Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Feb 13, 2011 8:54 pm Hi all, Is anyone out there having the same problems we're experiencing with Places Homes? We're building the Drysdale 30. We visited the display home in Feb'10 and we signed our building contract in April'10. We had 8 variations to our building contract because they couldn't get it right (We didn't make any structural changes, we added the Alfresco and we upgraded the windows to double glaze etc). By this time, I knew I'd have to manage this project myself and I'm glad I did. Construction started in Aug'10. In sept'10 the brickwork was half done and that's then the big problem started. From my untrained eye, the brickwork didn't look right. I raised the concern with my site manager, but nothing was done. In Oct'10 I visited my site again, and told the site manager the brickwork didn't look right. They told me to wait for everything to be finished and to give them time to fix everything. I did just that. So I waited patiently. We had our PCI inspection last Thursday. Prior to our PCI, we engaged our own independent building inspector to inspect our new home. We did this to put our minds at ease about the Brickwork. Surprise, surprise.. Most of the brickwork came back defective.. Most of it was 60% to 100% above the allowed tolerance. In addition to the brickwork, 35 other defects were identified. Including a bow in the wall between our study and living area. Mind you, our site manager couldn't see the bow and I had to show him (!!??!!). He eventually agreed it needed to be fixed. In addition to the defects my inspector detected. I found about 20 other problems.. Including: The installed evap cooler was the wrong colour, brickwork over the garage door was missing, cables/data points/power points installed in incorrect locations, bubbling in the architraves (in 5 separate areas), double glazed windows scratched, missing feature walls, down lights popping out of the roof, toilet seat installed on an angle (??!!??), gaps around the external window frames and the list goes on and on... Are we the only ones experiencing these problems? If you are building with Places Homes, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU HIRE YOUR OWN INDEPENDENT BUILDING INSPECTOR. Our building inspector was amazingly detailed and worth every penny! During my PCI, my site manager denied the brickwork was defective. I’m sending them some additional proof in the next couple of days, which will hopefully convince them. If they don’t accept responsibility soon, then we’ll be getting legal advice. Another disappointing aspect is the massive quality difference between the display home and our home that was built. Look at the differences here. The pictures show the shelving in our W.I.R. The first is the display home and the second is our house. My site manager says it’s an upgrade from the display home….. Ummm yeah, sure! Another lie. Picture of Display Home Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Picture of our home Like ⋅ Add a comment ⋅ Pin to Ideaboard ⋅ Re: Building with Places Homes. Anyone else having problems? 2Feb 21, 2011 10:51 am Hi, Sorry to hear about your problems. I hope Places fix up all the mistakes they've made. I know it must be so dissappointing. What are they going to do about the bricks? Keep us updated with your progress. Wish you all the best. Would you mind sharing what area you are building in? stuey. Re: Building with Places Homes. Anyone else having problems? 3Feb 22, 2011 6:46 am Hi I am also building the Drysdale 30 in a few months land should be released after a long 2 year wait. I was at the new Point Cook display of the Drysdale 30 on the weekend and noticed that the master wardrobe fit out was the same as they have installed into your house. I still can't make up my mind which one I prefer I think that the one they have installed into your house will have more support and hopefully the rod wont bend. Re: Building with Places Homes. Anyone else having problems? 4Feb 27, 2011 12:04 pm Hi Everyone, I've created a new blog to keep everyone updated (sorry for the delay!). http://drysdale30.blogspot.com I'll upload some pictures very soon. Re: Building with Places Homes. Anyone else having problems? 5Feb 27, 2011 12:09 pm malrose, interesting comment about the wardrobe fit out. Funny. they told me the toilet we picked had changed slightly and we had to sign a contract variation. No variation for the wardrobe fit out... Re: Building with Places Homes. Anyone else having problems? 7Aug 23, 2011 4:46 pm Have had a look through your blog and would love to know where you are building? Hope it is not in our area!! Since we figure the quality of the house depends largely on the tradespeople who we think are local to each build? We are also looking at building the Drysdale30 and would love to read any tips you might have. traditional gable roof facade - Have you did the dark and light gray color combination in facade with gray stone in facade… 0 4211 A survey must’ve completed by a certified surveyor. This form part of every DA requirement 3 223610 I am not a brick expert, but rendering would be 1 option, it would be costly to do the entire house though.... 2 6679 |