Browse Forums Building A New House Re: Our Home Building Journey: in Canberra 5Oct 31, 2024 5:06 am Architectural Homes & Duplexes - specialising in custom designing homes to your budget Get a Free Onsite Consultation Today or send a PM for information, questions or advice. Re: Our Home Building Journey: in Canberra 8Oct 31, 2024 8:34 am suku18 Ashington Homes suku18 Here is a list of all approvals we needed. That is so fast! Its been interesting watching your journey, can't wait to see how it all comes together Cheers Simeon Thanks a lot Simeon, Your advise on this forum has been invaluable. We ended up buying a smaller block and building there rather on the larger block which we sold off. Suku You are welcome. You have my number so if you need any assistance during the build just give me a shout cheers Simeon Architectural Homes & Duplexes - specialising in custom designing homes to your budget Get a Free Onsite Consultation Today or send a PM for information, questions or advice. Re: Our Home Building Journey: in Canberra 9Nov 03, 2024 11:51 am Hi suku18, Thankyou so much for sharing your journey. We are having issues with basix as 30% of the build is windows. Are there any particular things that your consultant suggested adjusting to reach the 7 stars? So far we have been told to slightly reduce our window sizes and add external blinds to our stacking doors on the alfresco... Thankyou so much! Wishing your journey continues to go smoothly ☺️ suku18 Building a custom home has always been a dream for us, and in August, that dream started becoming a reality. We purchased a block of land in Canberra and embarked on an exciting, yet challenging, journey to design and build our new home . In this blog, I’ll take you through the timeline of our process—from purchasing the land to breaking ground on our new home. (We had earlier purchased a slightly larger block, but estimates of construction on this block were very high, so we made a decision of selling it off and purchasing a smaller block, this blog is for the new block) Settling on the Land – First Week of August In the first week of August, we settled on our block of land. It was an exhilarating moment knowing that this plot would soon be home. However, we knew that a lot of work lay ahead, starting with getting our custom home designs drafted and approved. Custom Designs: A Fast and Efficient Architect – Mid to Late August We engaged an architect straight after we exchanged on the block. This meant that by mid-August, we had our first draft of home designs from our architect. Over the next two weeks, we went through multiple iterations. It was a collaborative process, and I can’t speak highly enough about our architect—he was one of the fastest and most efficient professionals we’ve worked with. His responsiveness made it easy to quickly tweak the designs to match our vision. By the end of August, we had our final design ready. Approvals and Exemptions: Early to Mid-September The first week of September brought exciting news—we received approvals from Icon Water and Evo. If there is an easement on your block, getting ICON water approvals can be a painstakingly long process in Canberra. As we did not have any, the architect helped us to sort this out pretty quickly. Due to some minor encroachments on our block, we needed to apply for a 1N exemption. This delayed things a bit, especially since the land wasn’t officially titled in our name yet. It took another two weeks for the title to be transferred to us. Once that was sorted, we received the exemption within a week, allowing us to move forward. Achieving a 7-Star Energy Rating – Mid to Late September With recent changes in ACT regulations, we needed to ensure that our home design met a minimum 7-star energy rating. Our architect referred us to a specialist who was as efficient and responsive as he was. With some minor adjustments to our insulation plan, we were able to achieve a 7.1-star rating. This was a relief and one more box checked off the list! Choosing the Right Builder – Throughout September While working on the approvals, we also started consulting with different builders to get quotes. After meeting with a few, we selected one who was not only responsive to our requests but also gave us a very competitive quote. We did our homework by checking reviews, visiting display homes, and even speaking with past clients who had used this builder. By the end of September, we had locked in our builder. Engineering Drawings and Certifier Engagement – End of September The builder took care of the engineering drawings, and we received them by the end of September. At the same time, we engaged a certifier who was also recommended by our architect. Working with the certifier was a smooth experience, though they requested some minor changes to the plans. By mid-October, all approvals were in place, and we were ready to commence construction. Final Approvals and Site Markings – Mid to Late October On October 15th, we officially received all approvals, and the project was handed over to the builder. Site markings were done on October 24th, a huge milestone for us as we could finally see the first signs of physical progress. Site Cut – October 28th Just a few days after the site markings, on October 28th, we reached a major milestone—the site cut! It was surreal to see the land we purchased in August being prepared for construction. This marked the beginning of the building phase. What’s Next? We are hopeful that everything continues to progress smoothly from here. The journey so far has been filled with learning, excitement, and a few bumps, but we’re confident we’ve chosen the right team to bring our dream home to life. Stay tuned for more updates as we move forward with the construction process! This journey took us only about 2.5 months from settling on the land to breaking ground. I hope this gives future home builders a clear picture of what to expect when embarking on a similar journey in Canberra. We’re looking forward to sharing more milestones as our home continues to take shape. Re: Our Home Building Journey: in Canberra 10Nov 04, 2024 8:15 am Pigeonpair Hi suku18, Thankyou so much for sharing your journey. We are having issues with basix as 30% of the build is windows. Are there any particular things that your consultant suggested adjusting to reach the 7 stars? So far we have been told to slightly reduce our window sizes and add external blinds to our stacking doors on the alfresco... Thankyou so much! Wishing your journey continues to go smoothly ☺️ Hello And Thanks for your wishes. We were able to achieve 7.1 stars without much changes. we were requested to upgrade the insulation of some walls and roofs. Other than that there were not many changes. Happy to answer any questions you might have , if you would like to message me I can share the changes and the process and some tips to achieve the result. The housing market is at an all time struggle for Gen Z and above. My business involves consultation and planning in conjunction with a long standing builder who can build… 2 17452 Hi Im having trouble getting anyone to provide useful advice on going for an insulated slab North facing extension. I had Lighthouse group do the energy assessment last… 0 12133 I second taking your plans elsewhere. They're yours (unless you ended up in one of those cheaper arrangements where you don't own the rights and the build will be tendered… 2 24176 |