Custom Build (Finesse) - Bricks!

No totally worth it. And no one else will have them. Except maybe me ha ha. I've also found lots of things on Houzz. It's such a great site.

yep AKB, that's what I told my DH about this purchase!

Go for it joannek!

Hi 4evaesh
Going to see Maggie at finesse homes tomorrow for the first time.
How your experience had been dealing with them? We are looking to built a single storey in North Kellyville. Your feedback will be much appreciated.
Thanks

Hi inderpal,

My experience so far has been good. I have close mates who built with them, 2 have moved in now, and the other one is coming close to hand-over. As with any builder, there certainly were some problems, due to various misunderstandings, changes and probably not clearly put on tender etc., but overall they seem to be happy with the outcome. Our build hasn't started yet as we're still waiting on council approval, so yet to see how the build progresses. The dealings so far for me has been relatively straightforward and easy. We didn't do the design with Maggie though, we had our own architect design it so we skipped that part.

The main thing with any builder is, you have to get everything put on the tender. That's the working document, if it's not in there, then it won't be part of the contract. Don't assume anything, make lists and ask about every little detail.

Let me know how you get on.

Thanks 4evaesh,

We met Maggie and Mag, our experience was good too, we liked one design and now waiting for the pricing. Mag advised 4 months to build a single storey once they are on site. Were they good with the build time for your friends homes and how are the finishes of their homes?

Yes, they pretty much were on schedule. I mean there were delays due to various things like selections not being done in time etc., but nothing major. The key is he does build quite fast once he starts, so it's best to get all the selections done beforehand so the build will progress smoothly.

Hi 4evaesh

How are going with council approval? All good or any delay .

Hello,
we are building on split level land, custom build approx. 360m2, plan has gone for approval. Still searching for builder as not all builder build on split level land...any suggestions, advice welcome!

Apologies for the late reply! It has been a crazy few weeks and I was on holidays last few weeks as well!
There were delays with CDC, we had to go back and forth for various things .
But the good news is - we finally have approval! YAY

The pool is supposed to go in first, but the pool company is still taking their sweet time, so we've decided to go ahead and put the slab down and figure out the pool later on

They are planning to start this Friday! I cannot wait.

How are things going with you? Did you get the tender?

Hi Arzoo21,

Nice to hear from you. Finding a good builder is half the battle! I'm not sure if our builder does split level homes, I would assume so. Are you building in Sydney?

Hi 4evaesh,

Just wondering if you looked at any project builders before deciding on a custom build and what the difference in cost was, percentage-wise? We really like a home with one of the project builders but have a difficult block that may require a custom build - just trying to get a feel for how much I need to adjust my budget to account for that!

Hi Katy,

We didn't really look at project builders this time as we specifically wanted to do a custom build for our second house (Previous one was a project build). To be honest, I don't think you can directly compare project vs. custom costs because it all depends on what inclusions, finishes you choose. If you have a difficult block it's probably worth talking to a few custom builders to look at options to see if they can incorporate the things you like and get an initial estimate before deciding. Make a list of all requirements first, then get the costs. You can cut down later if it's over budget. Goid luck! Keep us posted.

Hi 4evaesh,
sorry missed yr reply....nice to hear from you.yeh, we are building in Sydney.
recently we had sent our plans for approval to private certifier, after a month he came back with saying he can't approve as the built up area is more than his authority...it's really frustrating..after spending so much time he realised...
not sure whether council will approve or not...any idea? our land is 450 sq mt and built up is approx.337 m2

Hi Arzoo,

There are very strict guidelines on the actual land-to-build ratio, i'm not 100% sure what it is, but your architect should know this? He shouldn't have drawn the plans without checking those right? We too had a private certifier we talked to before we found a builder, but in the end we decided to go with our builder's certifier because it makes things a lot easier. So, that would be my recommendation to you, to work with a builder and use their certifier. Even if you go direct to council approval, I suggest to go via a builder? Unless you're planning on doing owner builder?

What you said is right 4evaesh, architect should know it & he has already planned for other house in the same area. Now he is going to squeeze the area..I heard we can meet council & show them plan & they will guide us how much area we can built on. Do u think it will help us to make it faster?

10,000L water tank went in.

Woohoo! Where is our update? The slab looks great.. And huge!

Thanks, CountryHome. Now that the frame is going up it actually looks smaller to me!

Ground floor frame is up!