Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Jan 13, 2009 3:09 pm I have literally decided to demolish and build and have been to lots of display villages to help me with my choice. At the moment it stands between Henley, Symonds and Birbank. I am leaning towards birbank only becaue I love the designs and they are a bit different. However I am a bit concerned about some of the stuff written and woud appreciate feedback from all three. At his stage Henley is my last pick because they seem to be the same and they are everywhere. I can't afford a building lawyer but would welcome feedback from anyone who knows if there are any hidden things I need to know about. Re: who to choose 2Jan 15, 2009 1:38 pm We built with $imonds and we had a good experience, few little hiccups here and there, (the biggest being after we done handover, being so close to christmas we couldnt get tradies to come out and fit the applicances in a timely matter, so dont move before christmas!) but nothing major, been in just over a month and the quality seems to be holding up!
Built within 5 months, our CSO was mostly good through-out, esp good after the handover stage when we were having problems! our SS was great till handover then a bit slack, through out was helpful, friendly and followed through with promises! I would recommend them but im sure others will say the opposite, the joys of building some of us had a pretty alright experience (not stress free cause it is never stress free!) , others have really horror stories! GOOD LUCK deciding! Re: who to choose 3Jan 16, 2009 10:21 am Honestly with any volume builder you're just facing the luck of the draw--most of the time. Sometimes you'll get a good customer service person, sometimes you'll get a bad one, and that's really what makes most of the difference between them.
There's nothing wrong with going in and sitting down with one of the sales reps from each company, saying "I like this design, can you take me through how much it costs?" Once you have a good grip on the costs involved (and, if you can, try to get an idea of how much the display home costs--the cost of the display home is often 50-70% more than the base cost quoted on sales materials), you will be in a better position to see if you are able to afford all three. That might make things easier. Don't let any of the sales reps force you into making a decision. You could quite easily say "tell me why I should get you to build my home instead of this mob over here". Remember, no matter what you're the customer and you're paying them the money, therefore you're the one they need to impress. ### As for hidden stuff, each and every builder will have their own little quirks. M3tricon (our builder) was pretty average on outlining site costs at the beginning. However, their process for choosing extras and add-ons is streamlined, clear, simple and open and transparent. At Urban Edge, the display homes are the base model homes. You pay the cost listed on the paper, you get precisely what is on display. No need to go through studio appointments (unless you want to). We never really looked at any builders other than M3tricon (we didn't like the quality of any of the others), so I can't help you with specifics. But you need to keep your eyes open and don't let anyone pressure you into signing anything you don't want, or putting up with anything you don't have to. At the same time, make sure you understand your obligations at each stage of the contract process, e.g. you may be required to organise your own demolition within a set number of days and clear away any and all debris. If you're not sure about anything, get it in writing. --Mike Everything I know, I learned from SBS. LATEST: Frame Complete http://metricon-mercer.livejournal.com Re: who to choose 4Jan 17, 2009 5:39 am We are doing the same thing - demolishing our home and building. We chose Sim*ds as we liked their designs and heard good reports from a friend who built with them. Apparently they show you all the receipts for work done during construction and refund money not used. They also endeavour to build on time. More importantly our friend is very pleased with the quality of the home - it's been 6+ years since they built.
We are crossing our fingers that we'll also have a good experience with Sim*ds. We didn't hear much from our CSO at the beginning but he seems willing to help and has managed to answer all our queries so far. At one stage we were planning to pull out due to personal circumstances but the regional manager gave us an extension of time until mid Jan with no increase to the cost of the home. We've jumped back in again now and have signed the contract. Just found a place to rent and demolition will happen very soon - can't wait! :D Anthony Firstly, wow you have put a lot of work into your list of questions! Great job and they are mostly valid questions that a builder should be able to answer. As… 14 9097 |