/01/2013 - Caulking done
11/01/2013 - Patio Application Submitted
14/01/2013 - Flyscreens
15/01/2013 - Dishwasher installed
15/01/2013 - Kitchen sink plumbing done
15/01/2013 - Site scrape done
17/01/2013 - Ceiling repainted
17/01/2013 - External painting finished!
17/01/2013 - Weatherstrips and lock refitted to front door
23/01/2013 - PCI!!
24/01/2013 - Final invoice received
24/01/2013 - Patio Application Approved
06/02/2013 - KEYS
07/02/2013 - Painting started
09/02/2013 - Painting finished
11/02/2013 - Laminate floors started
12/02/2013 - Laminate floors completed
13/02/2013 - Carpets (and my birthday )
14/02/2013 - MOVING DAY
07/03/2013 - Patio delivered
08/03/2013 - Patio started
11/03/2013 - Patio finished
23/03/2013 - Liquid Limestone done
30/03/2013 - Grass started
04/04/2013 - Grass Completed

We are officially completed

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Hi Jennifer!

Looking forward to following your house! Do you have plans yet to show?

We also building with SPH (Banksia). So far, they've been fairly good but a bit slow. We signed up back in March, plans only just going to council. Where in Success are you? We just sold our house there

A rough guide for carpets is between $50 and $70 per sq metre (middle of the road quality I guess). I think something like Liquid limestone is about $80ish sq mt but not 100% sure on that. And as for tiles/flooring for the rest - depends on what you want. We found a laminate floorboard for half price ($15sm).

Good luck!

For liquid limestone expect to pay about $65 per sqm for reinforced limestone thats a 100mm thick. reinforcing the limestone will reduce cracking. For concrete we paid about 50sqm for reinforced concrete.

As far as floor tiling it depends on the type of tile you go for. If you go for porcelain you will pay more than ceramic for both laying and the tile itself.

Carpets best way to go is to shop around as some carpet shops will give you a builders discount.

Good luck with your build. The paperwork is the worst part.

Luke81, would you recommend the concreter you used? We will need to get quotes further down the track for driveway. Would you mind PMing me pretty please with contact details for them if they were good?

Hiya!
Myself and my partner are building the Sorrento by Scott Park Homes in Mandurah. Looking forward to following your thread! Sounds like you got it all handled!
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Ally

So... I have been a bit quiet on the update front. There were some delays with the transfer for the block and it was a bit depressing so was trying not to think about it!

BUT... settlement happened yesterday and today Scott Park confirmed they have all the paperwork required to make us Cat 1!

Now we get all our plans drawn up and get to (hopefully) get a prestart selection file soon! i think if i get that i can absorb myself in that for a couple months it will satiate the desire I have for the house already!

they told us 7 months from going cat 1 to construction and we are still so far!

Hopefully because the block settlement is done, the preapproval for the house is done (separate loans... the block one is temporary... long story!) and we have been thinking about if fr so long, it will be less, but i'm not counting on it! rather scared after seeing some peoples threads!

you can see our plan in the following link

i love it so much i die!

http://danielandjenhouse2011.blogspot.c ... nning.html

well we went down to the block yesterday to get some photo's since officially owning it... it seems a lot bigger than i imagined! but luckily we are only one street from regional park, so there is a fairl good chance we will always have trees around!

[ img ]
the street...
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Us on the block... yes i am sunburned
[ img ]
the neighbors and TREES!!! they are in the regional park!

being from the country i like having trees around, and not landscaped ones, but natural ones, so i am going to love the park!

Great floorplan! It's massive!

Good luck with the build Jen (& Daniel =) ).

Small world hey haha! Daniel told me today you found me on homeone!

hehe very small world! i had totally stalked your thread previously!... then he said there was someone from his work building with celebrations and then i was like "in aveley" and he was all... "it seems familiar!"

although as soon as he mentioned it i did pelt him with questions about it!

It is a massive floorplan, we need massive house for storage of computers... the games is actually for our (his, I only have one) computers + his 3 full height store cupboards + the shelving system....OMG!

the front office may end up being my wardrobe overflow though so is only fair

i'm so excited and cannot wait! i have been working at a window company for 5 years in Jan and getting to see everyone else build their houses and now its my turn!!! plus i have seen a lot of plans in my time, so had a really good idea of what i wanted, and lucky for me Daniel liked it!

I like your plan & your colours!! Very effective use of a small block! and you can't help but love the cottage blocks. Are you getting a nice front fence with a gate (possibly with stairs?) included with your block? Are you starting soon?

Plus... they have less garden.... I am worried about the garden costs as we have a 630m block with only 50% cover... so by my calcs is 365m of garden, and neither of us like going outside much.

once I have the working drawings will be able to start getting quotes for that... will be scary!

Hehe - thanks, really wanted something a little different but that would still suit the area - red brick is very swan valley

It comes with a limestone retaining wall on 3/4 sides (back is level with street for garage) and the front is limestone pillars with black fencing and were adding a gate because we have a dog

Like that the front garden is bigger than the back since the estate pays for the front to be landscaped hehe! Go the astro turf - that's what were going for!

Looking to start in Jan - just got council approval last week! .. when are you guys set to start?

Plan looks brilliant, and huge! Congrats on settlement!

we are still several months away, they are doing site surveys and drafting the plans properly... hopefully we will be on the short end of the scale (4 months) not the long end (7 months eeep!)

we are going astro turf too... then i can have white render on the bottom as the water wont discolour it (ours is a render on the bottom, brick on the top elevation too. I was actually trying to describe to Daniel a red brick version with roof but couldn't find any... until i saw your colours! perfect example! heheh)

lucky to get the landscaping! that's one thing that worries me having to do, but we got the block for a good deal so can't complain!

congrats on the tap! excellent xmas pressie for you!

thanks tinkster! this is hopefully our "forever" house, so we have tried to future proof it as much as possible. plus with me being from the country i like to have a large pantry so i can buy in bulk and stash it away. in the event of an apocalypse i should be covered

So.... they have ordered the site survey no that my partner actually owns the land and Christmas is done. That should take 3 weeks then drafting.

Does anyone know when i will get the prestart file because i need time for these decisions!!!! Plus it will feel like something is happening!

ARG! we decided to do this April last year and negotiations for the block took until November, then by the time settlement came it was Christmas

Starting to wonder if it will even begin although i guess all this waiting is the deep breath before the jump...

Very surprised that you guys don't have your prestart file yet! We got ours just before christmas, a few days after our finance became unconditional ( and our settlement isn't for another couple of weeks). There are some other building with SPH who received their prestart file even before they had full finance approval...so I suppose it varies for some strange reason?!

It's exciting though - I seem to carry ours around everywhere because I can't decide on things yet

Hmmmmm, now i ponder

Our finance is conditional waiting on the building contract. From what I can remember of the process when we first talked with them in April once you are "Cat 1" its survey, then drafting, then prestart, then building contract which is when the finance becomes uncondtional for us, and the loan will actually be established.

I might give it a couple weeks and then email and see if they can tell us when we will get it... I understand they have had Christmas so things are probably a bit out of the regular routines.... I work at their window company and fully understand as we close for christmas too.

On the other hand though, it would have been good to do the running around for prestart...

I'm not sure why, but it seems like everyone else was able to start with plans and prestart stuff before settlement on their blocks, but we were "cat 2 (?)" (price was held for 90 days) until settlement, even though we had finance sorted and a deed legal document done as the land was purchased from a family member. They said they couldn't do the survey until the settlement was done. Maybe its different when the land is already privately owned (in our case), and when you by from developer they can start straight away? Also... we did have some delays (April to Nov) and this may have made them want to wait until it was settled as the transfer might have seemed iffy (which I guess I understand from their point of view)

Also... The sales guy we had no longer works there which probably shouldn't concern me, once we start having regular correspondance I'll feel better.

I guess I also feel out of control as its just in my partners name, so he deals with them, and if i have a question i get him to ask it (probably better for SPH this way mwahaha)

i guess all i can do it patiently wait.... and store pictures of colour schemes. At least i know the selection for window colours and glass type

Just out of curiosity, but those of you building with SPH, do any of you happen to have a fella named Alby as your rep?

I'm building with Scott Park - my rep was Mike, at the Lakelands display in Mandurah.
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Ally

Our rep was Mark but he has left an now we have Mike. Both were/have been really good, not minding answering our questions

We got the prestart folder today!!!!!!!

Now i feel like its really happening.... and its soooooo thick! And the first page i turn to is the brochure from my work! Although.... I have known for ages what colour my windows will be!!

So was supposed to be heading into subi to meet my partner as he's at a work party, but now i will just stay home with my folder i think.... tired from the epic catching up from xmas holidays this week too!!!!

http://instagr.am/p/gttmi/

so much to do now!

Congratulations on getting your pre-start file! Yours is pretty....

I got mine before I even signed on..... Actually, don't tell anyone, but I actually have 2..... from different builders!

Enjoy the selection process! I've had heaps of fun looking through my file, going around to different places and looking at colours and selections.... Not being able to find real-life examples of some things (what's that about??) I'm all set for pre-start, but still have a week and a bit to wait!!