Hi there, I'm Ciaran
I wasn't going to do a build thread, had just been reading for a few months but thought I might do one to help any other first home owners with questions or comparisons!
Signed up with Aussie Living Homes in October going through Leon - seems like a great guy.
We were looking all around the Caversham/St Leonards area for a nice size block, my partner Toni would only settle if it were over 400sqm.
We ended up getting a 406sqm block in stage 2 of Suffolk Park, a corner block, due to title anywhere from late Jan to late Feb.
The corner was a bit of an iffy one since I know you tend to lose a bit of land because of the shape of it, and it did limit us to only a few home designs because of the rear being 10m and the front ranging from 12.7 to 17m at the very peak on the corner. But for $285,000 we couldn't turn it down.
Most blocks in this area are now upwards of $315,000 for a 380sqm block so it did seem like a good deal.
We've chosen to build the Independence Promo, and made a few changes to the base design which I think are very much for the better. Some Leon even said he had used in other peoples designs because it was a much better design (for example the ensuite and WIR in the master bedroom have been switched around, giving more vanity space).
We're financing through Keystart, so things sort of needed to be moved along quite quickly as there's the time limit on their pre-approval. We signed the land documents last week of November, and were given 45 days to get formal approval from the lender.
That's all moving along nicely, from that day AL have got the house contracts all drawn up and we've signed them and sent into our broker. Just waiting on Keystart now so we can get our formal approval and can officially say we're 100% building!
I'll keep updating with stuff or answering any questions regarding the process if any readers are interested. I sure was!
Ciaran
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Timeline:
25/10/14 Met with Leon from Aussie in a display home
29/10/14 First real meeting with Leon to go over plans and options
31/10/14 Hold deposit for land (waiting on Keystart approval)
About 2.5 months worth of back and forth with Keystart and further document signings (land/contracts etc), until finally...
13/01/15 Formal approval of finance from Keystart! Land Surveys ordered (still waiting titles though)
29/01/15 Pre-start appointment booked for Feb 25th
25/02/15 Pre-start completed
26/02/15 Settlement!
23/04/15 Building Permit & Final Variations signed
25/05/15 Site works completed, slab prep done.
26/05/15 Slab!
05/06/15 Drainage and Electrical run-in
07/06/15 Soak wells
23/06/15 Brick layers have commenced
28/06/15 Brick layers finished! (5 days!)
06/07/15 Roof frame started
08/07/15 Roof frame completed
08/07/15 Been informed of a 5 week delay for tiles!
13/07/15 Electrical cut in done
15/07/15 Gutters and downpipes done
20/07/15 Plumbing and gas done
07/08/15 Roof tiling commenced
10/08/15 Roof tiling completed
21/08/15 Grey float completed
08/09/15 Ceilings and cornices completed
10/09/15 Windows and glass doors installed
14/09/15 White set completed
15/09/15 Internal doors installed
16/09/15 Lockup!
21/09/15 Windows and front render
23/09/15 Ceiling, cornices and doors painted
01/10/15 Cabinets started
03/10/15 Wet area floors concreted and garage floor pad completed
06/10/15 Wet area tiling commenced
12/10/15 Essastone bench and overhead cabinets installed
13/10/15 Pavers delivered
14/10/15 Splashback started, sinks installed
16/10/15 Roof insulation arrived
19/10/15 Internal electrical completed, gas appliances installed, roof insulation installed, hot water unit installed, splashback completed
20/10/15 Paving completed, toilet installed in ensuite
21/10/15 Second coat of paint done, external light fittings installed
21/10/15 Final paint done, gloss coat of paint done on all downpipes/gutters/internals
27/10/15 Internal clean done in prep for flooring, windows cleaned
28/10/15 Garage doors, door handles, towel rails installed
29/10/15 Commissioning done
31/10/15 Blinds installed
02/11/15 Floorboards installed
03/11/15 PCI Date booked! - 19th November
04/11/15 Shower screens, mirrors and carpets installed
07/11/15 Broke my wrist
14/11/15 Fencing started, minor internal fixes done, met neighbor Steve.
15/11/15 NBN box installed near meter box
19/11/15 PCI Completed!
24/11/15 Fencing completed
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The Independence Promo
Aussie Living Homes
Suffolk Park - Caversham
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