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Browse Forums Building A New House  15 Dec 2013 392 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11821Aug 30, 2015 8:53 pm i guess if we were having a unbelievable great run perfect tradies and managers,we wouldnt voice our concerns, Ps we also used darbecca/building expert and a friend of mine who owns his own building company Re: Porter Davis homes 11822Aug 30, 2015 10:32 pm  ChrisHeliSo, do your research. Work out what you want. Stick to it. Personally, I'm getting pretty annoyed at some of the negativity here. The accusations and mistrust only breed more accusations, mistrust and misery. Get yourself a decent inspector (who works for you), I have positive experiences with Darbecca, and let everyone do their job. Sure, inspect yourself and be involved, but don't assume that a mistake is deliberate and that everyone is "out to rip you off". I've lived through a builder going bankrupt mid build, which I can assure you is far worse than even having to have bits of your house pulled down and redone. Imaging finding a new build to (re)start the build process... -Chris Well put, Chris - I've lived through a builder going bankrupt as well, which was a truly terrible experience, as he'd conned us into paying him into his daughters trust fund, so we had to fall back on insurance to complete the build... We're starting the process with PD at the moment for a KDR, building a Rochford 40, and the KDR consultant we're working with is awesome... he met us at World of Style and didn't close on 3 hours making sure we are comfortable with the process... Every question we've asked so far has been answered straight away or next day... We've also asked for a few changes that aren't listed options, which we're collaborating on at the moment - hopeful that we can get them added... I've got friends who are custom builders who could build our forever home, but not too the price we can afford to pay... Everything in life requires compromise and building of appropriate relationships to manage the correct outcome... I've found that most people building with a volume builder don't understand that the display home for a house with a list price of $300k typically costs over $600k "as built" ... This is why most of my friends who have built with various volume builders claim they haven't got what they expected... The ones who get it before they start are never disappointed... It's critical when building a home that you understand what you're trying to achieve, what your builder is doing, and above all be a reasonable client. Then you can demand nothing more than perfection! Our Bayside KDR Thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=78298 15 Dec 2013 392 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11823Aug 30, 2015 10:45 pm we had no issues with extras or the price we paid more workmanship from slab to finish,guess we expected too much Re: Porter Davis homes 11824Aug 31, 2015 12:03 am deefeez46waldorfwe had no issues with extras or the price we paid more workmanship from slab to finish,guess we expected too much From what I've heard and experienced, that can be the same with all builders... E.g. We decided not to build with Carlisle because every display give we have been in has a creaking upper storey... Or thoughts are if they can't get a display perfect, why would they bother with our home? A mate of mine used to be married into the Henley family, and his ex wife refused to build a home built by her own family.... Go figure... Expectation management is important too... We've set ours early, and building what we hope are valuable relationships should we need them during our build Our Bayside KDR Thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=78298 21 Feb 2015 8 VIC Junior Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11825Aug 31, 2015 8:23 am Don't get me wrong we have had a great start to our build and we have a great Supervisor who I trust. Our BC has been good, only working 3 days a week. But to receive a variation 8 weeks after the work has been undertaken is not good enough. And for part of that work to not even have happened is deplorable. Who is checking this stuff? Isn't that what I'm paying for? A service to build my house and keep me informed on what is happening. It's the internal processes and procedures that need serious attention. I have no doubt I will move into my dream home, and I can't wait, but I'm not paying for PD's 'mistakes'. 06 Sep 2014 583 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11826Aug 31, 2015 1:35 pm deefeez46waldorfi guess if we were having a unbelievable great run perfect tradies and managers,we wouldnt voice our concerns, Ps we also used darbecca/building expert and a friend of mine who owns his own building company  I gess that was my point. We have had a good run, because we did our homework, made some choices that greatly assisted us to avoid issues (Hebel in this case, as brickwork still appears to be an issue) and stuck to what we've decided. And yes, I do think that we have had a good set of tradies (mostly), and been managed by a SS who wants to do a good job. To that end, I've left him alone to actually go and do it. Personally, I hate being micromanaged, and I will not do it to him. Ask questions, sure. Tell him how to do his job, no. It has not been perfect, not by any means, but nothing to really whine about either. Where things have been done incorrectly, then yes, they were fixed. Where we've missed something, or did not specifiy something, then, it is we who have to "suck it up", and not blame PD. Ultimately, the responsibility rests with us to tell PD exactly what we want, and then we pay them to do it. As someone else said, it is a lot about expectation management. Both ways. Re: Porter Davis homes 11827Aug 31, 2015 3:59 pm Chris, I agree with all your comments bar one. Preparation and decisions on masonry etc don't really change the quality of workmanship. We did lots of research and believe have made some good decisions along the way but still had our fair share of issues and terrible workmanship. Having said that, yes I too am sick of hearing the 'whinging' regarding little things. Just cut your SS some slack keep up the communication and they will resolve it all to your standards. That's what we found at least. I have put up my share of negative and positive posts. However, my negative posts have been about lack of communication (1 month+) of no calls, emails etc from our BC... and no this is not because of a change we made... it's because PD decided to make a change half way through the build and we requested written documentation for it (Building Variation). In the end, we're fairly happy with PD and they are doing the right thing by us whenever we are unhappy. Cheers Re: Porter Davis homes 11828Aug 31, 2015 5:06 pm DarmaxDon't get me wrong we have had a great start to our build and we have a great Supervisor who I trust. Our BC has been good, only working 3 days a week. But to receive a variation 8 weeks after the work has been undertaken is not good enough. And for part of that work to not even have happened is deplorable. Who is checking this stuff? Isn't that what I'm paying for? A service to build my house and keep me informed on what is happening. It's the internal processes and procedures that need serious attention. I have no doubt I will move into my dream home, and I can't wait, but I'm not paying for PD's 'mistakes'. Hi Darmax, can you please PM me your build address so I can assist with follow up on this matter for you. Regards, Joanne. Porter Davis Homes Questions? Call 1800PORTER Mon - Fri 9am-8pm Sat - Sun 10am-4pm info@porterdavis.com.au http://blog.porterdavis.com.au/ http://www.porterdavishomes.com.au 06 Sep 2014 583 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11829Aug 31, 2015 5:27 pm  joeaChris, I agree with all your comments bar one. Preparation and decisions on masonry etc don't really change the quality of workmanship. We did lots of research and believe have made some good decisions along the way but still had our fair share of issues and terrible workmanship. True. Good point too. Let me fully explain what I meant by that. A lot of the issues that I recall that people are most unhappy about have been mostly around brick laying etc. I guess what I meant was, by chosing Hebel, we avoided all of those issues. We've had some quality (and other) issues, some of which are yet to be resolved. In all cases, it's come back to what is in the contract/PCV (as it should). I don't hear from my BC, I speak to my SS weekly, or more often as needed. I need to speak to my BC, then I pick up the phone. Re: Porter Davis homes 11830Aug 31, 2015 5:32 pm ChrisHeli joeaChris, I agree with all your comments bar one. Preparation and decisions on masonry etc don't really change the quality of workmanship. We did lots of research and believe have made some good decisions along the way but still had our fair share of issues and terrible workmanship. True. Good point too. Let me fully explain what I meant by that. A lot of the issues that I recall that people are most unhappy about have been mostly around brick laying etc. I guess what I meant was, by chosing Hebel, we avoided all of those issues. We've had some quality (and other) issues, some of which are yet to be resolved. In all cases, it's come back to what is in the contract/PCV (as it should). I don't hear from my BC, I speak to my SS weekly, or more often as needed. I need to speak to my BC, then I pick up the phone. I gotcha. Thanks for clarifying. I agree with the contract/PCV being master. Need to invest a lot of time into those documents to get them right before going to site. Yea my SS is my main contact, he's been fantastic. 06 Sep 2014 583 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11831Sep 01, 2015 1:35 pm repost, I think the url changed: http://itsallaboutthewaldorf.blogspot.com.au/2015/05/framing-day-36-hebel-uplift.html A new post, the weekly update: http://itsallaboutthewaldorf.blogspot.com.au/2015/06/framing-day-41-lots-of-progress.html 06 Sep 2014 583 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11832Sep 01, 2015 1:43 pm Blog update. Framing day 43 - Plumbing breather pipe installed. http://itsallaboutthewaldorf.blogspot.com.au/2015/06/framing-day-43-plumbing-breather.html 06 Sep 2014 583 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11833Sep 01, 2015 1:47 pm Blog update: The network and entertainment wiring has begun: http://itsallaboutthewaldorf.blogspot.com.au/2015/06/framing-day-43-electrical-and.html 06 Sep 2014 583 VIC Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11834Sep 01, 2015 1:52 pm Blog update: Solar hot water installed! http://itsallaboutthewaldorf.blogspot.com.au/2015/06/framing-day-43-solar-hot-water-installed.html Re: Porter Davis homes 11835Sep 01, 2015 2:22 pm just wondering, in what condition, has porter has left most of your yards? we're they levelled out? our is a complete mess. EDIT: can anyone also recommend someone who can excavate and level and someone who can build and install a side gate? built the Dunedin 28 with Porter Davis. Re: Porter Davis homes 11836Sep 01, 2015 3:29 pm  kateebeejust wondering, in what condition, has porter has left most of your yards? we're they levelled out? our is a complete mess. EDIT: can anyone also recommend someone who can excavate and level and someone who can build and install a side gate? They get the site cleaned towards the end of the build. Landscaping and levelling in on the owner to do after hand over unless otherwise agreed. Might want to edit your signature since you are now building with PD. 31 Mar 2010 499 Gold Member Re: Porter Davis homes 11837Sep 01, 2015 3:37 pm Henley VogueCheck out Henley. We ditched pd last minute. We are now building with Henley. There's very little that you need to upgrade, everything is included. And there's lots to choose from at their selection centre. Funnily enough we did. There was a Henley house we were also tossing up with but they wouldn't let us modify the butler's pantry and the staircase. Re: Porter Davis homes 11838Sep 01, 2015 4:16 pm kateebeejust wondering, in what condition, has porter has left most of your yards? we're they levelled out? our is a complete mess. EDIT: can anyone also recommend someone who can excavate and level and someone who can build and install a side gate? our site has been completely cleared except for leftover bricks and soil has been placed around the house Built the Bermuda with Porter Davis Re: Porter Davis homes 11839Sep 01, 2015 4:32 pm joea They get the site cleaned towards the end of the build. Landscaping and levelling in on the owner to do after hand over unless otherwise agreed. Might want to edit your signature since you are now building with PD. My apologies, I have already built and have been in the home for a couple of months now. My signature said 'trying' because we had ALOT of problems. We are looking to landscape and I have had a few quotes done and they are always shocked when they see the backyard, which is the worst part. They didn't clean the site before handover either. We had insulation, cupboard off cuts and general rubbish in both the front and back yard. We asked our SS to organise a rubbish removal but that didn't happen   katemorley91 our site has been completely cleared except for leftover bricks and soil has been placed around the house built the Dunedin 28 with Porter Davis. Re: Porter Davis homes 11840Sep 01, 2015 4:37 pm kateebee joea They get the site cleaned towards the end of the build. Landscaping and levelling in on the owner to do after hand over unless otherwise agreed. Might want to edit your signature since you are now building with PD. My apologies, I have already built and have been in the home for a couple of months now. My signature said 'trying' because we had ALOT of problems. We are looking to landscape and I have had a few quotes done and they are always shocked when they see the backyard, which is the worst part. They didn't clean the site before handover either. We had insulation, cupboard off cuts and general rubbish in both the front and back yard. We asked our SS to organise a rubbish removal but that didn't happen katemorley91 our site has been completely cleared except for leftover bricks and soil has been placed around the house My bad. Yes should have been done before PCI/Handover. Our's has been cleaned about 3 times now. As Kate said, we only had the left over bricks we requested, dips and dirt over our easement cover as well. Wow that is terrible about the insurance! I guess ideally proof of insurance should be provided prior to first deposit but I'd imagine they would refuse to be out of… 17 9318 There isn't any need to. As I wrote previously, there isn't a set term, there is just commencement based on earlier of contract signing or building permit issue and… 24 9085 Three options 1 Ask the liquidator 2 Find another PD customer and ask the source of their report 3 Pay for new report 3 2586  |
