Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Feb 03, 2013 4:51 pm Hi everyone, We're in the process of signing a contract for a piece of land - land is owned privately but has been teed up with a builder to be sold as a house/land package. We've asked about soil reports, and the builder we are going through has told us that the engineering report is included in the build price - which is great BUT it doesn't help us confirm the cost of footings etc. We have an allowance of 13k for a split, 23k for footings, but we really don't if this is good/bad. So although the builder has told us that the soil report comes later, we want to sign the contract subject to soil report to get more of an indication of the cost of footings. Is this a standard clause, and if so, is it us or the owner of the land that pays for it, and how much does this sort of thing cost? I would have thought that a soil report would be crucial in determining the cost of land, and to me it seems odd that it comes after settlement of land. Thanks for any advice. Re: Land - signing contract subject to Soil Testing 2Feb 03, 2013 5:35 pm Good idea! It makes sense to have a good idea of earth works and site costs before acquiring your new block. I believe the term is initial due diligence It would really suck @$$ if you've settled on a block picked a house, only to realise it's going to cost you a hell of a lot more to build on it than expected. So well done, it's definitely a wise move. If you're really sold on that block, this new info could either be reassurance or a good bargaining chip. Re: Land - signing contract subject to Soil Testing 3Feb 03, 2013 5:50 pm One thing you could do is ask them for a fixed site cost before signing. Some builders will do this - worth a try. Building the Ascot 35 with Carlisle Homes in Pasadena Estate, Clyde VIC My build thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=59776 Re: Land - signing contract subject to Soil Testing 4Feb 03, 2013 6:12 pm andystar70 One thing you could do is ask them for a fixed site cost before signing. Some builders will do this - worth a try. Not sure this is a good idea 1.The builder may increase the cost of his bid to cover worse conditions than are actually the case on the site. 2. Some of these fixed price offers in the small print say things like "Up to $x thousand dollars." so don't really protect you. I would get a soil test and ask for a reduction for the included test. It will probably cost around $1,000. See this for more details http://www.anewhouse.com.au/?p=347 The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: Land - signing contract subject to Soil Testing 5Feb 04, 2013 12:04 pm Thanks for your advice. It's good to know that asking for a soil test and reduction for the included test is not an absurd request. Being new to this game I wasn't sure of standard process. The block has a slope to it and although we've got a 23k footings allowance and about a 13k split allowance, we have as much of an idea whether this is around the mark as Homer Simpson. We've been negotiating dollars for things with the build but it almost seems irrelevant without knowing site classification or having a contour report to get a firmer site works cost. What's the point of getting a few extra power points etc thrown in if our footings end up costing thousands of dollars more. Been in a similar position and we decided to let the builder go. Some of the PSA money goes to engineering so we at least got those documents and they actually refunded us… 2 4560 Sounds like rubbish to me. Ask for the contamination report which I doubt they have. If it's part of a normal subdivision it would have had a contamination report done… 9 4896 You talk about deletions, are they variations or PS and PC adjustments? pleas list them 1 12027 |