Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Jan 09, 2010 6:09 pm How did you know who the right builder was?????? We have decided to design our own house and had a look at quite a few builders today. We are so lost as to who to build with. Things we have to consider are. I can get painting for free so will they take that off the contract. We can import so much stuff, windows, doors, kitchens etc for much cheaper than they charge so finding someone who will work with us or not do it at all. We found a builder who will build to lock up so we would do our own kitchens, bathrooms, interior doors etc. We would have loved to get windows in as we can get really nice double glazed ones for a lot cheaper than they are here. And if we do it that way it allows us to use our own scaffold too which saves a lot of $$$ too. So essentially we would be giving our builder a contract to sign. Our real only option to go all out is owner builder and its just not something we are that keen on doing. We are so confused what to do. If we want to use our own resources we are limited to a couple of builders. This post probably doesn't make sense but that is because I am so confused right now!!! Re: How did you know? 2Jan 09, 2010 6:15 pm It's hard isn't it - there is so much choice. For us, we knew we were building with the right people mainly because of reputation, but other things served to set our mind at ease. Their display homes were easily a cut above the rest, immaculately presented and maintained. Their salespeople in the display homes were informative but not pushy, and let us get on with poking around the houses without being overbearing. After the first meeting with one of their designers, we felt completely at ease and nothing but excited. The designer made things very easy for us and suggested lots of helpful hints which saved us a bit of money and hassle. He was a pleasure to deal with, and seemed genuinely interested in us. Everything has been smooth sailing with the builder, and this is in stark contrast with every other aspect of building a home that we've encountered. The bank has been nothing but trouble - they've treated us worse than criminals, and our settlement/real estate agents were flaky and never returned calls, so we appreciate our builder all the more for it. I had an old shower unit that broke on me and when I took it off, there were only 2 water pipes, instead of the normal 2 water pipes and a shower head pipe. S o I… 0 36944 The most definitive answer to your question James is this taken from the James Hardie Axon Cladding Installation Guide - i just happen to have it… 5 3693 No the fireplace doesn’t work. It’s been enclosed. I’m not sure what was removed, as it was done quite some time ago - well before what I can see with photos online… 2 11589 |