Hi all,
I'll post my life story
My partner and I are just about to settle on our first block of land. For those in Perth, it's in Alexander Heights and is 856sqm so we'll be able to do lots with it! (Although it's not square, so there are some limitations ) It was almost an impulse buy - we were saving to buy a block, and just about got there and noticed this block and just had to get it - we really want a nice big house in that area so it seemed perfect!
We'll be saving up now since we bought the land earlier than expected, and will be aiming to get a building contract signed April/May next year. I'm currently working FIFO to help boost the funds, hence why I'm in Newman
It's our first property together, so we have NO idea what on earth to do! My Dad has been great as an ex-bank manager in terms on loan advice, my partner's parents have built 2 houses which is useful but they haven't in the past 10 years so it's a bit out of date. So any advice you can pass on would be WONDERFUL and please excuse any stupid questions I ask - I just have no idea!
We've looked at a few display homes a while ago, and have decided we want a 1 storey house to fill up the block. Preferably a 4x2 with an office, activity area (which we want to close up and make a 5th bedroom up), and a pool room so I can say to my partner 'Put it in the pool room hun!' LOL (Sorry, I'm a big fan of 'the Castle'). Also, I want lots of cupboard space and a kitchen with plenty of bench space. We are looking at spending a maximum of $180,000 on building, which we think is possible as there are a few builders that have houses we want in that price range.
BUT now we have to actually decide on something! So we're going to start looking now as they all look nice, and all the builders seem the same in terms of what they have to offer. We don't know how to pick one. And someone also suggested getting a builder who will individually design the home as it could be cheaper, but I don't even know where to find one! And I thought they were all expensive. When I'm back in Perth next week, if we have time, we might start looking at the display homes again to get an idea. Since my roster is 23/5 (23 days on, 5 days off) we won't have much time to look at houses while I'm in Perth before April rolls around.
So that's where we are at the moment.
Sorry if that's long.
From Michelle