Browse Forums Building A New House 1 May 15, 2008 5:03 pm I am the first to admit that I am a noobie at the whole process of building, but what I lack in experience, I make up for in research. I will rarely if ever jump into a purchase without a damn good idea of what I am buying, what the competition is and the best price.
That being said, one thing that has surprised me is that no post on any forum about building says that anyone has paid LESS than the base price for a house. I consider myself a pretty decent handyman, better than a weekender but not a professional, and even though I would never do the things that need a professional, things like painting, laying tiles, putting doors on cupboards etc are the things I can do. Has anyone been able to get an occupancy certificate without these things done? were you able to knock off a decent chunk from the price? My query is based around the fact that due to my wife being a sub-contractor and can't be part of the mortgage, we really are capped with what we can borrow, yet knowing we have an extra income I am not worried about money for doing things afterward, but I want to maximize our sq footage as a base home. *takes a breathe* I know we can find out more from talking to builders, I just want to know if there is prior experience I can draw from. Thanks Paul Re: Base Price 2May 15, 2008 5:05 pm The problem is that usually when you remove items from the base price you don't get much back.
So say the tiling is worth $5k, you might only get $2k back. I have found it's not worth it to remove things from the base price as what you get back won't cover the cost of providing it yourself. Where are you? ETA: Ah, you're not from Sydney. Was going to recommend my builder, they are comparatively very reasonably priced. Re: Base Price 3May 15, 2008 5:12 pm I might be totally wrong, but I vaguely remember reading (?) that some builders will build to "lock-up" & you are able to do the rest.
Again, I could be wrong.............never investigated this, bit worth asking around. Built the Eden Brae Cambridge 34 Family with Boston Corner Facade Re: Base Price 4May 15, 2008 5:20 pm You may be looking at the problem the wrong way. If you have a good income between the two of you, you CAN take into account her income...it just takes a little more effort. If you talk to a bank directly you will get the same response every time (we did!).
My wife and I had the same problem (i'm self employed), and we spoke to a lovely lady named Angela from Choice Home loans (she actually works out of the Porter Davis displays), who helped us work out our loans so that I could borrow money. After all the paperwork was filled out and letters from accountants and BAS statements we managed to get a good loan at a good rate from the same bank that originally turned us down without talking to us. Short story is, there are options out there to get finance without having to cut corners on your home. Send me a PM if you want the ladies details... I am almost certain she'll be able to help you out. Alan and Thuy in Melbourne Building a second time! Re: Base Price 5May 15, 2008 5:42 pm A little more back story is that we moved back here from Canada 8 months ago and she has only been a subbie for 6 months. We did find someone who said that they will happily deal with sub-contractors, but when I said only 6 months he changed tone immediately and said thats just not enough for her.
that is why we are in the position we are. Even so, I'd still rather know about people that have built cheaper or right on base price If you don't mind toast, I will take that birds info anyway, you never know what others might say! Paul Re: Base Price 6May 15, 2008 5:53 pm Yep, same problem I had. I started my own company in July, and we were looking for a loan in January... so whats that... 6-7 months. She got us to talk to an accountant and do our BAS statement as well as a cashflow projection etc etc, and then sign a document saying "I will earn X dollars in this financial year". No probs.
I will PM you her details. Alan and Thuy in Melbourne Building a second time! Re: Base Price 8May 15, 2008 7:04 pm Toast Yep, same problem I had. I started my own company in July, and we were looking for a loan in January... so whats that... 6-7 months. She got us to talk to an accountant and do our BAS statement as well as a cashflow projection etc etc, and then sign a document saying "I will earn X dollars in this financial year". No probs. I will PM you her details. I believe that it's called a "lo doc loan" For self employed people You just sign a document stating your income at whatever you want (within reason) Then if you default on the loan at a later date...you have no come back on the lender Best Price Wardrobes Sliding door robes | Walk in robes Deco panel | Mirror | Melamine 26 to 28 Cottage lane Hackham M: 0402 927 376 http://www.bestpricewardrobes.com.au Trade welcome Re: Base Price 9May 15, 2008 7:56 pm In our case it wasn't a low doc loan, as we only borrowed 60%, which the bank was happy to do without proof of income. But yes, a low doc will do up to 85% I believe. Alan and Thuy in Melbourne Building a second time! Re: Base Price 10May 15, 2008 8:05 pm Toast In our case it wasn't a low doc loan, as we only borrowed 60%, which the bank was happy to do without proof of income. But yes, a low doc will do up to 85% I believe. We just did a "Lo Doc Loan" (LDL) I dont know if the mortgage broker was truthfull to us or not, I'm self employed and my wife is a full time worker elsewhere But on a LDL they would only lend us up to 60% value of the house with no mortgage protection insurance. And up to 80% maximum with a $2000 mortgage protection insurance. Here the sus part. The difference between what THEY value the house is worth and an indepenant valuation I had done today was 35 thousand difference, I figure it was just to make me pay the insurance. Once I get the letter from the valuer that came out today, I will be asking for a please explain from the mortgage broker that did our loan Best Price Wardrobes Sliding door robes | Walk in robes Deco panel | Mirror | Melamine 26 to 28 Cottage lane Hackham M: 0402 927 376 http://www.bestpricewardrobes.com.au Trade welcome I've filled, levelled and compacted around 100mm of roadbase in preparation to lay some outdoor court tiles. Prior to doing the final compaction, I dusted the top with… 0 3041 I have seen poly marble shower bases last in excess of 30 years 1 4502 Wow I hadn't realised things had gotten that pricey in just a couple of years since I built, that is crazy with how much land is now costing if you aren't lucky enough to… 3 7051 |