Porter Davis homes

mitroff · Jul 17, 2012 11:58 pm

Hi guys, we are new to this Forum and reading through all the different experiences with Porter Davis we are getting a bit worried now.
We were promised an early July site start but nothing has happened yet. The contract was signed 7 weeks ago but no building permit nor final drawings done yet.
Not a very good start !!!
Left messages to our BC but the answer we got was ..."be patient"....
Our patience is wearing thin .... Any thoughts?

michaelrezk · Jul 18, 2012 8:55 am

I believe I am half way through my building and if there is anything I learnt it will be you are the owner and they are the builder.
You have to be guiding them to make sure you get 99% of what you asked for.

Don't sit and wait for them to call you paying $$$ f

michaelrezk · Jul 18, 2012 9:02 am

Pretty much you are paying their wages so you need to be happy with the process and most of all 48 hours turn around time for your queries.
If your BC is useless or saying they are busy..
It's simply not your problem they need to get extra staff.
If you are not convinced with something go to the reginal manager or contact ebony from this website.
Also last advice get them to put everything in writing becuase if it's not on writing by letter or email that means it didn't happens.
I had 4 BC within the last year so to have confirmation and nothing get missed make sure you record everything.
I don't think its porter Davis only but any residential or industrial builder.
This is only my personal view . Cheers

Zinner · Jul 18, 2012 10:58 am

baronx

Wateman

Is anybody following up over the cat 5e plugs?

Update on our Cat5e / Cat6 issue.. http://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=497&p=871301#p871301

I reported it to our SS and after a few follow-ups Argus organised a techie visit. The techie said that the cables they provide are all Cat6, but since Cat6 sockets are expensive these are only provided if the customer specifically asks and pays for the same else Cat5e sockets are provided. He checked with his office and said that we were only supposed to get Cat5e sockets. :roll:

Since our network drawings explicitly mentioned Cat6 sockets, I sent them to the SS who organised another visit from the Argus technician and our sockets are now all Cat6 !

I suggest you follow up with PD if your contract/drawings state Cat6 but you got Cat5e instead.

My house is not finished yet and I have been fighting this same issue through PD (via my SS and BC who say that it clearly states CAT6 terminals on my electrical contract) but it appears that the PD electrical contractor will not budge on this anymore. I made mention of this issue being fixed for others (baronx) but it appears that they wont fix or admit to installing the incorrect terminals. Somehow, even though the electrical documentation states CAT6 they are saying there policy is to only install cat5e terminals.

If they had written down cat5e terminals on my contract I would accept it and cop it sweet ....OR....(HELLO :th:

) I would of payed for the upgrade to CAT6 terminals (if money or saving a few bucks is their issue) as cat5e terminals on CAT6 cable makes about as much logical sense as roller skate wheels on ice skates. This is very close to false advertising imho. I am tempted to get consumer affairs to investigate this as I think it time somebody shook up these (ALL) contractors. They seem to have been getting away with installing sub standard networks and using the phrase "this is how we have always done it" for to long.

I walk in and by a burger with 100% beef on the label only to be told ..."Even though is says 100% beef on the label our policy is to use 50% cardboard 50% beef".

GET FREAKIN REAL!!!! ::dizzy::

Another line in a long list of disappointments.

monkeypantz · Jul 18, 2012 11:40 am

mitroff

Hi guys, we are new to this Forum and reading through all the different experiences with Porter Davis we are getting a bit worried now.
We were promised an early July site start but nothing has happened yet. The contract was signed 7 weeks ago but no building permit nor final drawings done yet.
Not a very good start !!!
Left messages to our BC but the answer we got was ..."be patient"....
Our patience is wearing thin .... Any thoughts?

Hi mitroff. We locked in a May start date and they started on May 29, with no indication that work was about to commence. Our final drawings meeting was May 18. By chance, we spoke to our BC on the 29th and she told us that she would get back to us with a start date

That sounds bad, but it's actually supposed to be a bit funny (easy when things are going right :wink:

). So I have no advice about getting things moving, because it just happened for us, but if you are not satisfied with the response of your BC do take it further.

Good luck!

Zinner · Jul 18, 2012 12:55 pm

Zinner

baronx

Wateman

Is anybody following up over the cat 5e plugs?

Update on our Cat5e / Cat6 issue.. http://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=497&p=871301#p871301

I reported it to our SS and after a few follow-ups Argus organised a techie visit. The techie said that the cables they provide are all Cat6, but since Cat6 sockets are expensive these are only provided if the customer specifically asks and pays for the same else Cat5e sockets are provided. He checked with his office and said that we were only supposed to get Cat5e sockets. :roll:

Since our network drawings explicitly mentioned Cat6 sockets, I sent them to the SS who organised another visit from the Argus technician and our sockets are now all Cat6 !

I suggest you follow up with PD if your contract/drawings state Cat6 but you got Cat5e instead.

My house is not finished yet and I have been fighting this same issue through PD (via my SS and BC who say that it clearly states CAT6 terminals on my electrical contract) but it appears that the PD electrical contractor will not budge on this anymore. I made mention of this issue being fixed for others (baronx) but it appears that they wont fix or admit to installing the incorrect terminals. Somehow, even though the electrical documentation states CAT6 they are saying there policy is to only install cat5e terminals.

If they had written down cat5e terminals on my contract I would accept it and cop it sweet ....OR....(HELLO :th:

) I would of payed for the upgrade to CAT6 terminals (if money or saving a few bucks is their issue) as cat5e terminals on CAT6 cable makes about as much logical sense as roller skate wheels on ice skates. This is very close to false advertising imho. I am tempted to get consumer affairs to investigate this as I think it time somebody shook up these (ALL) contractors. They seem to have been getting away with installing sub standard networks and using the phrase "this is how we have always done it" for to long.

I walk in and by a burger with 100% beef on the label only to be told ..."Even though is says 100% beef on the label our policy is to use 50% cardboard 50% beef".

GET FREAKIN REAL!!!! ::dizzy::

Another line in a long list of disappointments.

WOW!!!!

Just had a call not even an hour after posting my disappointment post and I have been told that my cat5e will be upgraded to cat6.

I'm still in shock!! :shock:

.... so much so that I think i'll have to dance a jig

:z:

monkeypantz · Jul 18, 2012 1:04 pm

Great news Zinner! Glad you've had a win for once!

Zinner · Jul 18, 2012 1:29 pm

monkeypantz

Great news Zinner! Glad you've had a win for once!

Cant type.... still dancing...

:z:

mitroff · Jul 18, 2012 9:18 pm

Hey guys, thanks for your comments above, really appreciate that

This morning I was getting ready to ring my BC and complain when my phone rang.
It was PD saying the final plans are ready to be signed... WOO HOOOO !!!!

Now we are hoping for next week site start (fingers crossed).

I might join Zinner with the dance. :z:

humble · Jul 19, 2012 12:17 am

Zinner

WOW!!!!

Just had a call not even an hour after posting my disappointment post and I have been told that my cat5e will be upgraded to cat6.

I'm still in shock!! :shock:

.... so much so that I think i'll have to dance a jig

:z:

As someone who spat the dummy privately with PD a few times. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF THIS THREAD. Many many a time I vented on here only to have my issue sorted immeadiately. They def do watch posts, and if you have had a single deal with Ebony your records are on file. My username v my lot/house address is linked. So you do get traction.

It wasnt until I blew up on here that I got my water bill sorted.

Team PD · Jul 19, 2012 3:26 pm

serenitynow

Congrats JLD

I am going to post a positive review about Porter Davis.

We absolutely love our home, we had our 3 month Inspection happen today.

Porter davis rang us about 3 weeks ago and organised the Inspection. Our inspector was absolutely brilliant!

Our house is fantastic we have no cracks or major issues, my husband and I check the house constantly, and we are very happy.
Only a couple of minor issues and a little brickwork has to be redone the attitude of the maintenance guy " that this will be fixed" was fab.
Totally happy.
Awesome maintenance guy.
I have to give credit when It's due.
very very happy.

Great home and the after care for us has been fantastic, they even replaced scratched windows for me.

Hi serenitynow, it’s so pleasing to read your feedback and hear how happy you are with your new home – thanks for sharing. I have also forward on your comments to the main PD office. Cheers, Ebony

Team PD · Jul 19, 2012 3:37 pm

JLD

Thanks Guys. PCI went really well, ultimately the house is in really good condition. Plenty of little bits and pieces like paint touch ups and little grout touch ups. Not really anything major at all which is fantastic.

We are full steam ahead to handover end of next week and I can't wait. Getting really excited about decorating the house as I've been buying plenty and would love to get it in there....oh and the curtains and blinds, really looking forward to seeing all of it come together.

monkeypantz

JLD

PCI today

Woohooooooo! Hope it goes well!

We are scheduled for lock up this week

I've done last week's blog update, hopefully this week's will be up sooner rather than later :oops:

We visited the site on Saturday. In preparation for lock-up our front door frame is in and we LOVE it!! We went for a 2340x1200mm pivot door with single sidelite. There's a temporary door in its place at the moment, but the size is so impressive, it's exactly what we were after

.

Your house is looking great!

Congratulations on your PCI JLD!

Glad to hear it went well, I think it can be a nervous time with people not knowing if they will have many issues that will need fixing so it’s great that there was little bits and pieces. Now to decorating, the fun part – I look forward to seeing some updates and pictures. Cheers, Ebony

Team PD · Jul 19, 2012 4:10 pm

mitroff

Hey guys, thanks for your comments above, really appreciate that

This morning I was getting ready to ring my BC and complain when my phone rang.
It was PD saying the final plans are ready to be signed... WOO HOOOO !!!!

Now we are hoping for next week site start (fingers crossed).

I might join Zinner with the dance. :z:

Hi mitroff,

Firstly welcome to the forum and congratulations on starting your build journey! I love forum, it has such a sense of community thats always comforting when you’ve just started, plus you can get tips and very honest feedback and advice from people who at all very different stages of their builds, as you can see from the recent posts. We’re always looking at ways to improve our customer experience which is why we’re very active on the forum and to also offer assistance.

I think that the most important thing in your journey is your relationship with your BC and SS, if you feeling unsure about something definitely keep them in the loop and if you’re not feeling 100% satisfied you just need to let them know or feel free to chat to me via a private message.

If you haven’t already checked out our blog then you should take a look, we have heaps of articles about all different types of topics to do with building a home - http://blog.porterdavis.com.au/ .

Cheers, Ebony

Team PD · Jul 19, 2012 4:24 pm

Zinner

monkeypantz

Great news Zinner! Glad you've had a win for once!

Cant type.... still dancing...

:z:

Hi zinner,

That’s great news yesterday, are you still jigging? I’m pleased to see that your issue has been rectified, even though it did take some time, its a good result. Cheers, Ebony

Zinner · Jul 19, 2012 5:04 pm

Team PD

Zinner

monkeypantz

Great news Zinner! Glad you've had a win for once!

Cant type.... still dancing...

:z:

Hi zinner,

That’s great news yesterday, are you still jigging? I’m pleased to see that your issue has been rectified, even though it did take some time, its a good result. Cheers, Ebony

Thx Ebony.

I thought I was done and dusted on this one (as the news from both my BC and SS was that there was nothing more they could do) so it was very surprising for to get some news to the contrary.

46 weeks building so far... and I still say that overall PD have done a good job fixing issues with my build... so yes... im still dancing

:z:

The drama continues for me however (you just wouldn't believe it if I told you what has gone on the last 2 weeks or so), but this new drama is not related to PD.... its the other "big player" in the building process... :sh:

(starts with a B)

J & C · Jul 19, 2012 6:52 pm

has anyone had aggregate concrete aprons done around their house, how much did you approximately pay of it ?

mitroff · Jul 19, 2012 9:21 pm

Team PD

mitroff

Hey guys, thanks for your comments above, really appreciate that

This morning I was getting ready to ring my BC and complain when my phone rang.
It was PD saying the final plans are ready to be signed... WOO HOOOO !!!!

Now we are hoping for next week site start (fingers crossed).

I might join Zinner with the dance. :z:

Hi mitroff,

Firstly welcome to the forum and congratulations on starting your build journey! I love forum, it has such a sense of community thats always comforting when you’ve just started, plus you can get tips and very honest feedback and advice from people who at all very different stages of their builds, as you can see from the recent posts. We’re always looking at ways to improve our customer experience which is why we’re very active on the forum and to also offer assistance.

I think that the most important thing in your journey is your relationship with your BC and SS, if you feeling unsure about something definitely keep them in the loop and if you’re not feeling 100% satisfied you just need to let them know or feel free to chat to me via a private message.

If you haven’t already checked out our blog then you should take a look, we have heaps of articles about all different types of topics to do with building a home - http://blog.porterdavis.com.au/ .

Cheers, Ebony

Thanks Ebony, we appreciate that very much.
Cheers

mimi23 · Jul 20, 2012 1:19 am

J & C

has anyone had aggregate concrete aprons done around their house, how much did you approximately pay of it ?

We've just had 150m2 of exposed aggregate laid which includes the driveway and paths around the house for $12,900.

humble · Jul 20, 2012 8:54 am

J & C

has anyone had aggregate concrete aprons done around their house, how much did you approximately pay of it ?

I paid $82 a sqm.

Taylors Lakes Concrete - Professional Maltese Men (Maltese love concrete!) all in their 50's. Excellent Service.

Doreen_Kallara33 · Jul 20, 2012 9:25 am

Hi All.. The house is coming along a treat. Tiles have all been laid and grouting being done today. Plumbing also today + fit offs and carpets next week. I should be getting a date for PCI and completion. As usual, I have had no problems with my BC or SS. They have really been prompt with getting any issues fixed without question, big or small. Upon completion, I'll be giving them a very good review. Click on the below link to view current pics.
Cheers.

http://profile.imageshack.us/user/doreen_kallara33/