Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Oct 08, 2009 12:07 pm Here's my 2 cents...
It seems a LOT of newbies in this forum are asking the question of WHO they should build with. Of course everyone will tell you to build with THEIR builder. But really - YOU people need to use a little more initiative and chose the HOUSE you want. Choose the HOUSE that's right for you, in terms of size, style, floor plan etc etc etc. Most builders are flexible, so if there's a FLOOR plan that is ALMOST right, speak to them, I'm sure ALL BUILDERS are happy to try and accomodate changes. Everyone here is happy to help with queries/suggestions/advice AFTER you've made up your mind, but really, deciding WHO you build with should be YOUR decision... not the decision of fellow homeone members. Good luck with you choices! Looking forward to hearing what you all choose Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 2Oct 08, 2009 12:47 pm here here erin! right on the money girl! 2014 - Prepping to build the Soho 4 with Plantation homes, industrial style 2009 - Built the Brampton with Coral Homes viewtopic.php?f=31&t=15399&start=280 Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 3Oct 08, 2009 12:52 pm I absolutely aggree, We chose our builder because of the design and what we can fit on our piece of land. I have no regrets and loving our new home. Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 4Oct 08, 2009 2:05 pm maybe people want the easy option but here here erin! after many many many many months of visiting builders both volume and boutique you must choose your own builder - to be honest its fun as well! no im not crazy....... Williams Landing Stage 2 - Building Nolan with Big M - Slab Poured 09/11/09 Frame started 17/11/09 Brick started 05/01/10 Lock-up 31/01/10 Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 5Oct 08, 2009 2:19 pm Good point Erin. I followed this same advice given to us many months ago. We found the right house design to suit our needs and went from there. It was a design we found nowhere else. Luckily it was a builder we like anyway. We knew what we wanted so it didn't take long to find what we needed. Some builders are better than others so it does pay to do some research. If we found a design we liked with a crap (in our opinion) builder then we would not have chosen it regardless. So for us it's a bit of both. Good design and good builder. Starting with the right design is a great place to start. Then suss out the builders and go from there. Keep in mind that ALL builders have their pros and cons. Just how many.... Good luck! Life is; then you tell yourself a story. Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 6Oct 08, 2009 3:27 pm Completely agree. There's enough info on here already if you really want a snapshot of a builder's reputation / customer service etc. But it seems that most builders are good and you may get a bad SS or something, but most are fine. I think it's about knowing the process and finding out as much as you can before signing, but you need to read what's here and if you want to ask further questions, don't start a new thread, but maybe PM the person you want to talk to about a specific builder or issue. I think if you make sure you understand how the process works, know what you're entitled to, make sure your builder is aware that you know what's going on... then you should be fine. It's a long, tiring process with many hurdles, but I don't think there would be a builder out there who EVERYONE has had a bad experience with, or any builder who EVERYONE has has a good experience with. I've had no issues with my builder (only one with my council) and would recommend them, but you can get that from my thread My tac-home-ter: Been in 8 months! Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 7Oct 08, 2009 5:52 pm Cheers for the support guys It's just so frustrating seeing a great forum like this being used and abused like a magic 8 ball I love this forum for the advice, feedback, debates and general gossip... but logging on and seeing new posts all the time of people wanting decisions made for them is just so... grrr All I ask is that people use the search feature, do some research, and post on the relevent threads... or PM people who look like they can help. Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 8Oct 08, 2009 7:00 pm aaron4erin It's just so frustrating seeing a great forum like this being used and abused like a magic 8 ball Reminds me of the "how big should my back yard be?" thread that popped up a while back. I said the same thing then: everyone will tell you that THEIR yard is the perfect size - and I'm sure it is, for them - but you have to consider what you're going to use it for/put in it etc. Magic 8-ball..... :lol: Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 9Oct 08, 2009 7:37 pm I'd like to add something to this.... and I'm going to be very careful how I word this because my intention is to demonstrate my point.... not run down any builder and not promote any builder. So if anyone reads it like that, please believe that is not my intention. This is my 2c worth. The other thing to look at is inclusions.... all builders have things, all builders skimp on things. Think about which ones are important TO YOU. It's no use if the inclusions are 50k.... but it's stuff you don't want. Some examples: M3tr1con do include R4 insulation to the ceiling and R2 insulation to the walls. But you will pay for brick infills above windows and (facade dependent) for brick infills above the garage door. PD Prestige will give you brick infills above the garage and above the windows as standard. Depending on how your 5-star rating comes back, you may have to pay to upgrade your insulation. Carlisle and M3tr1con will give you a 3 star ducted heating as standard and you will be charged to upgrade. PD Prestige will give you a 4 star heater as standard. PD Prestige will charge you to upgrade to Colorbond fascia and guttering on single storey homes. M3tr1con and Carlisle will give it standard. PD will give you dura edge to all cabinetry. M3tr1con will charge you for it. Carlisle have an extensive range of standard tiles. PD standard range is limited and the upgrades are expensive. PD use 45 x90 framing. Carlisle use 35 x 90. Henley will offer CS stone to the bathroom and ensuite. PD and M3tr1con will charge you. Carlisle and Henley will give you Technika appliances. M3tr1con will be Baumatic. PD will be Blanco. This list is by no means exhaustive. But it demonstrates my point. I'd suggest after narrowing down to a few floorplans and builders, make a spreadshit of inclusions and builders and start to compare what you will and won't have to upgrade. Figure out what is and isn't important TO YOU. And compare apples with apples.... that means all inclusions, not just the pretty ones. As Erin and others have said, the key is to pick the floorplan that best works for you. BUT there is always other floorplans that work just as well. I know.... I've signed up for a few. But once it's narrowed down to a few floorplans.... then look at the inclusions (both standard and promo) and see if they work FOR YOU. A 4-star heater may mean jack if you want to install your own heating. Standard insulation may be of utmost importance. Infills over garage and windows may be something you'll upgrade to, so you if you can get it standard, great! If the timber is of importance, check the framing specs. If stone in the bathrooms is a must, see if it's included.... etc, etc. I just think there's a lot of talk about inclusions etc, etc.... and it doesn't mean much unless it's what you want. Everyones needs will be different..... the trick is to get best bang for YOUR buck. Not someone else's. I leave you to fend for yourself, figure things out yourself. Terrence Malick Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 10Oct 08, 2009 7:57 pm Bugger... and I thought from the thread title that I was coming in here to vote for my builder. Oh well, that's one less vote for PD on the forum then Blog: http://bluemistkids.blogspot.com "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, and professionals built the Titanic." Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 11Oct 08, 2009 8:01 pm Joles - Your post got me thinking that it would be really good to have a thread or sub forum that is a comparison of what is standard and what isn't with the top volume builders. This would be a great tool for those wanting to compare apples for apples. I'm not suggestion that you set it up, just that it would be very useful Blog: http://bluemistkids.blogspot.com "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, and professionals built the Titanic." Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 12Oct 08, 2009 8:04 pm Yeah I have thought of that as well, Hels. But to be perfectly frank, I think it would degenerate into a sh*tfight pretty quickly. Plus, it would be pretty hard to keep up to date because the whole inclusion thing is so changable so quickly. I leave you to fend for yourself, figure things out yourself. Terrence Malick Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 13Oct 08, 2009 8:08 pm joles I'd suggest after narrowing down to a few floorplans and builders, make a spreadshit of inclusions and builders and start to compare what you will and won't have to upgrade. Figure out what is and isn't important TO YOU. And compare apples with apples.... that means all inclusions, not just the pretty ones. Sorry Joles but I got to this one typo and I've been sitting laughing.... it just sums it all up in one [new] word for me! We did a spreadsheet but I think your term is more valid - always feels like you're trying to compare apples with oranges or in your case . Never argue with an idiot they drag you down to their level & then beat you with experience - Dilbert View Thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=19733 Contract signed 14Sept Slab 30Sept Bricks laid 1Dec Lock up 26Feb Keys 10Jun Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 14Oct 08, 2009 8:11 pm MrsRose joles ...make a spreadshit of inclusions Sorry Joles but I got to this one typo and I've been sitting laughing.... it just sums it all up in one [new] word for me! We did a spreadsheet but I think your term is more valid - always feels like you're trying to compare apples with oranges or in your case . Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 16Oct 08, 2009 8:43 pm I missed that one but what a classic! Blog: http://bluemistkids.blogspot.com "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, and professionals built the Titanic." Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 17Oct 08, 2009 8:44 pm our peocess wasa little different, we found the land and the agent was offering the opportunity of a house & land package (we could have just purchased the land), we checked the display home out, liked it and asked how much. Once the price was OK and I noticed that a hell of lot of things were standard we signed up. We were assigned a builder, I did some homework and asked around with the people I know and it turns out our builder is a well established small to medium builder who has opperated in the eastern burbs of Melbourne since the late 70's, so in the end I thought I was in safe hands (crap builders dont stay in business that long was the theory!!). It was then I found this forum which has been a great source of info and a great place to get a 2nd opinion but in the end all decisions are mine and its me that has to live with those decisions so I agree with Erin, use the search function, ask for an opinion but in the end we all need to make and own our own decisions. well thats my 2cents Blog: http://funmore-residence.blogspot.com/ Forum: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=21109 Construction Start - 19/09/09 Slab Poured - 21/10/09 Frame Completed - 25/11/09 Lockup - 22/12/09 Fixing - 22/02/10 Handover & Moved In 30/04/2010 Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 18Oct 08, 2009 8:49 pm I agree - we researched every big and small builder possible (you should see how many house planbooklets I collected! ) and in the end stuck with the builders that had plans that would make best use of our unusual size block and had a lot of inclusions that we wanted for next to nothing. I did actually make a spreadsheet of the 3 builders I had narrowed it down to so I could compare their inclusions, and for us S won hands down. So that made my decision for me much easier. Caz & Co ALL MOVED IN!! Now comes all the hard work-decorating.... [b]Blog: http://cazoraz.blogspot.com/ Settling in Thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=36993 Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 19Oct 08, 2009 8:57 pm Like I have said elsewhere, I totally agree - it should be based on the plan and the land and if it works! My decision was based on the floor plan. I had read THAT blog about PD before signing up with PD as they are a friend of a friend, but I still went with PD. 'A bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world.' Louis Pasteur Vegie garden: viewtopic.php?f=19&t=27637&start=0 My Backyard Adventure Re: Choose your OWN builder... (please) 20Oct 09, 2009 9:12 am I realise you're not aware, but would it be possible to stick with Internet etiquette and not SHOUT at people or worse still SCREAM at us, please? THIS IS SHOUTING THIS IS SCREAMING UNCONTROLLABLY Hi Mofflepop, I would recommend finding a building designer to prepare plans, they should design to your specified budget. The benefit is you can tender the project out… 9 20675 Hi All, I just wanted to close this topic out with an update. So we ended up agreeing to a number with the insurance company, and after an extensive amount of hand… 8 23825 |