Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Mar 25, 2015 5:48 pm We've had 3 quotes from 3 big builders, same basic 4 bed media room home, all three quotes are much of a muchness with pretty much the same inclusions except for a few important differences. Has anyone ever been in this situation and played them off against each other? i.e 'company A is offering this as an inclusion and you're not, add it in as a standard inclusion at no extra cost and we will give your quote more consideration'. I'm thinking better appliances, tapware, tile size, that sort of thing. All 3 companies have good reviews but there are one or two things on offer from each company that the others don't have which could be deal breakers for us. Re: Playing One Off Against The Other? 2Mar 25, 2015 8:48 pm Appliances will eventually be replaced, tapware can be simply changed. Go for it f you can..... BUT.... My focus would be on the company that delivers the tile size/type that I'm after. Re: Playing One Off Against The Other? 3Mar 26, 2015 6:59 pm We did that exact same thing with a couple of builders before signing off on our place. Ended up with what we think is a great deal. One company had specials on one thing, giving about a 10k discount then another company had free aircon, which was about 10k worth as well as bathroom upgrades - tiling to 2m and a few other bits. In the end they didn't come down all that much with any of the big bits and pieces. What we did do and found really helpful was got them to throw in reasonable extras, not big ticket items but lots of little things that don't cost them much but REALLY add up in the end. We ended up getting 25 powerpoints, with 14 of them doubles, the extra circuits which were needed, extra lights, gas tap out the back for bbq, extra external taps, some extra cabinetry. Lots of stuff you wouldn't think of too much but stuff which adds up in the long run. Asking for appliance upgrades isn't likely to get results because it costs the builder and to be honest you will be WAY better off buying your appliances from a third party and supplying to your buildeR. We saved around 2.5k. Maybe ask which builder will give you moRe credit for appliances if you supply your own. They won't admit it easily but your definitely allowed to supply your own! Getting things like powerpoints costs the builder bugger all but would cost you around $70 per point which adds up. Id ask for extra tiling in bathrooms as that's another minor upgrade but will cost you big $$$. Re: Playing One Off Against The Other? 5Mar 26, 2015 8:44 pm The facade is another one, they can be seriously costly. I agree completely with the above regarding extra electrical items. Flooring upgrades too (I wouldn't say tile flooring, the jump from ceramic to porcelain is huge) but if your going for the laminate wood flooring it's not a big deal for them to upgrade the timber ask about carpet and underlay too. Re: Playing One Off Against The Other? 6Mar 27, 2015 11:11 am Also forgot to mention insulation. Upgrade that as much as possible. Builders threw heaps of insulation upgrades at us which is going to help In the long run and is something you can't change when the house is built! Re: Playing One Off Against The Other? 7Mar 28, 2015 11:56 am My suggestion is that if you playing things around, try to have them upgrade things that can't be changed or added easily afterward. ie: powerpoints, flooring, tiles, etc. appliances and tapware are something so easy to change and you will change them sooner or later anyway. 6 4407 DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair I'm in WA and our sandy soils make drainage a bit easier but this is what I'd be doing. Dig down to your footings and let the wall dry out. Clean it all well by brushing… 1 5251 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 10243 |