DIY House Builing?

Google Owner builder and I'm sure you will get bucket loads of hits.
i havent done it, I only know one person who has, but he's a builder by trade so it doesnt really count.
Generally you will have to do some kind of owner builder course to be able to get your plans approved thru council and to also get somekind of homeowners warranty. Different states/councils have different rules so check up with your local council on what your required to do. Its more about what your legal responsibilities are during construction rather than how to do it.
My builder mate who built his own home (been building houses for 15 years) was required to do an owner builder course.

Couple of things to think about.
- It will generally take you 2-3 times as long to finish the house compared to a building company.
-You will not be able to get trades at the same rate as a construction company
-You will not be able to get the same price on materials as a builder.
-Generally banks dont like lending money to owner builders. I dont think they will lend you anywhere near the 90% of the value like they would if a construction company were doing it. Check with them but it might be as low as 40%-50% of the value.

I'm sure others will post other things to consider.

Saying all this, We moved into our new house last June and we're just about to put it on the market. I'm now thinking about buying acreage and doing the owner builder thing too.

i am classed as an owner builder because our renovation was quite extensive.

Basically we gutted the inside of a 80 year old house rebuilt the entire thing and changed some external walls in the process. It was still easier than a complete build but my god do not think its some easy simple way to save a few bob. If you are in an area where volume builders are operating and you like the final product then i would heavily recommend sorting which you prefer and going from there. We wanted something different and of course the main option was small scale builders which meant quite high prices (renovations are a dog builders tend to either over quote or put in allot of get out of jail cards because it can get out of hand quickly).

A volume builder has access to a pool of labour/tradies for each task. If you get bumped (and you will because you are a one of job) you may lose windows with your other trades. Then you rebook the times and bank you end up with a down time where you pay rent/home loan for your current place, risk having **** stolen, etc....

Your owner builder quote you have drawn out will be missing all kinds of things and the volume guys have built efficiency's into what they do. I will most certainly be going down the owner builder path again for renovations but after doing a minor job, major job i am still not ready for a fresh build.

I owner built. I had no clue, however my partner is a chippy/builder and my dad has owner built a couple of houses so I had that organized.

Yeah it does take longer, however in my case it's my own fault as i'm stalling the process. I'm not far off. Would I ever build again, HELL NO!!!! Thank god if it's ever done again my partner is a builder and he can do it..all!

The best part about doing it like I did was, well I got exactly what I wanted. I was pretty set up with trades as my dad knew people as did my partner. I got heaps of stuff at "mates rates". I got to have

Downside it takes ALOT of your time. I'm working full time and have been studying full time at uni during the last 3 years so I had to juggle everything with building. Lets be real, I had no idea about construction and I learned heaps during this time and my partner being really patient and explaining things to me.
My partner did help my with the house, however it's not "our" house, it's my house. Can't wait till we build our dream house.

If i didn't have my dad and partner there I would have never done it. I can't stress enough that you have to know what you are doing or what is going on. Tradies hate nothing more than owner builders being disorganized and calling them in before it is their time, or not knowing what is going on.

I know for a fact that you need 20% cash deposit before the bank will lend you money as an owner builder. Also they will only pay out in stages and also if you owe for your block they wont give you a construction loan.

Oh and I believe when people say you over spend as an owner builder. I didn't have a budget, I got what I wanted and realized we spent over 100k than expected.

Some good advice there - I disagree with the materials part. You will be able to get any materials at the same price a builder will pay. The majority of places will give the same trade discount to O/B's or like we do with things like flooring/decking, price it as a 'job lot' and give the best price for the order we can regardless of who it is.

thats good advice! also do a little research first if you walk in to a xyz supply to get something if you know what you are after an purchase a job lot they will treat you like a trade customer you walk in asking for a do-hicky about yeah big and half a mobile phone wide they will hesitate to give you a discount. Have how much you need and all that crap worked out at home and go in with your note pad of what you need.

Our builder has the option of doing everything except light fittings & switches (but wiring is done), kitchens, laundry, bathrooms (but plumbing is done), floor coverings and painting.

In Vic if your an owner builder you must use registered building practtioners to carry out your work. If the sum is over $5000 inc materials.

Trades that require registration are Bricklayers, Concreters, Carpenters.

There's different types of registration, any work over $12000 they must provide you with warranty insurance.

Go to the building commission website, it has all the info for owner builders. www.buildingcommission.com.au.

Plumbers and Electricians are registered with there own body.