Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Apr 08, 2015 8:30 am My wife and I are looking to build a new home and are at the early stages of sorting out type, builder etc. We've been doing the usual, looking at display homes but then becoming unsettled at the 'suck you in with great sounding quotes only to hit you with massive variation prices and a final cost nowhere near original sign up', and now more recently starting to chat to independent builders who seem to want to hit us high with pricing from the offset and claim that they are being more realistic. We've now gotten to a point were we are back to questioning whether we build two storey or one, were as before we were certain we wanted a two storey home. The last builder we spoke to said that we should take the sqm measurement of the home, multiply it by 1.3 ($1300 per sqm) and that would give us an idea of how much the home would cost, complete with driveways, air con etc. This scared my wife and I because the 2 storey home we liked and thought we could afford (advertised by another builder from Melbourne, we're in Brisbane) started at $218k and this independent builder is telling us it would be closer to $494k because it is a 380sqm home. We have a budget somewhere around 300k and I think we just need a reality check from you people who have been there and done it and can talk realistic prices etc. So, if you have built in Brisbane in the last couple of years (1 storey or 2), built with most things supplied but not over the top, can you please reply with the following info: Builder: 1 or 2 Storey: Home Size (sqm): Total Build Cost: Thanks for helping us clarify this stuff.......... Re: Looking for a real idea 2Apr 08, 2015 10:10 am Hi brikznmortar, I'm building on the Gold Coast with Plantation, I expect the price would be similar. My house is smaller and only single storey, but still it might be useful data: Builder: Plantation 1 or 2 Storey: 1 Home Size: 212.3sqm including porch and alfresco Contract Price: $242,206 That works out to $1140.87 per sqm. The "base" price of the house was $203,697. The original quoted price was $220,687 including fixed price siteworks and their $10k move-in pack (driveway, clothesline, letterbox, turf to front). The contract price included nearly $12k of retaining and the vast majority of our upgrades and variations (we have maybe $3k-$5k remaining of variations to pay ourselves, I can't remember the exact figure now). We're getting flooring and a fairly typical range (I think) of upgrades. We still have to supply our own light fittings (around $2500) and window coverings and do the rest of the landscaping. 380sqm is a HUGE house! And I would expect it would probably end up being out of your budget from what you've said and what I've seen. Good luck working everything out Jen (& Dave) Plantation Bronte, Ormeau Ridge, Gold Coast QLD 12/03/2015 - Commencement... 26/08/2015 - Handover! viewtopic.php?f=31&t=76446 Re: Looking for a real idea 3Apr 08, 2015 10:17 am I reckon you could add up to 50% on a base price for a large builder - eg Plantation - at least. Depends on what you like - eg air/con, solar, interiors, exteriors, cement work, tiles etc. Its amazing how the cost rises. Re: Looking for a real idea 4Apr 08, 2015 1:16 pm It is frustrating trying to get a reasonable idea of cost. Realistically though, everyone has different ideas of what goes into a house, and different block conditions. Then, as you have noticed, some builders are more "optimistic" about the build cost than others. It can help if you have a list of the things you want, but that are commonly left out of base prices. These are things like built-in robes, overhead cupboards in kitchens, ceiling heights, facade, amount of tiling in bathrooms, stone benchtops, splashbacks, double power points, etc... Then you can get the sales people to work out an adjustment in the price to suit your list of requirements. Site costs are a tough one, but you may be able to get an "estimate" based on other houses they have build in your area. 380m2 is a big house, and I can't see you getting that built for under $300k. Bear in mind there's in the region of $50k or more in extra costs after handover, in driveway, paving, floorcoverings, curtains, air conditioning, water tanks, etc. We're building in Adelaide, single storey with 290m2 total and our current estimates are getting close to $300k for the whole project. The builders with cheap starting prices were in the region of $150k. Roughly speaking, with one of those builders we would have had $50k site costs, $50k in upgrades, and the $50k after handover. Re: Looking for a real idea 6Apr 08, 2015 1:57 pm Thanks to all those replying so far. I should clarify, I'm not expecting to build a 380sqm home in our 300k budget, that's just an example of the variety of prices we've been experiencing and feeling like we are hearing opposite ends of the scale when it comes to building. We're trying to clarify, from those who have gone before us and now have concrete prices, should we be considering 1 or 2 storey? Thanks Ilaeria and onejohn, I appreciate you sharing that info;) Re: Looking for a real idea 7Apr 08, 2015 2:01 pm The guideline of around $1300 per sqm is a good general idea I think. That means you should be able to get about a 230sqm home for your budget. Which would mean probably single storey unless it's a very small double. For example, even the smallest 2 storey Plantation (my builder) offers is 239.3sqm. So I hope that helps Jen (& Dave) Plantation Bronte, Ormeau Ridge, Gold Coast QLD 12/03/2015 - Commencement... 26/08/2015 - Handover! viewtopic.php?f=31&t=76446 Re: Looking for a real idea 8Apr 08, 2015 9:58 pm We are in WA and are building a single storey home approx 295sqm (inclusive of garage and alfresco). We originally looked at a builder (very popular on here, however some real horror stories too) who came in at $258k including flooring, aircon, almost all finishing except painting. We got the heebie jeebies with them and are now building with Dale Alcock, our build price has increased about $80,000 (excluding flooring, aircon, exposed aggregate, painting etc) but we are much more confident with the design and that we will have a quality home built. To give you an idea we have quite a high spec home with upgraded everything, including stone bench tops throughout, extra wet area tiling, high ceilings, upgraded doors, most down lights etc. Our Custom Dale Alcock build in the Village at Wellard https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=78620 Re: Looking for a real idea 9Apr 09, 2015 9:13 am I think the $1000/m2 for single storey and $1300/m2 is a reasonable guide to what's achievable. At that rate, you might manage around 250m2 in double storey, which is still quite a substantial house. A single storey might get you up to 300m2, but then you lose a lot more yard space. Looking for a real idea 10Apr 09, 2015 6:13 pm Hi, We are in WA so prices are probably a bit higher, I was working for a builder that builds one off $1m plus homes, he said said a rough guide for him was $2,200 sqm for everything. our budget was $400k and we wanted double storey due to our block. He suggested we find a builder we like, adjust their closest design to our block and then 'spec it up'. This is exactly what we did, downstairs was around $1,000 sqm upstairs $1,300 sqm - exc aircon and flooring. 305sqm house will cost $395k plus air con and flooring $35k and yes we increased the spec. So the suggested $1,300/sqm is about right You must be new to the internet. You're also the only person anyone here has ever heard of washing their garage wall. I hate to break it to you, there are insects and… 6 4808 Hi team, Im looking for a second hand sd4b monitor preferably white. 0 8920 Really tight at the top of the stairs- how to get furniture into those rooms? Study books - does anyone really use them these days? Large storage closet would be more functional. 2 6882 |