Building with Hamlen Homes in WA

Hey Everyone,

I'm going to do a build thread for our house being built by Hamlen Homes here in Perth.

Apart from a very short thread on here, there is not a lot of information on this builder online, so hopefully this can help others in the future.

Before we signed up I did as much digging as I could. We viewed a couple of their under construction houses, and also looked at one of their 3 year old builds which was up for rent.
In terms of build quality and finish, I was happy enough with the build standard.

Basic timeline of events:

28/10/2019 - Contract signed and deposit given
10/01/2020 - Settlement on the land
20/01/2020 - Pre-start meeting
30/01/2020 - Signed pre-start variations

Although we made some changes to the plans, below is the basic idea. It's only a small block (200m2) and house

Received our final addenda and plans 06/02/2020, happy with it all and looking forward to the build starting.

I'll list a few of our upgrades and selections below:

- 31c ceilings throughout
- Increased internal door heights to 2340mm
- Security screens to both sliding doors and front door
- Ducted aircon
- Stone tops to kitchen, bathrooms and laundry
- Smoked mirror kitchen splash back
- Handleless cabinetry with black trimmed recess throughout
- Matt black taps, door handles etc
- hobless showers
- Tiled insert floor wastes

Have also chosen to do window and sliding door treatments after hand over, but still unsure what to go with.

After initial delays the build is now moving along, hope for the roofing to be finished by the end of the month.




I really liked this glulam feature timber, but definitely not happy with the amount of effort that went into keeping the bolts in a straight line. Does anyone know if this can be corrected?

That would eek me to no end every time I enter the House
Tell the builder to replace the C/H with Hex/H bolts and have them recessed and timber plugged-concealed
OT Looks like the construction Details were sloppy
Cheers
Chris

Thanks for the response Chris.

Completely agree, I couldn't take my eyes off it as soon as I got near the house.

I think you are correct, I have been through all the roofing structure details and I'm unsure if I can see a specific detail regarding how they needed to be fixed together.
Is it possible they could have just used tek screws from the inside for a fixing such as this?

Thank you for the input, I feel much better prepared for bringing this up with the builder.

EDIT: Since bringing this up with the builder, they were already aware and stated it would be fixed, so I'm happy with that.

Sure they could have put 6 teks/plate behind
But you now have the visible hole to deal with, it still needs to be plugged
Tell the builder it's OK to use those bolts in the roof where no-one can see them.
Otherwise it's a nice cost effective detail in not requiring a steel lintel

So a little update.

It's been 8 weeks now since we reached lockup stage, and all they have done is the tiling, cabinets and sliding mirrors/glass showers.

8 weeks since lockup and they still won't even give us an estimated date for PCI.

Ridiculous level of work being done on a small house that we are paying near a full mortgage on now.

Hope they get it sorted for you soon!

In a way I guess it is fortunate you are at this stage already, as there will probably be a tsunami of trade shortages with the effect of those Building Grants hitting soon.

Hi Ship2shore,

Thank you for your post.
Our home will be built with Hamlen too, just wondering how long they would start the sitework and slab from the final construction plan. How is the progress of your home?

Many thanks

I sent you a PM.

We aren't happy with the build at all. We are now on 13 weeks since lockup, and they still have a whole list of things to do.
It's just been excuse after excuse. They've made building our first home one of the most distasteful experiences of my life.

Hi Ship2shore,

Hope you are doing well.

We are going to build with Hamlen too. Our timeline is below:

02/07/2020 - Contract signed and deposit given.
31/08/2020 - Settlement on land
16/09/2020 - Pre-start meeting
21/09/2020 - Signed pre-start variations
12/10/2020 - Signed final construction plan and addenda

We have been advised by their Admin team (at the beginning of Sep) that the certified building permit would have been ready by now. However, some mysterious insurance renew process are taking place and it has been 3 weeks without a clear answer from them. To be able to submit the WA Gov Grant we need the slab down before Christmas but still no building permit as of now. So ridiculous!

How is your house building going along? Hope it is going ok?

As you said previously, they make our first home buyer experience a nightmare, so stressful chasing after them.

My best regards,
Bao.

Hey Bao,

I sent you a private message.

But yes overall we are mostly happy with the house, just not with how long it’s taking.

Hi,

I was just wondering if you guys are in your homes yet? Would love an update!

Thanks!