Aveling Homes Build - Vale S2 Woburn Park, The Vines

Haha yes definitely joking but was thinking of some voodoo dolls of our builders might be more appropriate.

Don't think they make donkeys as voodoo dolls though

I complained to Aveling yesterday about their appalling customer service. I bet nothing changes. Sucks that it's us that ha to suffer through this. Took me a week to get someone to call me!

My other half is back from site next week, I don't think he is going to be happy with the tiling. I doubt they are going to fix anything though

Never building again!! Unless I'm spending Zorzi kind of money

I feel for you both

Yep donkeys for sure dsellars!

Thanks Vines. I'm just so upset we won't end up with the house we've paid for. My only leverage is the last payment due at PCI.

I would def build again only if I had lots of $$ and a custom build with my own SS to boss around! teehee!
Needless to say that's not going to happen but you know.......one powerball and I'm outta here!!

We can take this as a lesson learned, albeit a very expensive one.

Let me know how you get on with getting answers from them

Ok. Have you got everything sorted for your PCI. Any outstanding problems?

We've booked the inspector. Builder hasn't confirmed in writing that it'll be on 13th March yet!
Other than that we're ready. Just hoping the fella can get in before PCI to have a look. He hasn't been in the house for at least 3 weeks

You are both lucky at least you have met your supervisor. I'm not sure ours actually exists.

Would be great if you could get into house before pci so you can have a really good look around without anyone breathing down your neck.

I have pci envy haha!
But I'm not in a rush if we don't have things fixed, what's the point.

Do you know when your fencing is going in?

Fencing is provisionally booked for first week in April. I still need to sort out the boundary pegs...

That's great news about fencing. I thought that would def be one thing that would take a long time to happen.

Does the developer have to repeg or does Aveling? I think we have something like $500 fee in our contract to repeg. But not sure if that's relating to something they do right at the beginning when they mess up the site to slab?

If you have any advice for me along the way (cos you're ahead of me) please throw it my way. I'm hoping to have no more surprises!

Nice to talk to you Vines . Take Care

This build has not been the positive/happy experience I had hoped. This week a prime example....

For the last week I've been trying to get answers from my CLO and SS about why we're not getting the display bathroom we have paid for? The ONLY reply I have is ....."it's as the plan". (I even emailed a picture of display bathroom + ours)

Today after seeing cabinets in and tiling underway it's obvious......it's the wrong bathroom! The layout is very similar but no way as nice! Smaller shower, not enough tiling, shower frame different etc.

I have measured everything myself and after checking against display home...yep, the window is too big which has thrown everything else out.

I actually didn't know what size the window should be because the plans say window size 142W x 6.0.

Does anyone know what 6.0 is???? 6.0 bananas? 6.0 cm? 6.0 bricks? Who the hell knows. Certainly not my CLO or my tiler or my sales rep who sold me the house. If I could speak to my SS I bet he would know.....but he seems to be MIA lately!!

Quick update......admin have finally confirmed that they have put the wrong bathroom in our plans.......HERE WE GO AGAIN COMPROMISE, COMPROMISE! We paid extra for a display version home and that's what we should get, nothing less!

Sorry just can't bring myself to comment on here anymore about our house......not the positive, happy journey I was hoping to take.

Sorry to hear you're having troubles with Aveling.

We're having some problems as well. After Pre start the communication broke down. You then realize it's much the same across the building sector. Pay your money and wait in a queue (some stand out more than others). We haven't had any contact from an SS or CL, nonetheless our slab is progressing, so I'm just going along with it. I've contacted our sales person for a couple of concerns and he gives a response in day or so, even came out to our block to check on the slab, so it's not all bad. But then again... he isn't the person we should be contacting for answers.

You're in a hard position - If it were me, I wouldn't compromise and refuse to move from contract. Aveling loves to charge, even for the silliest things. Amongst other things they wanted to charge us $250 to remove carpet from a walk in robe, we didn't want it in the first place, so we just left it... We'll remove it ourselves. I find it ludicrous that they can charge for any deviation or change to contract but we're expected to go along with their mistakes... At the end of the day, it's their contractors and their choice whom they employ to do the work - so I wouldn't put up with compromise.

That being said, usually without compromise you'll add weeks or months onto your build and that will cost you money whether it's interest, rent, fuel etc. So it highly depends on your position to wait.

A word of advice, at the end of your build, before your finial signatures, have a private inspector check the house. A good inspector will check all measurements and foundations. We've have had some friends build, the inspector found loose bricks, incorrectly measured finishes (stone benches) and improperly built roofs. Definitely worth it.

I hope it all gets sorted out for you,
will follow your progress
All the best

I feel your frustration with the poor communication from Aveling, we are having issues getting any answers from them at all, we have no idea how far away we are from lockup and have been told point blank, we will not get a meeting with SS until then....so frustrating.
We have a down pipe that has been put right on the focal point of our front elevation and have been told it at the plumbers discretion....so what are we paying all this money for....it appears we have no say at all in our home.

We almost built the same house with Aveling. Sounds like we dodged a bullet from what I've just read. Really sorry it's going so poorly for you; I can't believe they put in the wrong bathroom. Idiots!