Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Sep 13, 2009 9:09 am Hi all I'm very new to this, I have a contract, I am about to sign and they are telling me, it is a standard HIA contract, However I have a few special conditions i'm not sure about? is this clause normal? This contract is valid for a period of 90 days from the day it has been signed by the owner and the builder, by which time the builder anticipates receiving the final authority to commence construction. This authority to commence is in effect once the Builder has recieved confirmation, either from the purchaser or their lender, that any mortgage documents have been signed, proof that land settlement has taken place, and colour selection has been signed and if required under the terms of the contract, consent to build has been received. After the expiration of 90 days from the day of signing this contract the builder is entitled to charge the building owner a further 3% of the contract price. Is this a reasonable condition, when they have also placed Commencement date: For the purposes of this contract commencement date constitutes and commences upon the builder completing stage one (namely the base stage) Base stage is completed when concrete slab is poured. They havn't given me an exact date of when the slab will be poured. but the agent said to me 2-3 weeks after. and my land is due to settle this Nov? but if this is delayed, does it mean i get charged 3%. yet they can commence any date? If someone could help me urgently that would be great Thanks! Re: Special Notes and Conditions 2Sep 13, 2009 5:16 pm Seems a bit heavy to me, and i does seem that if your land is not settled in 90 days they will charge you the 3%. Have you signed this yet? From my experience builders dont like giving dates or time lines, as everyone complains and complains when things dont happen. Just read these forums about people complaining that their final inspection has been dealyed and their build only started 12 weeks ago. Your builder wants your money as much as you want your house, they start it as fast as they can, but when the contractors are ready. I would rather have my house dealyed than not wait for the best tradie. My finish date was 180 days after slab poured. Good luck. Re: Special Notes and Conditions 3Sep 13, 2009 7:47 pm I'm about to sign it, I still have tommorow, but the agent said to me the special conditions can't be changed and it is a standard contract.? So I am like what is going on? can i say to them to change the special conditions without a solicitor? or do i need a solicitor to talk with them? and even if I do, and they don't fix it does that mean i shouldn't buy? Hopefully someone can answer this question for me? Thanks Re: Special Notes and Conditions 4Sep 13, 2009 8:47 pm I've got very little knowledge about this ... but just looked through my contract ... on the HIA standard contract there is a standard definition of commencement ... so they have to already be changing the standard contract.. I can see your problem ... even if you get your approvals within 90 days ... they could take weeks to get the slab done ... and still charge you!!! I did not deal with a big name builder ... we just crossed things out on the contract and changed things at will!!! Re: Special Notes and Conditions 5Sep 13, 2009 9:00 pm so if thats the case, can i do that with my contract as the sales consultant is saying no, so i'm kinda a bit frustrated. Did you do it with the sales consultant or direct? there are other clauses they added as well. Re: Special Notes and Conditions 6Sep 14, 2009 11:27 am i would get a solicitor to go over the contract if it seems to bother you. whatever you do, don't sign anything you're not 100% of. it will ALWAYS come back to bite you. in more ways than one Re: Special Notes and Conditions 7Sep 14, 2009 5:17 pm If they need the deal then you can negotiate .. if they can go and sell to someone else then you have to accept what they offer. That's where the power balance comes from. I went with a big builder and couldn't change anything, but they went through the contract with me in fine detail, explaining what the parts meant, and how they interpret them. Metricon Riva 33 - http://herlihy-riva.blogspot.com Site start 15/03/2010 - Handover 23/12/2010 9 months and 8 days (284 calendar days) from site start to handover Re: Special Notes and Conditions 8Sep 14, 2009 8:22 pm I would not sign till the land was settled, or do you need to before the FHOG? I recently went through a similar renovation and move scenario when updating our family home. We also swapped some rooms around and tackled a major… 2 10048 The HIA contract, in the term & conditions section states that "Commencment" is deemed when the drainage is started or the piers are dug or the slab is formed up (incase… 2 6182 Hi there, We've just build a new hardwood (Greybox) deck and am wondering whether firepit protective mats/surfaces are sufficient? I'm not sure that they're heat… 0 2118 |