Browse Forums Building A New House Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 2Apr 29, 2009 8:22 pm Hi Jr..I live in a McDonald Jones home at Fern Bay..the Chesterfield Grande..but I played golf at The Pacific Dunes Golf Course Medowie today and my partner pointed out a completed Somerset Grange built by McDonald Jones right on the 2nd fairway... It looked beautifull. Apparently the home won the award for HIA Best Project Home 2008... the owner is a member of the golf club.. sorry cant help anymore Life is an enjoyment, enjoy it Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 4Apr 29, 2009 8:49 pm They have 7 homes under construction at the moment in our small estate at Fern Bay... one 2 blocks from mine... their home's seem to go up pretty quick...and look good with their blue steel frames... the bricky who wanted to use our water told my wife yesterday that he had heard their work was going well and that they had just expanded their business to the South Coast and Sydney... I read in the Herald on the weekend they were now the third largest builder in NSW... they have certainly come along way in the last few years.... Life is an enjoyment, enjoy it Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 5Apr 29, 2009 8:52 pm "Your emotions are the slaves to your thoughts, and you are the slave to your emotions." — Elizabeth Gilbert Living in our new house. Currently scaping the land. Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 6Apr 29, 2009 9:09 pm They may very well have expanded their business to the South Coast and Sydney... and possibly be the third largest builder in NSW, but what I have heard from tradesmen and also from someone we know who has dealt with them....proceed with caution Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 7Apr 29, 2009 9:43 pm I think you need to make yourself clear and not hide behind the word caution... it is very mischievous and probably commercially illegal to instigate rumours about a company in the public domain without stating the facts... it is also concerning and very upsetting I would imagine for members on this site who are currently enjoying building their dream home with that company... Life is an enjoyment, enjoy it Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 8Apr 29, 2009 9:52 pm Why on earth would it upset you so much, you have experience nothing but joy with them. I haven't named any names or spread any so called rumours and if I feel like telling someone to proceed with caution, I will, so don't try and intimidate me. I don't have to make myself clear to you at all Hanson61, not at all. Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 9Apr 29, 2009 10:05 pm Thats pretty harsh..why all the anger... and why does it bother you that my wife and I had 2 good experiences with this builder (building experiences of course!!)... I thought this was an open forum allowing free expression regarding ones experiences of building a new home... isnt it refreshing to hear some good news today... isnt the success of companies albiet a builder or a butcher that keeps us all in jobs... why spread inuendos.. tell us what you know... the next inuendo could be about your builder or next tradesman... and that wouldnt make you or any of us feel good at all... Life is an enjoyment, enjoy it Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 10Apr 29, 2009 10:09 pm Hanson61 Thats pretty harsh..why all the anger... and why does it bother you that my wife and I had 2 good experiences with this builder (building experiences of course!!)... I thought this was an open forum allowing free expression regarding ones experiences of building a new home... isnt it refreshing to hear some good news today... isnt the success of companies albiet a builder or a butcher that keeps us all in jobs... why spread inuendos.. tell us what you know... the next inuendo could be about your builder or next tradesman... and that wouldnt make you or any of us feel good at all... Maybe the fact that you've blown sunshine up the proverbail of this builder under a couple of different user names makes us a little suspicious. Perhaps they pay your wages? I'll refresh your memory from when you were "Robertcharles"..... viewtopic.php?f=31&t=12644&hilit=Hanson61 I leave you to fend for yourself, figure things out yourself. Terrence Malick Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 11Apr 29, 2009 10:20 pm well you know thats not quite correct..in the early days my wife was a member under her own membership using our onlycomputer.. so I am not sure if that makes us a double user.... in terms of working for them... I dont think I could ever be considered a builder.. but I am closely aligned to the industry in bank lending.. and very busy at the moment Life is an enjoyment, enjoy it Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 12Apr 30, 2009 6:16 am "Your emotions are the slaves to your thoughts, and you are the slave to your emotions." — Elizabeth Gilbert Living in our new house. Currently scaping the land. Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 14Apr 30, 2009 9:53 pm Does anyone (Ok, anyone besides Hanson61 or Robbuilding) have anything good to say about these guys??? It seems all bad, or unbelievably good. None of this seems like the real deal. We are going with them, but if it all goes pear shaped I'm going to feel like a complete idiot! There are only a couple of comments that seem legit. If they are the 3rd largest builder in NSW there are surely more of you out there reading this who are willing to share your experiences. Yours, in confusion, buzz Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 15May 01, 2009 10:28 am buzz Does anyone (Ok, anyone besides Hanson61 or Robbuilding) have anything good to say about these guys??? It seems all bad, or unbelievably good. None of this seems like the real deal. We are going with them, but if it all goes pear shaped I'm going to feel like a complete idiot! There are only a couple of comments that seem legit. If they are the 3rd largest builder in NSW there are surely more of you out there reading this who are willing to share your experiences. Yours, in confusion, buzz I have one going up next door to me plus quite a few popping up like mushrooms around me. The quality and finish looks good and I have spoken to a few of the tradies working next door and they say they are good to work for. The only thing I have noticed is they seem to get the slab, frame, bricks and roof up quickly but then they sit with nothing happening for weeks at a time. They certainly seem a popular choice in Newcastle. Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 16May 01, 2009 12:24 pm Hey guys, I was originally looking at building the Monte Carlo from Macdonald Jones and gave up because they didn't want to be helpfull seeing as how i wasn't buying in their estate(I already had land at toronto NSW). While looking at land I was told by countless real estate agents that they dont really want to help you if you dont build at fern bay in the estate there. Their house prices you see when you look through the display homes are including nothing. no cupboard doors or floor coverings light fittings. As long as you are aware of the huge list of things that aren't included they seem to build a fantastic looking house. I can't comment on the build times or anything though. If you want me to elaborate on my experience trying to get them to build my house just say so I went to other worse builders though before finishing where i am. Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 17May 01, 2009 1:42 pm mrsnrub buzz Does anyone (Ok, anyone besides Hanson61 or Robbuilding) have anything good to say about these guys??? It seems all bad, or unbelievably good. None of this seems like the real deal. We are going with them, but if it all goes pear shaped I'm going to feel like a complete idiot! There are only a couple of comments that seem legit. If they are the 3rd largest builder in NSW there are surely more of you out there reading this who are willing to share your experiences. Yours, in confusion, buzz The only thing I have noticed is they seem to get the slab, frame, bricks and roof up quickly but then they sit with nothing happening for weeks at a time. ....heard the same D&SG As long as you are aware of the huge list of things that aren't included .....also this Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 18May 01, 2009 2:01 pm We seriously considered going through them. Picked their largest (and most expensive !!) home that they have. Seriously they couldn't organise anything. They came to look at the site, measured it then asked us for AHD levels. Okay so we went and had them done. One weekend we for curiosity sake went and tried to measure out the block - the house would never had fit where they had situated it. So that along with their lack of enthusiasm steered us right away. We know another person who built a house with them - the main thing he couldn't get over was they almost completed the home before they asked for any progress payments. Now this is great for the customer but seriously problematic for any business I would think. Serious oversight on their behalf. The houses seems gorgeous and my sister didn't have any issues with the house they built with them. But a customer I had when I was a lending manager was soooo close to taking them to Fair Trading about numerous issues was something always in the back of my mind. Like any builder I suppose tread carefully and read everything 10 times before signing. Always go into the contract with a cynical mind and don't take anything on face value. Get everything in writing. And always expect some disappointment. Then you won't be shocked when it does eventually happen. Some things are worth waiting for. Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 19May 01, 2009 8:15 pm I would have to agree with kyton. Read the contract as there estmitations and allowances have not been enough on several ocassions and we have received variations for more money all the time. Just make sure you check everything and save any written communication. They were very quick to provide a tender and the sales service was great. Admin seems to be average and definetely not professional in some areas. Great products and designs but i seem to have a brick work quality issue at the moment. I won't list the issues as I have to give them a chance to fix them. With the price i'm paying I have a higher expectations as opposed to cheaper competing major builder companies so I will see when it's finished. Re: anyone building the Somerset Grange from Macdonald Jones 20May 02, 2009 11:00 pm Thanks to all for your comments. Hopefully it will go smoothly for us. At the moment I don't want to pull out, but hoping I don't regret it... I am aware that there are lots of things not included, but they are things we can take care of ourselves..... will have to check about cupboard doors though, silly me- I just assumed we'd get some. Just hoping at the end of it all, that my hubby still talks to me and doesn't hate me for talking him in to building a house. I told him it would be "exciting". Thanks, buzz Hi AKG, We had a base tender of $592 for 31 squares from MC Donald Jones. It looks relatively cheaper than other builders. But I assume there are many hidden things that… 1 16847 We spent close to 2 years in a process with TA. It was horrible..... we got to tender, and the first cut was 50% over our budget which "they care such about meeting ". We… 18 27322 Wish you all the best. Once you signed the contract, they will find millions excuses to charge you. And have seen their sites unfinished for a long time. 4 24833 |