Hi Everyone out there,
This is a thread for those building (or looking to build/buy) in the Brooks Reach (Horsley) area. Please feel free to share your stories, plans and experiences on the thread.
As of 24.07.13 the most active members include
Wiz: http://www.homeone.com.au/member/wizardofoz
Building @ Brooks Reach
Building the Verdelho Guest with Beechwood
My blog on the build: http://imnotunlucky.wordpress.com/
Nat: http://www.homeone.com.au/member/nat84
Building the Nova w/ McDonald Jones Homes
Venkat: http://www.homeone.com.au/member/venkat_phoenix_1
Building Phoenix 41 in Brooks Reach, Horsley
Blogging about our build at: http://ourmetriconphoenix.blogspot.com.au/
As for my build DH and I built the Kenthurst 24 with Clarendon Homes in Stage 4 of Brooks Reach. We purchased land in 2011 and it was originally meant to be registered by May 2012 but was delayed until end of November 2012.
For anyone interested I also have been blogging about our build here: http://rubyam.wordpress.com/ It goes into all the nitty gritty details of our plans etc.
Our timeline (more detailed version on my blog):
7.11.11 Deposit paid on land with Stocklands
7.11.11 Deposit paid with Clarendon Homes
7.12.11 Initial Tender presentation with Clarendon at Baulkham Hills
6.01.12 Contract signing and Clarendon Create apt pt.1
12.09.12 Tender expired (eeeeep)
21.11.12 Land registration
24.03.13 Cut/Fill of site completed
2.04.13 Slab poured [20% progress payment due]
17.05.13 Bricking completed. Scaffolding in place for fascia, gutter and eaves
23.06.13 Lock up stage
31.07.13 Walkthrough PCI (Practical Completion Inspection)
19.08.13 Handover (keys in hand!)
-Rubyam
Building in Brooks Reach - Community Thread
Page 1 of 221
Not many of us down this way on the forum, its nice new estate to live in.
Good luck with your builder.
Good luck with your builder.
Not many of us down this way on the forum, its nice new estate to live in.
Good luck with your builder.
Good luck with your builder.
Thanks Veseli
Just another update with where things are our with our 'build'. Found out from Clarendon on Friday that apparently they have just received Sydney Water approval today which has been forwarded to the PCA. They should receive a further update from them on early this week.
Hubs & I were confused as we were under the impression that this was something they needed before CDC lodgement and we were advised on the 30.1.13 that our plans had been lodged with CDC. We contacted our CSC again and asked for clarification and this was the response we got:
We are hoping that the CDC approval comes in early this week. (So i don't know if that means they didnt submit it when they said they did or it came back with errors?)
From the time they assess the conditions of consent, allow about 4 weeks until they start releasing orders for materials on site.
Within this time we will receive a PCV to reflect the Conditions of consent, a Bank pack to forward to our lender to finalise the finance side of things and prepare final construction documents which we will be required to sign off on.
So hopefully we hear something soon and things start happening.
Hubs & I were confused as we were under the impression that this was something they needed before CDC lodgement and we were advised on the 30.1.13 that our plans had been lodged with CDC. We contacted our CSC again and asked for clarification and this was the response we got:
We are hoping that the CDC approval comes in early this week. (So i don't know if that means they didnt submit it when they said they did or it came back with errors?)
From the time they assess the conditions of consent, allow about 4 weeks until they start releasing orders for materials on site.
Within this time we will receive a PCV to reflect the Conditions of consent, a Bank pack to forward to our lender to finalise the finance side of things and prepare final construction documents which we will be required to sign off on.
So hopefully we hear something soon and things start happening.
Hey Rubyam, you beat me to it starting the building in Brooks Reach thread! I was still feeling my way around as I'm only new on here.
My husband and I are also building at BR - we are in stage 3, so we finally got registered in October 2012 (we were happy about the wait, but that's another story lol) and we are building with Beechwood.
We are waiting on our final tender variation back from Beechwood, then it's off to the Stockland design team for their approval, then off to council.
I went down there this afternoon for a walk and although it's only been about two weeks since I was there I'm amazed at how much has happened! Seems like every second lot has some work going on it now! It's really exciting, can't wait until they finally turn the dirt on our block!
Would love to see your plans if you're happy to share. Here are ours if you are interested:
Cheers
Wiz
My husband and I are also building at BR - we are in stage 3, so we finally got registered in October 2012 (we were happy about the wait, but that's another story lol) and we are building with Beechwood.
We are waiting on our final tender variation back from Beechwood, then it's off to the Stockland design team for their approval, then off to council.
I went down there this afternoon for a walk and although it's only been about two weeks since I was there I'm amazed at how much has happened! Seems like every second lot has some work going on it now! It's really exciting, can't wait until they finally turn the dirt on our block!
Would love to see your plans if you're happy to share. Here are ours if you are interested:
Cheers
Wiz
Hi Wiz,
Thanks for posting in the thread
DH & I LOVE your plans. BEAUTIFUL!!! What a huge place. Love the idea of the guest room too!
Here is our plan:
We are building a 4bdr 2bath with Clarendon Homes. We really wanted a double sink in the ensuite (so jealous!) But at the time of out tender we were told it would not fit. After the plans were amended to comply with Stocklands guidelines CH said they could put in the double sink but it would be at a premium cost
We haven't done our wet tiles or electrical appointment yet (weird, i know!) CH wanted us to wait until our plans had gone through CDC. So hopefully we'll head out to Beaumont and YHC soon.
I look forward to seeing the progress on your place and I will throw some of our samples/choices for our build in here too.
CH Update: We contacted CH again today to follow up on CDC. We were advised that that 'the documents were received in the post yesterday and are currently being assessed.' So a 10day process has only taken 30days.
-Rubyam
Thanks for posting in the thread
DH & I LOVE your plans. BEAUTIFUL!!! What a huge place. Love the idea of the guest room too!
Here is our plan:
We are building a 4bdr 2bath with Clarendon Homes. We really wanted a double sink in the ensuite (so jealous!) But at the time of out tender we were told it would not fit. After the plans were amended to comply with Stocklands guidelines CH said they could put in the double sink but it would be at a premium cost
We haven't done our wet tiles or electrical appointment yet (weird, i know!) CH wanted us to wait until our plans had gone through CDC. So hopefully we'll head out to Beaumont and YHC soon.
I look forward to seeing the progress on your place and I will throw some of our samples/choices for our build in here too.
CH Update: We contacted CH again today to follow up on CDC. We were advised that that 'the documents were received in the post yesterday and are currently being assessed.' So a 10day process has only taken 30days.
-Rubyam
hi all,
i'm in stage 9 at brooks reach. we are building with McDonald Jones Homes. at the moment we have had our colour and electrical appointments. and have advised MJH to redo the front page of our contract to include all variations so we can give that to our bank. just got the call from the solicitor today to sign the new contract and pay our deposit. however the amount now on the contract is incorrect. i don't know how hard it is to add up, but apparently it is, lol. anyway more stuffing around and we only have 7 days to pay :0 i hope our CLO can get this sorted out asap. i'm a bit worried and over this process so far
i'm in stage 9 at brooks reach. we are building with McDonald Jones Homes. at the moment we have had our colour and electrical appointments. and have advised MJH to redo the front page of our contract to include all variations so we can give that to our bank. just got the call from the solicitor today to sign the new contract and pay our deposit. however the amount now on the contract is incorrect. i don't know how hard it is to add up, but apparently it is, lol. anyway more stuffing around and we only have 7 days to pay :0 i hope our CLO can get this sorted out asap. i'm a bit worried and over this process so far
Thanks for your comments Ruby....we love the design, we needed the extra room due to the fact there will be six of us living there (Me, Hubby, Mother in law and three kids) I'm hoping it will be big enough, we are getting a pool at the same time so the outside area will be an extra living area, especially for the kids.
I love your plans! It looks huge to me! Love the amount of room you will have in the family and meals room.
The process time on EVERYTHING seems to take forever! Everything goes slowly it seems..sigh...!
Looking forward to your updates!!
Hi Joh + Lach, when will your lot be registered? I thought it was still a few months away yet?
Cheers
Wiz
I love your plans! It looks huge to me! Love the amount of room you will have in the family and meals room.
The process time on EVERYTHING seems to take forever! Everything goes slowly it seems..sigh...!
Looking forward to your updates!!
Hi Joh + Lach, when will your lot be registered? I thought it was still a few months away yet?
Cheers
Wiz
i've read on the other thread that stage 9 isn't registered until jan 2014. but we not be told anything from mjh or brooks reach
So, the long awaited and dreaded email arrived in DH's inbox this morning... Clarendon sent through an email stating our tender had in fact expired on September 2, 2012 and we would need to pay $5000 to continue with them as our builders due to price increases over the past 6months.
They were kind enough to state that even if we re-tendered at this point the cost would be more than what they have asked us to pay.
These are the points we think we need to hit; Any advice or anything I’ve missed?
Received email and have a few concerns that need addressing.
- Aware of the Tender expiry period and in fact asked to have an extension as the delay was not our fault but delay in the land being registered. Our enquiry was ignored by one of the many CSCs we have had over the past year.
-Our plans went to CDC on January 30th as advised by our current CSC and we are aware that this is a 10day process. We were informed on Friday 1st March after making another enquiry that the CDC documents had been received Thursday 27th Feb and were currently being assessed. How can a process that is only legally allowed to take 10days be stretched out to 30days – this obviously has pushed out our tender expiry even further.
- Clarification on what has taken so long from when the land was registered in November over 3months ago now to get to this point – We had provided all appropriate documentation and believe that this is a delay on Clarendon’s part, so why are we penalised for this process being drawn out even further?
This is really disheartening and as much as you try and prepare for something like this, it's hard!
Update: Spoke to someone at Clarendon and they agreed to a compromise after hearing our side of the argument. So, we still have to pay a large price increase but not as much as we initially thought. We just want to get the building started!!!! As it stands they expect to be on site just after Easter.
They were kind enough to state that even if we re-tendered at this point the cost would be more than what they have asked us to pay.
These are the points we think we need to hit; Any advice or anything I’ve missed?
Received email and have a few concerns that need addressing.
- Aware of the Tender expiry period and in fact asked to have an extension as the delay was not our fault but delay in the land being registered. Our enquiry was ignored by one of the many CSCs we have had over the past year.
-Our plans went to CDC on January 30th as advised by our current CSC and we are aware that this is a 10day process. We were informed on Friday 1st March after making another enquiry that the CDC documents had been received Thursday 27th Feb and were currently being assessed. How can a process that is only legally allowed to take 10days be stretched out to 30days – this obviously has pushed out our tender expiry even further.
- Clarification on what has taken so long from when the land was registered in November over 3months ago now to get to this point – We had provided all appropriate documentation and believe that this is a delay on Clarendon’s part, so why are we penalised for this process being drawn out even further?
This is really disheartening and as much as you try and prepare for something like this, it's hard!
Update: Spoke to someone at Clarendon and they agreed to a compromise after hearing our side of the argument. So, we still have to pay a large price increase but not as much as we initially thought. We just want to get the building started!!!! As it stands they expect to be on site just after Easter.
i've read on the other thread that stage 9 isn't registered until jan 2014. but we not be told anything from mjh or brooks reach
Hi Joh + Lach,
Taken directly from the Brooks Reach website http://www.stocklandcommunitiesnsw.com.au/Brooks_Reach/ (update as of Feb 7th):
Registration update
Stages 1 - 6: registered
Stage 1a (lots 1231 – 1235, 1241 – 1244): expected to register June/July 2013
Stage 2a (lots 2051 – 2055): expected to register June/July 2013
Stage 6a (lots 6011 - 6014 & 6261 - 6264 & 6301 – 6305): expected to register June/July 2013
Stage 7: expected to register September 2013
Stage 8: expected to register September 2013
Stage 7a (lots 7011-7014, 7141-7144, 7131 – 7135, 7151 – 7154, 7161-7164): expected to register October 2013
Stage 8a (lots 8011 -8014, 8021 -8024, 8031-8034): expected to register October 2013
Stage 9: expected to register January 2014
Stage 9a (lots 9101-9104, 9121-9122, 9161-9164): expected to register February 2014
So, the long awaited and dreaded email arrived in DH's inbox this morning... Clarendon sent through an email stating our tender had in fact expired on September 2, 2012 and we would need to pay $5000 to continue with them as our builders due to price increases over the past 6months.
They were kind enough to state that even if we re-tendered at this point the cost would be more than what they have asked us to pay.
These are the points we think we need to hit; Any advice or anything I’ve missed?
Received email and have a few concerns that need addressing.
- Aware of the Tender expiry period and in fact asked to have an extension as the delay was not our fault but delay in the land being registered. Our enquiry was ignored by one of the many CSCs we have had over the past year.
-Our plans went to CDC on January 30th as advised by our current CSC and we are aware that this is a 10day process. We were informed on Friday 1st March after making another enquiry that the CDC documents had been received Thursday 27th Feb and were currently being assessed. How can a process that is only legally allowed to take 10days be stretched out to 30days – this obviously has pushed out our tender expiry even further.
- Clarification on what has taken so long from when the land was registered in November over 3months ago now to get to this point – We had provided all appropriate documentation and believe that this is a delay on Clarendon’s part, so why are we penalised for this process being drawn out even further?
This is really disheartening and as much as you try and prepare for something like this, it's hard!
Update: Spoke to someone at Clarendon and they agreed to a compromise after hearing our side of the argument. So, we still have to pay a large price increase but not as much as we initially thought. We just want to get the building started!!!! As it stands they expect to be on site just after Easter.
They were kind enough to state that even if we re-tendered at this point the cost would be more than what they have asked us to pay.
These are the points we think we need to hit; Any advice or anything I’ve missed?
Received email and have a few concerns that need addressing.
- Aware of the Tender expiry period and in fact asked to have an extension as the delay was not our fault but delay in the land being registered. Our enquiry was ignored by one of the many CSCs we have had over the past year.
-Our plans went to CDC on January 30th as advised by our current CSC and we are aware that this is a 10day process. We were informed on Friday 1st March after making another enquiry that the CDC documents had been received Thursday 27th Feb and were currently being assessed. How can a process that is only legally allowed to take 10days be stretched out to 30days – this obviously has pushed out our tender expiry even further.
- Clarification on what has taken so long from when the land was registered in November over 3months ago now to get to this point – We had provided all appropriate documentation and believe that this is a delay on Clarendon’s part, so why are we penalised for this process being drawn out even further?
This is really disheartening and as much as you try and prepare for something like this, it's hard!
Update: Spoke to someone at Clarendon and they agreed to a compromise after hearing our side of the argument. So, we still have to pay a large price increase but not as much as we initially thought. We just want to get the building started!!!! As it stands they expect to be on site just after Easter.
Hey Ruby, I'm pleased for you that Clarendon came to the party and have compromised a little, sounds like they could have compromised a heap more for you! What I am finding so frustrating is that we have no knowledge of the building process and as much as we try to do our homework etc, it can get really confusing. I would have liked to have seen from my builder a straightforward document on the whole process from the time we walked into their office - detailing each step or process.
This forum has been quite a handy place to get information!!
Happy news for me today...found out that we have Stockland approval so next step council!!
Finally starting to move along.......although now that I have said that, Council will take ages!
Wiz
Finally starting to move along.......although now that I have said that, Council will take ages!
Wiz
What I am finding so frustrating is that we have no knowledge of the building process and as much as we try to do our homework etc, it can get really confusing. I would have liked to have seen from my builder a straightforward document on the whole process from the time we walked into their office - detailing each step or process. This forum has been quite a handy place to get information!!
Hey Wiz,
I know what you mean; we feel we have been left in the dark in regards to the procress and timeline of things that need to be completed before the build starts!
Here is an except from an email we received, i hope it brings you some further clarity too, even though it is specific to our situation.
"When the land became registered from the developer does not mean the builder / any builder can commence works asap. The builder needs to contact the council to obtain 149C, instrument 88b, surveyor searches etc before we can commence working on your file and prepare for DA / CDC lodgement. Wollongong Council did not have the relevant information from land titles straight away. We ordered 149C from council asap but we did not receive them from council till 12 December 2012, 1 month from land being registered. Clarendon carried out works before Christmas and after New Year with a 2 week shutdown period. Your file was CDC lodged 16 January 2013, 4 weeks from the 12 December and received 28 February. CDC process is 10 days to review, 5 days issue conditions to chase up or clarify and 5 days to receive approval. In reference to total time worked on file mid December till late March approx 4 months. Clarendon process is once CDC conditions are checked by the Permits Assessor, 4 weeks time file will be issued into Construction subject to ACC “Authority to Commence Construction” from the bank."
-Rubyam
Oh that's ridiculous, if they could just let you know what the process is as it is happening it would make your life so much easier!
My pet hate is the assumption on their part that you know what they are talking about!! They do this day in, day out - I've never done it before.....go figure!
My pet hate is the assumption on their part that you know what they are talking about!! They do this day in, day out - I've never done it before.....go figure!
Happy news for me today...found out that we have Stockland approval so next step council!!
WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
Things are starting to pick up momentum for us now in the lead up to site works commencing!
Yesterday we received our CDC pack and Bank pack from Clarendon via email. The pack contained a few Post Contract Variations (PCVs), letters to our bank asking for unconditional approval of loan amount and authority to commence construction (ACC), CDC conditions report and CDC approved stamped plans and Reconciliation/Progress Payment Schedule. So lots of reading to do! The most important part of it all is that we get everything done and signed off on before the 28th March or they hit us with another price increase! YIKES
So we went through the PCVs and made sure everything was ok; only a few things to clear up (we had to pay to upgrade to a H class slab and one of the new PCVs mentions a waffle pod and M class slab which is cheaper than a H class slab!).
We've also tried making contact (several times
Update: The manager from Dons responded to my email and called me first thing this morning to make a 3 hour appointment for next Thursday (ealierest they could fit us in
Today we had our Electrical meeting with Your Home Consulting. It was great and everything went smoothly, especially considering we only made the appointment late Tuesday afternoon! Thankfully we'd already sat down earlier the planning process and drawn out a rough idea as to where we wanted lights and power points etc. Our tender had some provisions for lights/power points but ended up spending about $3000 on top of that. We had also previously completed half of the electrical appointment with Sentinel alarms, but as they no longer work with Clarendon our quotes and items were just copied over to our plans with YHC, which worked for us as Cat6 cables with YHC are more expensive! We had a few two way switches added, 4 extra double power points, 1 weather proof double power point, upgraded our meter box to 3 phase power in preparation for our air con, both bathrooms will have 2 lamp fan light heater (no ducting) installed. The other big costs were extra light and power circuits because of the amount of lights/power points we added. Thank goodness we only had to get an extra one of each! We didn't go to crazy. Kiah was the consultant who handled our appointment and she was friendly, knowledgeable and did not try to sell us anything we didn't want. It was refreshing to feel comfortable asking all those silly first home buyer/builder questions. We signed the quote after the meeting and were advised that it would not be sent back to CH until we had contacted YHC again to confirm we were happy. If we wanted to make any changes we could let Kiah know and she'd send us out the new paper work to sign.
Break down of individual prices for anyone interested (note that prices vary depending on who your builder is):
We had already added two Cat6 cables, phone point and two tv points to the plan prior to this electricals meeting.
So that's our little update for now
-Rubyam
Yesterday we received our CDC pack and Bank pack from Clarendon via email. The pack contained a few Post Contract Variations (PCVs), letters to our bank asking for unconditional approval of loan amount and authority to commence construction (ACC), CDC conditions report and CDC approved stamped plans and Reconciliation/Progress Payment Schedule. So lots of reading to do! The most important part of it all is that we get everything done and signed off on before the 28th March or they hit us with another price increase! YIKES
So we went through the PCVs and made sure everything was ok; only a few things to clear up (we had to pay to upgrade to a H class slab and one of the new PCVs mentions a waffle pod and M class slab which is cheaper than a H class slab!).
We've also tried making contact (several times
Update: The manager from Dons responded to my email and called me first thing this morning to make a 3 hour appointment for next Thursday (ealierest they could fit us in
Today we had our Electrical meeting with Your Home Consulting. It was great and everything went smoothly, especially considering we only made the appointment late Tuesday afternoon! Thankfully we'd already sat down earlier the planning process and drawn out a rough idea as to where we wanted lights and power points etc. Our tender had some provisions for lights/power points but ended up spending about $3000 on top of that. We had also previously completed half of the electrical appointment with Sentinel alarms, but as they no longer work with Clarendon our quotes and items were just copied over to our plans with YHC, which worked for us as Cat6 cables with YHC are more expensive! We had a few two way switches added, 4 extra double power points, 1 weather proof double power point, upgraded our meter box to 3 phase power in preparation for our air con, both bathrooms will have 2 lamp fan light heater (no ducting) installed. The other big costs were extra light and power circuits because of the amount of lights/power points we added. Thank goodness we only had to get an extra one of each! We didn't go to crazy. Kiah was the consultant who handled our appointment and she was friendly, knowledgeable and did not try to sell us anything we didn't want. It was refreshing to feel comfortable asking all those silly first home buyer/builder questions. We signed the quote after the meeting and were advised that it would not be sent back to CH until we had contacted YHC again to confirm we were happy. If we wanted to make any changes we could let Kiah know and she'd send us out the new paper work to sign.
Break down of individual prices for anyone interested (note that prices vary depending on who your builder is):
- Extra light circuit w/ safety switch $240
Extra power circuit w/ safety switch $250
light points $53
junction box for front light on side brick $70
Two way switch $50
double spotlights with motion sensors $105
Double power points $68
Weatherproof double power point $125
3 Phase power $480
Wire, supply and install 2 lamp fan light heater (w/ extra circuit & safety switch) $440
We had already added two Cat6 cables, phone point and two tv points to the plan prior to this electricals meeting.
So that's our little update for now
-Rubyam
Hi guys, thought I'd jump into this forum
Nat
Nat
Hi guys, thought I'd jump into this forum
Hi Nat, WELCOME
As you can probably tell from any of my posts I had no idea what we were doing along the way (Hubby & I are building our first home!) So make sure you ask lots of questions, read lots and get everything in writing from both your bank and builder (and any third parties the might end up being involved!)
Don't worry too much about posts on the nightmare thread; before our land got registered we went to a few different 'meetings' that stockland held at brooks reach to discuss different delays etc and there were a lot of angry people there that had deposited on land and were held up by delays. Just know that Stocklands is wanting to get the land off their hands as soon as they can, they don't like paying your rates!! Make lots of calls/emails to Barry or Rachel at Stockland and talk to people on the forum
All the best, HOW EXCITING
-Rubyam
Hi guys, thought I'd jump into this forum
Nat
Nat
Hey Nat,
Yay! I like your powers of deduction! lol How exciting for you guys, I'm loving the journey, hope you guys do to! Welcome...I'm beginning to love this forum, so much handy information - almost too much to take in sometimes. One of the best threads to check out in my opinion is the Things you Forget thread under Building a new house....I wish I had seen it before we had finalised our plans/tender. Some great information in there.
Heard you are confirming everything this afternoon?
@Ruby - great news regarding your electrical appointment, sounds like you have it covered! We haven't done ours yet, but we will probably keep most things as it is as my hubby works for an electrical wholesaler and knows a few sparkies, so the only major change we will do is to move all the baton fixtures to the corners of rooms as we want to install downlights once we are in.
It's frustrating relying on everyone else for all the documents and other stuff that has to be done, especially when there are time restrictions in place, fingers crossed for you that everyone plays nice! (At least it isn't Christmas time!)
Cheers
Wiz
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