Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Feb 05, 2015 9:51 am Hi All,
We're at the very early stages of considering building our first family home; we have a child with another one hopefully coming next year. We want 3 or 4br, 1 living area and another room for a home gym, ideally a double story. We don't want a huge house and value quality over size, so we don't want anything bigger than 33sq. Besides this we're pretty flexible however we want finishes to a high standard and with some bells and whistles. Our budget for construction is $500k, the issue is that we're torn between a low end architecturally designed home or a volume builder with plenty of room for upgrades. My wife is happy going with a volume builder as her sister recently built with Porter Davis and is happy with it, however I'm worried that if we decide to go with a VB (currently looking at Boutique) I won't be happy with their quality and cookie cutter approach. The other issue is that we want a very contemporary home, think lots of glass, flat roof, use of concrete, high ceilings, etc. and not many VB offer this type of design as they're more traditional. The pros and cons are obvious... the majority of architects won't even take our projects as our budget is not big enough... and at the same time the VB don't really offer the design we're after. What are your thoughts/suggestions? We'll start by visiting boutique display homes this weekend and go from there. Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 2Feb 05, 2015 10:00 am That's quite a dilemma. I don't know that I can offer any advice, but I am not building with a volume builder and neither am I having an architect. I am using a small local builder, who do custom sort of houses (they do mansion type houses in the inner suburbs), so they have really good quality and they can do all the little details. For me they are just building a basic 3bdr in an estate. I found them through a person on Facebook actually, but they have been fantastic. They are cheaper than an architect, but offer a lot more flexibility than a volume builder. Personally I love that the director of the business is my project manager, so I go straight to the top Not sure, but maybe a company like that would be more in the middle and be what you need. Good luck (oh, my builder doesn't do displays, really heard of him by pure luck, but they do have websites). Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 3Feb 05, 2015 10:03 am i went with a small volume builder who built a custom design for me which enabled me to include bits and pieces i wanted that was not included with large volume builders Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 4Feb 05, 2015 10:13 am Hi marcoakis, How exciting! Starting out on this journey is always fun. I think you ask a very interesting question and one that not too many other people think of. Yes there is obviously a difference between hiring an architect and working with a volume builder. Most people go the volume builder route as they like to see what they are getting (display homes that you can walk through) and the price is significantly cheaper. Why is it so much cheaper? Well volume builders, as you know, have standard designs that they build over and over again using the same materials, tradies and suppliers. They have nutted out these designs to be as efficient as possible for them in dollar terms. They have all their supply agreements in place so this is why some of the choices you have can appear so limited (think bricks, roofing etc.) So why would you go to an architect? Architects traditionally work on bespoke projects, often alterations and additions to existing homes. The work that they do mostly the volume builders can't or won't touch. There are a lot of local government areas where volume builders just won't build. An architecturally designed house will cost more because it is a one-off and there are none of those supply agreements or standard tradies etc. that I mentioned earlier. As a rule of thumb volume builders may be building at around $1500 per sqm (this can vary too depending on upgrades etc.) whereas an architecturally designed home, you are probably looking in the order of $3k - $4k per sqm. There are also some higher end project home builders that may sit in between these two. They may also have some design features that are similar to the type that you are looking for. I would think that if you went to a standard volume builder and asked for many of the changes that it sounds like you are after, you would end up paying significantly more than standard. Some of the things you have asked for may be accommodated by volume builders such as higher ceilings, possibly some more concrete but you will be paying more for it. Can I suggest that at this point you take some time to think about what you are really after in this home? As you mentioned I think it's a great idea to go and have a look at a few displays and see if you like any of them. Take the time now to get really clear on what you are after. It will pay off later when it comes to making the right choices. I wish you the best of luck with it all. Cheers, Jenny. Need hints, tips and inspiration? Join me on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ournewhomecoach Who am I? See my LinkedIn page: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/jennifer-crawford/1a/429/296 Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 5Feb 05, 2015 10:33 am Thanks a lot of your comments guys. I thought about a small builder that does custom work, however being new in Melbourne and knowing almost zero about building I don't know any good small builders that offers decent quality, reliability and overall good value. @aloenyx, it'd be great if you could post the name of who you're working with. @jenathome, Great post! I see you're in NSW but being in the industry perhaps you can suggest where in Melbourne I can start looking Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 6Feb 05, 2015 11:38 pm For what it's worth, own plans through draftsman, then tender out to small/medium volume builders for pricing. Have your soil test and contours done and compare apples with apples. Good luck Custom build Northern NSW viewtopic.php?f=31&t=72217 Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 7Feb 06, 2015 6:46 am TraceyWayne For what it's worth, own plans through draftsman, then tender out to small/medium volume builders for pricing. Have your soil test and contours done and compare apples with apples. Good luck If I was experienced in building, I'd definitely research doing this, but to be frank I want someone that can do a turn-key solution for us. I don't feel knowledgeable enough to be more involved in this project. Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 8Feb 06, 2015 8:11 am We were in the same boat. We wanted to use a small one man builder but we just couldn't afford it. We definitely wanted to avoid the big project builders so ended up somewhere in between with a small custom builder - so far so good! My build thread: Custom build on 40 acres viewtopic.php?f=31&t=75656 Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 9Feb 06, 2015 8:35 am Let me add another perspective (Engineering and contracting) to the already Very good advice given above. Architects design to a very high standard, while project volume builders build down to a price. Display homes represent excellent value provided you dont make changes to the basic geo & structural components, material used, sizes, etc,etc. If you do be prepared to pay..... always get professional advice over and above the advice a new home salesperson provides you with in writing. A lot of the project volume builders provide training to apprentices and their house number to staff ratios are very high offering a resonable build for first home buyers.HTH Designer,Engineer (Civil,Const & Envir),Builder,Concrete & Masonry Contract.Struct Repairs Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 10Feb 06, 2015 1:04 pm There are also companies like Hotondo homes who will build either off their database or to your own design. Their prices are very good and being a large company they can buy their materials on a par with the larger volume builders. Two clients of mine have used them to build to plans that I drew a while back and I was impressed with both their price and quality. Stewie Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 11Feb 11, 2015 6:03 pm After spending a year with project builders (wasted my time) I could only say to get an architect to plan your house and a reputable builder to build your house as it will be what YOU want not a project builder telling you what THEY can give you if you're going to spend that type of money build a house that fits your lifestyle and not have to have a floor plan that you have to force yourself to like from a project builder . Thats just my opinion good luck with whichever way you decide to go .. Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 12Feb 11, 2015 7:13 pm Ofcourse an architect would design a house specifically for your family & another fact is that an architect would draft a house design that can get you council approval too. But this will cost you far more than your budget.
You can try out looking at some project builders. They work on the cost per square metre plan. What they usually do is to alter their standard house-plans to suit your needs without charging a design fee. They usually have an architect on staff who designs the house for you. Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 13Feb 11, 2015 7:27 pm If you are making 15-20% area changes to a display house (2S) then its the wrong house for you, and expect the price to increase a lot more. Because you cant turn a small cheap display home into a Medium Mcmansion..in some cases the engineering increases +50% thats over the entire house and you generally find that out after Planning Approvals......Lookout and ask to talk to the engineer and not the salesperson. Designer,Engineer (Civil,Const & Envir),Builder,Concrete & Masonry Contract.Struct Repairs Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 14Feb 20, 2015 9:27 pm get a house designed for your needs and block through a top draftsman, we used a drafting firm whom was owned and operated by a architect, then get recommendations for builders from them, we had input in just about everything, the choices are endless,we also wanted features that volume guys just dont use anymore such as 4step cornices and high stepped skirtings,volume guys avoid most areas not mainstream. Also pay attention to whats in your structure. Re: Torn between low-end architectural vs volume builder 15Feb 23, 2015 9:22 pm I had a good experience with a custom builder. They used a subcontract designer and were efficient with completing the build (6 months) after council approval. Just do your due diligence to satisfy yourself that they use quality trades and have a stable business. For any builder, also carefully establish typical build times. Some can take 12 months (or more) to complete. Build thread: here Land Nov 12, Contract 6/07/13, Consent 15/08/13, Start 20/09/13, Slab 25/09/13, Frame 4/10/13, Brick 21/10/13, Roof 2/11/13, Lock-up 17/12/13, Handover 3/3/14 i did click it, still couldnt make it out rofl. in any case, doesnt look like too extreme a slope, you may be in luck. Just shoot out some emails to volume builders in… 3 18575 2 7756 go upvc window frames ensure insulation under colorbond. not just sarking, lighter color roof also not sure if you have seen this viewtopic.php?t=5823 last couple of pages… 4 110592 |