SJD Homes. Who's built with them.

We don't have James as our site supervisor, but I think you should speak to SJD about your concerns rather than keep having issues. Maybe he is new? I've read about other people who have had issues with their SS (not with SJD though) and they got their builder to give them a new SS.

No harm in contacting management to voice your concerns, especially this early in the build process. Possibly worth emailing SJD directly at the office with your concerns as the girls in the office deal with payments anyway.

We have met with our SS because we have already had issues on our site, even though we are still waiting for the slab to be poured.

He has been friendly and responds to our emails and phone calls, although sometimes the response can be delayed. I am understanding of this as we are not his only site to manage.

My only worry with him is that he has clearly not yet read our contract. He has been surprised about some of the items we mention to him.

I have seen reviews from other SJD customers who had him as their SS and they were happy with him so I am happy to see how the build goes with him.

I have however contracted an independent building inspector as I can check that the building is done as per contract but I don't know anything about building standards. I would suggest you also get one if you can.

As far as I know, all site supervisors from SJD and other builders will only meet during the week and during work hours. I have a couple of friends who built with another company and they also could only meet with their ss during a week day and during work hours. So I think this is normal.

I am using New Home Inspections, my friends used Darbecca. I have not had them do a report yet. My friends were satisfied with Darbecca.

At the SJD Head Office Neville Howlett is someone else you can speak to - his contact details are on the SJD site.

Have you had a reply yet?

Yes finally.

Still waiting for the elevation drawings etc etc..

Hey Guys,

We are about to sign contract and Darbecca did a contract review for us,

There are 2 main issues
1. Appointment of independent building surveyor
2. Use of Method 2 for progress payments

The problem with the building surveyor - and I'm quite surprised that they are prepared to not proceed if I insist to appoint a building surveyor that they had not previously worked with

Has anyone appointed your own building surveyor instead of going with the preferred surveyor "watershed building consultants" ?

Thanks

We didn’t request to change the surveyor. We did use darbecca as our independent inspector to overlook the build stages.
Our contract was method 2. No issues with that.
Hope your build process goes well.

Hi all, we’re building with SJD too. Just wondering how the build has been so far for those of you who have gone through the building process with SJD? Im wondering if we should get private inspections done ☺️

why would you not want inspections done to ensure quality workmanship? it is a significant investment - certain correction cannot be rectified when construction has passed certain point of no return. All they can do is to make token compensation

Hi Guys,

I recall there was a couple of good site supervisors at SJD

The ones I read about were Andrew/Andy, Aaron, Paul and Shane - does anyone here have them as their site supervisors

Please share your thoughts about your site supervisors

All I can say is try not to get James! We've had a horror build, lots of mistakes and unnecessary delays.

Hey all,

Just thought I'd weigh in with my experiences building with SJD Homes and James.

We had James as our site supervisor and had an AMAZING build. My dad is a builder and as he told me, things go wrong on any building site but James took it all in his stride and got it sorted so we didn't have to stress about it. I'm super picky and also had my dad walk through at our final inspection given his background, everything was sorted for us ready to move in and I love how it has all come up!

I had heard that James builds a good home so was really glad when we got allocated him. I can say I was not disappointed, there were a couple of stages that took a little longer but I really didn't mind when the finished product came out just as I imagined.

We've been in our new home since Dec 17 and have only had a couple of minor issues, both of which James sorted out for us quickly. 3 month maintenance coming up and I don't doubt that the items on our list will get sorted out as the others have.

Hi all, I have few questions as we are going to build our first home with SJD homes in south East (Berwick). Our block is 15x38m and selected their Charleston 31.

1. What would be the disadvantages of building a home in winter instead of summer? Are lots of rain or cold affects the wooden structure?

2. I have heard a few people do building wrap. Is it the builder who does that or is it owner?

3. Can anyone advise SJDs top 3 site supervisors to go for?

Make sure you spell out Enviroseal ProctorWrap for your building wrap. Otherwise, cheap and nasty building wrap will be installed. Also, don't forget about the roof sarking - specify AIR-CELL Glareshield XL

If I could turn back time, i'd insist on using my own insulation contractor like efficiency matrix - a contractor that understand building science and install the product properly. I had heaps of issues with the insulation installer - sloppy works, can't be bothered to do anything properly

Keep an eye on the plumbing contractor for non-compliance works. Have Darbecca do all independent inspection and pay for re-inspections too. Also keep a lookout for sloppy roofing work

Also I'd specify minimum brickwall cavity of 70mm to guard against out-of-square or slab overhangs

Andy, Shane and Aaron are pretty good. Andy was my site supervisor and he's the best is promoted to construction manager

I built through the winter - I get really stressed up about the frames being exposed to the elements longer than manufacturer's recommendation of 90 days.

We’ve been in our SJD home for 15 months and we are thrilled with our build, the service, and follow up. We took our time at planning stage and it paid off during the build. Take your time, ask all your questions, make your selections, go back and visit the suppliers confirm you’ve made the correct choices, (even though sjd have a really great showroom for all the selections) read your quote / contract over several times and Be familiar with it so you know what to expect. Keep your lines of communication open with your supervisor so you know what stage your build is at. Bask for site visits and check on progress . Enjoy the process. This is my advice as a first time builder they build a great quality home !!!!


quote="bjk4130"]We're looking at building with them. Seeking feedback please.
They're out of Pakenham, Vic'.[/quote]

James Unthank or Shane Quinlan are both great supervisors

[/quote]

jazzaddict wow, thank you very much for very useful information. Especially Enviroseal ProctorWrap and AIR-CELL Glareshield XL roof sarking. Just wondering, does builder (SJD) do the wraps? I mean is it normally included in the build? or is it owners own responsibility to get the building wraps done on their own expense? sorry if it's a dumb question as a first home builder, I've no idea about it.

[/quote] Thanks for your useful advice. very useful information.

SJD Homes, we are about to get the building permit. Desperately waiting for the construction to start. We requested for any of the following S.S.
1. Anderew/Andy
2. Shane
3. Aaron

Would be happy if we get from the first two.

Anyone recently built with SJD Homes? Please share your experiences and who is your Site Supervisor?

Our sales consultant is Philippa and she is very responsive. We have a very positive experience with the sales so far.