Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Sep 20, 2008 8:29 am Hi,
I have been around this forum for quite a while and I have noticed that quite a few in here did not get what they wanted because their builder refused to do it. e.g. someone asked the builder for in slab underfloor heating and the builder said no you have do do it after handover. Is he insane?? others don't get double glazing or PVCu windows because the builder refuses or put a ridiculous price tag onto it and many more cases with apliances, bathrooms, heating, windows and, and ,and..... Why do some you guys put up with these bullies? Why are they still in business?? What is this? Who is the customer? Who pays the bills??? I find this unbelivable, it is bad too over here but never to such extent..... Re: Are OZ builders dictators ?? 2Sep 20, 2008 8:34 am My advice. Don't commit to a builder until you're happy. Progress things with at least two builders. Once the builder knows that their the only contender, why run the 100 metre race, when you can just walk it. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Are OZ builders dictators ?? 3Sep 20, 2008 8:43 am Sometimes I have to wounder whose house it is……the builders or the owners! Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com Re: Are OZ builders dictators ?? 4Sep 20, 2008 9:26 am No, I don't think so. You have to understand that project builders draw up a plan and source their materials etc based on that plan. If there are any variations to that, then they have to pay a drafty to change the plans and materials would not be aquired at the same cost as they will not be ordering 1500 of the same material.
A custom builder will build as specified to plans drawn. You can work together with them at drawing stage or simply approach them with plans. A custom builder may build 3 homes a year vs the 1500 a project builder builds. 3 vs 1500 is huge therefore the buying power for a custom builder is so small that any discounts are minimal at best. As a homework project my partner priced up a house designed by a project builder and without his builders mark up the price difference was huge. The alternative is the owner builder route. People think it's cheaper building ob, however it is not with everything. E.g. I went and got a prices for a kitchen and vanities done coming in at over 40k including the stone. A builder my partner works for hooked me up with the same kitchen and vanities for 28k. The difference is a one off order vs someone who spends over 100k a year with this company. The point is that I have understood since I was little is that to get what you really want is to either do it yourself (which is what i'm doing), or pay someone to build to spec. Re: Are OZ builders dictators ?? 5Sep 20, 2008 1:21 pm I think at the end of the day, you have to realise it's your house. If a volume builder won't do things that you want them to and won't give you access so that someone else can do it, then it's probably time to walk away.
We ended up walking away from a volume builder because they couldn't produce something that would pass the estate developers guidelines and that we also liked and thought worth the cost. We ended up going with a mid range builder that builds somewhere in the range of 10-50 homes a year. The downside is that may not be nationally based and only work in a state or an area within the state. The things they don't do, they will allow us access to the site so that we can get someone else in to do it for us. I think there is a range of builders out there that will satisfy everyone's needs. Re: Are OZ builders dictators ?? 7Sep 23, 2008 1:56 pm Hi,
I too wish double glazing was cheaper from the volume builders. However, I can't see it coming down in price until it is made mandatory through the star rating system or equivalent. Need a far greater volume to bring the price down. And even when builders give you flexibility then they certainly charge for it. NBG allowed us to have a particular vanity basin that we wanted, but charged 2.5 times retail price for the privilege. Needless to say we weren't impressed. Their solution was to supply it direct to the builder ourselves but then you can't insure it, not covered if they break it etc. Being able to get insurance to cover owner supplied items would certainly help but as far as I know such insurance doesn't exist. So if you want flexibility then you have to go with a custom builder and pay greater prices. So I guess the reason we all put up with limitations is through necessity - we can't afford the higher priced custom builders. Dale. Re: Are OZ builders dictators ?? 8Sep 23, 2008 3:29 pm Dale, double glazing is expensive regardless of which builder. Now a quote for my house, owner builder for double glazing came in at around 35k. That was the best price my partner who is a builder could source for me.
Needless to say i did not get aluminium double glazed windows Re: Are OZ builders dictators ?? 9Sep 23, 2008 8:13 pm Be 100 percent happy with the builder before you commit. Do not let them bully you in to accepting things you are not happy to do. On the other hand, you can't expect variations/additions to come cheap. I remember asking for two sliding doors on one wall to be reduced to one window in the centre of the wall and just to brick up the remaining space. I thought we would save some money by getting rid of a sliding door (external). They came back with a quote whereby it was going to cost us a few hundred to have it done. We weighed it up and decided against the change on principle. At the end of the day, its their right to charge for a change. I would have been furious if they had have said they were not going to do it at all, but they went through the motions and gave me a price. It was then up to me to accept or not. Look at your bill from the electricity company. It should detail the charges. You will need to do some estimating and some calculations. Then charge the… 8 4247 Site works are just about to start on our build with Blueprint in Midvale. viewtopic.php?f=31&t=106894 2 3952 Hi all, We are looking to build a new two storey house in western Sydney. Can anyone recommend a smallish builder to go with? We are trying to stay away from the big… 0 12140 |