Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Apr 27, 2015 7:29 am Hi All,
Just saying hello. First time user to homeone, intending to frequent more often. Was recommended over from Somersoft as more detailed questions about new home builds being potentially better suited for here. Looking to build on a 15m frontage block, around 400 m2 in the new Mason Green estate to come up in Piara Waters. As a first time house owner and would be builder, I am somewhat lost in the selection process. My land value is around 300k but am unsure of what a reasonable building value should be spent to avoid under capitalising relative to land value, or overcapitalising relative to potential rent return and future resale value (intention is to never sell if I am truly building a property portfolio - just a backup). The economy isn't going great but intentions are to live in the first 6 months, get the govt grants, then rent it out. Potential to move in should the economy and rental get blown to bits in the next 1-2 years. Otherwise I"d love to use it as my first step towards a property portfolio and some passive income. Just wondering what tips and advice you have in selecting a builder and design? I've been doing the whole hours and hours of display homes and trying to talk to builders. The issue is there are so many choices and with so little experience I am having difficult telling quality and value for money apart from a good , likeable sales person and design. I am also having difficulty with lack of experience as to what renters would want in a 4 x 2 (e.g. is double vanity a waste return wise.. a third bathroom? What sort of window treatments, kitchen features, materials etc would appeal better). So any investors here who could give their 5 cents on rental appeal/maximisation, I would greatly appreciate. Floorplan design is important, but I feel my issue currently is I can't pinpoint the subtle differences in quality in products and building materials. I'd love to hear those who have built (preferably more than once) with the following builders - surely there are builders (as with any product/service) you do and don't avoid. 1)Vision One Homes (small builders - can't find much, quality in display homes looks good and told is what you get in the build price. What you see is what you get. Smal = better supervision/home quality? Or is this misformed? Potentially lower value for money due to lack of builder purchasing power?) 2) Celebration homes (also what you see is what you get build prices - award winning. Seems value for money. Speaking to some consultants it seems their designs are similar if not sometimes better spec than Dale Alcock... I don't know if this is true... but I definitely know you pay more for DA's name. Elevations and everything seem standard family homes. Quality appears ok for price but have an inkling there may be something otherwise why so much cheaper than DA?) 3)Redink (mixed - hear quality is decent, others it isn't. One person saw a redink house being build next door and felt the quality of say cabinetry was sub par and more off the shelf etc - from what she thought she could see it contrasted to her Dale Alcock home being built) 4)Aveling Homes (consultant was a drafter prev for last 10 years. Great knowledge/hand holding, hard to get ahold of or follow up my block designs. Not sure if service skills can be forgotten if knowledge and materials/quality are great as this is what you end up with ultimately. Prices higher than celebration,redink, and other 180-210k builds) 5) Ideal homes 6) Complete Homes (Online reviews not great, but part of Ross North, which does great quality houses?) 7) National Homes (more pricey/Dale Alcock price range market.) 8 ) Yet to view summit homes and ventura homes 9) Impressions (got told to avoid) 10) Commodore Homes (yet to see, also told to avoid?) 11) Smart Home LIving (seem cheaper than celebrations even... wondering if this is a budget quality build/avoid? Seems fine to my eye though, but believe I'm probably missing the finer details) 12) Blueprint homes - haven't seen display. Workmate had a great sales process, hasn't built. Mentioned they win alot of awards. 13) Affordable living - same as blueprint, minus the awards 14) Any others to add on the list? I left Dale Alcock off as seemed price would come up on higher end band than the above builders? What price rule of thumb should I be aiming for my sort of block size? Thinking of DIY painting, external air conditioning, flooring and window treatments if these are cheaper than through builder. So by full turn key quoted prices, lets assume this means excluding these conventional items. I've found celebrations, smart home living I can do for 180-200k, complete homes quoted 210-220k turnkey, Vision ONe Homes whose display seems nice seem to start 200-210 non-turnkey, about 230-240k with their 'complete home' package (adds flooring, painting etc). National Homes also seems to be about the 220-240k mark. I liked the APG homes I saw today but seems their price band is higher than DA. I want to pay for quality of building, inclusions, and external /interior design, not name. My max internal living allowance is 218 m2 including garage. Therefore about 180 m2 internally to play with. Will I get a better rent appeal for a 220-240k build than the 180-210k for that sized house 4x2? Would renters as a builder say, 'build it and they will come'? Surely you would pay 450pw for a celebration homes build that seemed like a decent 'house' than a more nicer build at 500-520pw? Surely only myself would pay attention to quality of inclusions and the building, and a tenant would not see this? What are your experiences/rules of thumb? Thanks and apologies for the length. I know short and sweet gets responses, but felt an informed advice/decision couldn't be made without a bit more detail up front. Would appreciate any repsonses. Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 2Apr 27, 2015 7:38 am If I may add, the majority of 'online reviews' in online review sites are terrible for many/all of these builders. You only hear from the bad stories. Just reading them (if they were true for every build) would scare me right out of using them.Yet occasionally you hear great things about them - these don't make it to the review sites. WOuld you discount the online review sites as only negative experiences provide feedback largely? I am aware that people always say there are alot of hit and misses with every builder. With the main one being that it all depends on your luck of the draw re: site supervisor and tradies? Surely there are builders that have better luck of the draw, and are more always on the 'hit' than 'miss' list when it comes to drawing names. Which I would love to know! WIth a focus on value for quality pricing, given this is a rental and the best of the best inclusions in a Webb & Brown Neavess, APG or Ross North homes look awesome, but proably come more as a luxury than a basic that adds rental appeal/return. Or if i win the lotto a Ross North or APG home I wouldn't have to bat an eye First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 3Apr 27, 2015 10:37 am Sounds like you have a grand plan! I love it! A couple of things I can contribute.... Building a property to rent is a different mindset to one where you are going to live. Obviously location of the property is key to the budget and return but also the tenant you will attract. You don't want to overcapitalise, check out what real estate is worth currently in your area to get your rough figures so your spend comes in under it. Do the same for rental income figures. Rental builds are a simple case of dollars and cents thinking. You can do away with all the 'fruit' in a rental build, the upgraded tapware, tiles etc. A builders standard selections will suffice! Keep everything neutral for broader appeal. That's not to say you are compromising on a stylish interior/exterior either. I'm building with Celebration so know they display at a what you see is what you get price so that gives you a good idea about standard inclusions. In your design look at lots of storage and rooms that can do double duty. A study can be used as a bedroom if it has a door. Adding a few doors to otherwise open rooms gives more options to tenants. My building philosophy is to stick to the majors. Most of the 'luxury' builders like WBN are a sister company to the Celebration Homes etc. FYI WBN, Dale Alcock, APG and Celebration fall under the one company (the ABN group), they are just pitched to different markets. Similar set ups for the Ross Norths etc. Because of your plan to build a property portfolio, one thing you might want to factor in is you can be 'rewarded' for loyalty. I've built with the ABN family previously and I am given some extra inclusions I wouldn't otherwise get going with another builder. My advice in selecting a builder is to find a floorplan that appeals and needs no structural change whatsoever except the inclusion of a door or extra robes. Changing things costs money in a build. Your experience I believe comes down to a dose of good luck and having faith in the process. Don't think for a second you can micromanage the process or the builder. They don't appreciate it, and you won't enjoy it. Always remember you catch more flies with honey When you vacate the property get a quantity surveyor to create a depreciation schedule. And get yourself a decent accountant. Exciting times ahead! Sounds like we'll be seeing a lot of you here in years to come! Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 4Apr 27, 2015 11:35 am Generally speaking, the rent is based on the number of rooms and floor area. To some extent people will pay more for a place that looks and feels nice inside, but there's not much point paying more to get the current "look". Even if it is a bit more popular initially, that will soon date anyhow. Some upgrades may be worthwhile in terms of reducing maintenance costs. But simple is good. For example, an oven with just mechanical controls and without an electronic clock is less likely to need expensive repairs. Look for robust feeling items, like in windows and door handles. Just use the plain batten-fix light fittings. The batten fix fitting is better quality than the cheaper light fittings, so you just find some "diy" fitting to go over it to make it look "finished". Avoid downlights, as there's a lot more to fail, and the fix likely involves an electrician, rather than simply changing a bulb. I'd aim for a mostly face-brick finish. The current fashion is to use a fair bit of render, but this is more easy to damage, and needs more maintenance. Similarly, avoid external timber. It can look pretty, but is a headache to maintain. Think about whether you will allow pets. Allowing pets can potentially get you higher rent, better tenants, and tenants that stay longer, but you run the risk of pet damage. If there's rear yard access to the garage, you can offer outside+garage only for a dog. Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 5Apr 27, 2015 3:34 pm @FantasticFour: Great to be here. Have you been building for investment purposes i.e. rental? Given the Piara Waters location I think it will be mostly families, odd downsizer empty nesters onto smaller blocks. My concern is whether a family for 4 would go down for the greenery and newer buildings afforded for the same rent than more inner city older suburbs e.g. your murdoch, willetton etc with dated houses. Close enough driving proximity to Cockburn Central train station and Canning Vale shops areas which I hope will be a positive. The issue is the area is under development and so new land is going ot add to the areas density and eventual apppeal, but in the short run I assume there is going to be a heck of people doing similar ideas of renting it out as soon as its built. So I'm not anticipating massive positive rents. I see your logic in scoping the market. Being doing so with rental prices, and soon sales. The difficult part is finding why something is not renting or why it is renting at said price. A month ago I was seeing $500+, mid 500's pw for piara waters. Arugably some lots looked like 500-650 sqm blocks for a 4x2 as opposed to my 400 sqm, so point taken for why they command higher... but I was sure maybe I could fetch around that. Now a host of mid 400- to low $500 are the fetching rents for a 4x2 on domain. I've driven by some and they're corner or look less appealing in person so that might explain why they aren't rented and are going that cheap.. but with others they look like any other 4x2 from online listings and photos... I've tried to get floor plans and internal living sqm off agents but the majority never reply and try to get you in for a viewing instead. Maybe they just have no clue on these details (although IMHO you should as an agent!). My other inkling is the furnishings inside may not appeal. Which is why I want to know what does and doesn't i.e. are tenants avoiding the cheaper first home builder style builds that celebration, affordable living, blueprint homes etc do, and hence why these aren't renting out? Or have they just totally screwed up the inside furnishings? I just don't know - which is my dilemma. With for home sales similarly I'd have to waste alot of time viewing home opens when I need to bed down design and finance within the next month or two (only so many home opens you can view in a few weekends). Any suggestions on efficiently approaching this? With a rental build I agree you wouldn't want all the top class upgrades you'd see in say a Ross North, APG price band home - however, would one get away with a better rental appeal with say flip mixer taps as opposed to the typical twist-turn hot and cold handles, sliding robes as opposed to swing door robes that by default come with Celebration Homes bedrooms? It's these upgrades from bare basics to more everyday stuff (than the real luxury upgrades you'd put in your own home you live in) that I'm wondering if others have seen a financial return on when they're renting their investment properties? Also the argument is whether better quality will see less damage and replacement by tenants over the years over cheaper inclusions? How do you find Celebrations as you're building with them? Are you going with the contempo or display series, and more importantly how are the prestart range of selection? I have heard some stories where all is great until you get to pre start and realise the colours and availability of tiles, fixtures, tapware etc isn't what you like. Is it normal to request to see a prestart warehouse range prior to signing with a builder to see if you like before you buy? I agree with storage and rooms. Paros downsized to a 3x2 and storage is excruciating. I miss the 4x 2 and extra storage room. I would definitely be looking for innovative design solutions e.g. some house designs the corridor wall has a build in sliding robes. I also thought about the idea of an enclosed theatre - say using fold out doors, what do you reckon? Would this see a return? That way this can be a 5th bedroom, study room, or left as a theatre room by leaving it carpeted. In terms of rental appeal most modern day builds now seem to have open ensuites. Coming from an older style house upbringing, is this the normal? Do people really not mind their privacy that you can see from the master bedroom into you taking a shower? Just a display home thing, or do people build and rent like this now adays? I knew about the ABN group - but thank you anyway. APG I forgot about but got reminded yesterday! By sticking to the Majors and avoiding the luxuries, do you mean Dale Alcock and Celebrations (major) and avoiding WBN and APG as obviously these are too luxurious builds for an investment? BGC group seem to own nearly everything else - it's quite deceiving! That said I have heard contrasting stories where BGC's pitch to use them as they are vertically integrated as a postive cost wise, is actually a negative as obviously their own bricks have less cost and quality control as it goes straight to their own builders for accountability, than versus builders who use brikmaker or midland bricks. Others source their own glass rather than the typical Jason Glass but claim it is just as good. Anyone have thoughts on vertically integrated builders? Do you think quality is better with builders who source from third parties largely? "Loyalty' bonus - what sort of extra inclusions have you gotten? Just want to gauge if it is a material difference. Thanks for the advice. Buildres have told me design changes have no increased labour/design costs, just materials e.g. more wall cavity etc. The issue is, if I select a floor design first i feel you're more likely to get to quality of materials/build/inclusions stage and hit a brick wall. Which is why I'd love to know what people think about the various listed builders and the quality of the products/items they provide. Has anyone ever compiled a list, or a checklist of some sort of common inclusions and brands to stick to when building? It would be otherwise a great project that perhaps homeone, or somersoft members could do. I mean afterall many members will have collectively great knowledge about what brands and products are top of range, and what to avoid. New builders like me, I have no idea about say lighting and telling a cheapo downlight to a more expensive brand when it comes to quality. Whereas others would. Agreed - will definitely get a quantity surveyor in, probably while I'm staying there! Not sure what to do with accountant... used to work in one myself - felt I could do my own tax return, but would have to bring one in if additional property purchases become structured for asset protection purposes through say ownership via a trust? Thanks again!! Hoping you will hear more of me... really hoping I can do the classic portfolio building - conservatively adding to equity and properties as the years go by. If so hopefully I'll be back with a new build! Not sure if buying preowned and renting straight out saves more money than building a new rental... but I will have to find out! @onejohn: So you agree that I'm more likely to see value for money going for a Celebration Homes style build that may come to 200-220k, upgrade a few things like say their doors to slide robes, try and up ceiling 2 or 3 course from defual 28, add a third toilet and powder basin perhaps (rather than find space for a whole third bathroom), and rent that out? Than going a Dale Alcock, APG, National Homes etc which may come at $240k+ upwards? The hardest part is trying to seperate emotions of what 'we' want , from the numbers. E.g. what are people actually willing to pay for more, and what places rent out faster with what designs/amenities?? So YES - please keep the suggeestions going guys. I'm sure there are others on here who have taken a rental investment build route - would love to hear from your pitfalls and the positives that worked! re: batten-fix lightings, are you referring to those bar batten things that hang down, like a cylindrical light, over kitchen benchtops normally? The issue is in rooms and entertainment areas, having hanging lights may look less appealing and lessen the 31c height ceilings than downlights. My new house I've just moved into has downlights - just found out that a fused one needs an electrician! So no globe changing instantly - definitely annoying. The previous investor obviously went the cheap route, my bedroom has one downlight which a Redink consultant stated was too little, and I agree - feels way too dark at night to study or read due to shadowing (i'm tall) from above! When that fuses I dread having to 'wait for an electrician' to fix it in a few days. Face-brick around the house : agreed to leave non-rendered, bar the front perhaps? Most modern designs/displays now come front rendered - don't you think this adds to a more modern day design appeal and likely to attract renters? So you would avoid timber flooring - say outdoor alfreso, front landscaping etc. How about internal flooring: a hard wearing product like bamboo? Or would you sacrfice that more warmly feel for cheaper, easier to maintain tiles, say 400 x 400? Heard in the past the potential rental increase for pets appeal was worth it, as any damage to carpetry was more likely covered in the rental increase, less rental vacancy down time potentially, and would probably be part of cleaning costs taken out of their bond upon departure, correct? If so I will go down the pet route. Not sure with dogs, but our cat has no issues apart from damaging curtains in the old house (fat and clumsy jumping onto window sills and slipping!) I was thinking of an unique selling point: say 1 yr at 550 pw, 2 years a discounted 530pw, so your cashflow is fixed. Or is this crazy shooting yourself in the leg as it cuts out flexibility? Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 6Apr 27, 2015 3:39 pm Still would love to hear feedback regarding the list of builders! I've added blueprint and affordable living - have heard good things from a workmate going through design now. Havent seen a display yet though. Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 7Apr 27, 2015 10:31 pm I wouldn't over-complicate things. Around large population centres there's always a fairly steady rental market. If you meet the market rate, you should get tenants with no problem. So I wouldn't worry about discounts for long leases. For what I meant by batten fix, I just mean the plain old simple batten holder that builders include as standard, with the globe hanging out the bottom. You can than add some cosmetic fitting to it. The main reason is maintenance, and its easy for a tenant to change the globe without pulling anything apart. Sure it hangs into the ceiling space, but after the first week in there, most people won't even notice. You need a lot more downlights than non-recessed lights, because they don't light up the ceiling, and hence give darker shadows. The houses I've rented out have been new, but quite basic in their fittings. One was a standard project build, with just a facade upgrade and not much else. I don't think the rent has been significantly lower than competing houses on account of lack of those upgrades. I think renters are generally less discerning than buyers, because people who want specific things generally end up forced to buy anyhow. The taller ceilings - up to 2.7m (which I think is 31c) is probably worthwhile. That's something that stays with the house for its life whereas Kitchens, bathrooms, light fittings will be replaced periodically anyhow. Larger rooms help too. You'll probably also want air-conditioning, even thought it's a maintenance burden. I don't think a 3rd toilet or bathroom would be much of a benefit in only a 4br house. It would only be of benefit when there are a lot of people living in the house, which isn't your best-case scenario anyhow. I'd put a door between the ensuite and bedroom. It might slightly attract some people to have it open, but may seriously turn off others. On the whole, I don't think renters worry so much about how their house looks, or the style it has. Because they don't own it, it's not a reflection on themselves in how trendy it is. I'd probably tile the living areas. Tenants don't like things that they might damage. Though having said that, I rented a house with quite light carpets, and that worked out fine. If anything, it may have helped weed out the potential tenants who thought they might stain it. Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 8Apr 28, 2015 4:22 pm Ok, sure. I guess next is working out the market rental. I'll investigate the batten holder lighting, some google searching tonight might make more sense. So with your rentals you have been running the standard project builder's build and rarely upgrading fittings and inclusions beyond bare basic? Would you upgrade thing slike warddrobe doors to sliding double robes for example, add in a second wash basin in say the master bathroom? Fair points. This is what I wanted to hear, some builders have been telling me obviously the buy and they will come - and that obviously one wants to be proud of inviting people into their home and entertaining even if rented... which made me consider allowing for decent alfresco area, maybe a built in BBQ as a bonus? And hence a third powder basin or toilet was a consideration initially. If your experience has been that this doesn't command a justifiably larger rental then I will go off that. Air conditioning per bedroom will be done - just whether through the builder. It's a huge smoke and mirrors with some throwing in air cond for "990 more" , "490 more" etc, and others not including it. I can't help but think of builders who say that anyone can build the same house for roughly around same cost, so if one is cheaper than the other on account of their air cond inclusion prices/upgrades, then what are they skimping out on elsewhere?? How would you weed this out? Looking at a few more displays on Monday I noted that a few seem to generally showcase their displays closer to 'as is' in the build specs of their designs: Celebration Homes Smart Homes Still haven't heard anything from anyone on my list of builders in my OP...is there really no opinion on builders to miss? Vision One Homes also offered pretty standard inclusions per designs to their display home , but seem higher. E.g. smart home coming up around 190k+ for the build (im assuming without sit ecosts) and celebrations just above 200k. On the other hand vision one are 205k++. Heard some bad things about ventura's completion times... makes me worry about Smart Homes being an affiliated group. Would you really believe them when saying they do not share the same resources in that a delay in Ventura doesn't flow through to Smart Homes tradies or site supervisors? Smart Homes sold themselves as having 2014 project builder of the year - a statement on quality of their house builds.... can't deny that - what do you all think? Quite a few of the 180k-260k display range awards by the MBAWA for 2014 and 2015's awards seemed to feature Ventura Homes trading as Smart Homes..... Sales rep openly communicated to dispel the myth that yes, they are cheaper than alot of others, but rather than the typical case of skimping on tradies pay or elsewhere, they pay their brickies one of the better pays, and go fo rlow margins, high volume. Would you take this as a grain of salt - the general consensus picked up from talking to diff builders is that generally nothing is free and that the price is always the price for a reason e.g. no matter what builder, a 180k build must skimp out somewhere on quality vs another builder showcasing at 200k. Thoughts??As an investment rental I just don't want to find bricks and plaster cracking/falling around the place, and structural issues 1-3 years in! Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 9Apr 28, 2015 4:39 pm We are currently building with Vision One Homes and you can read the progress in my thread....can't comment about the rest of the builders, but we had also talked to Dale Alcock, Ross North and Redink before deciding on Vision One. Pretty much happy with how the build is progressing. We are at bricklaying stage now. Obviously as with any builders, we hit a couple of bumps along the way, but all issues were/are resolved as efficiently as possible. Nothing major that would bring an earth shaking halt to the build. Communication has been great. We are sometimes quite impatient (as expected with most first time builders), but they have been no delays in the communication at the various stages. Vision One is part of Novus Homes as I'm sure you are already aware Feel free to pm if you have any questions. Our Build Thread: The "Extended" Marina by Visionone Homes Our Inspirations: Frank Lloyd Wright | Houzz Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 10Apr 29, 2015 4:15 pm Thanks Hootie. Will check it out. Might pm you specifically if this forum allows. Be keen to hear why you picked vision one over other builders at the similar band e.g smart homes, blueprint homes. Celebration homes, redink, *, complete homes, national homes etc. Heard of novus but didn't know much except they were a luxury builder. How are you finding the quality of the materials and product going into your block. As well as workmanship? Probably my main concern prior to price would be finding a builder with a good value build, but most importantly good quality buildings - brick and mortar (and everything else haha). Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 11Apr 30, 2015 9:46 pm I'd agree that the decent alfresco area would help - that's a practical living feature that people pay for. But I wouldn't put in a built-in BBQ - mainly because then it's your maintenance problem, and also people who value a BBQ likely already have one anyhow, and they'll want somewhere to put it. Things like the double basins / sliding robes etc. all help build up the place to make it more attractive, and I'd say it can be worth doing a bit in that area, but you'll want to be cost conscious, as you probably won't see tangible rent returns for each one. You want the house to be nice, but it's easy to spend a lot of money when they all add up. People will pay a bit more for a house they like, but you start restricting your market if you rely on this for a higher than "standard" rent for the house size. Not only are there fewer such renters to start with, but all the benefit of your expenses in the upgrades may be lost when the prospective tenant doesn't particularly like your interior colour. But it's also partly about suiting the area. If the normal in the area is to have all these features, then you are more likely better off having them. Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 12Apr 30, 2015 10:41 pm Renting property comes down to basic supply and demand principles. It doesn't matter if you coat a property in glitter, if there is no demand for it at x price then there is no demand. Piara Waters strikes me as an area that would attract renters that are 'price sensitive'. The 'Willetons' etc are more aspirational (greater disposable income, closer to the city, better and established infrastructure, we're not even delving into the school zones and the premium that can attract) The fact is you are trying to compare chalk with cheese. Look at the demographic that currently resides there and close by to inform your home design decisions. Building as far as I am concerned is all swings and roundabouts. You can analyse all the companies to the n'th degree but the reality is they all have to follow the same building regs as a bottom line. You can only try mitigating building risks (and there is no absolute guarantee hence the various 'experiences' out there) by choosing a company that is most aligned to your ideals and within your budget. There is a reason the budget builders have a presence in the neighbourhood You're not going to make a quick buck here, property is a long term investment. As far as attracting a tenant is concerned, you'd want to secure a tenant that wants longevity in leasing your property. Time vacant will cost you money. But that will come down to who you select and how you treat the tenant more than any bbq inclusion or fancy floor. Re: First home Build - Advice [Piara Waters, Perth] 13May 22, 2015 4:19 pm SaberX Still would love to hear feedback regarding the list of builders! I've added blueprint and affordable living - have heard good things from a workmate going through design now. Havent seen a display yet though. We're currently building with Affordable Living in Hocking WA. PCI in approx 4 weeks, handover 1-2 after that. We've had a few issues, but only cos the salesman told a few porkies - either because he was uninformed, he assumed, or he said it to make the sale. I don't know, so I won't randomly choose a reason. Essentially he said retaining wall was included, Colourbond fencing included, and a landscaping allowance was included. Signed contracts, then few weeks later get told that none of that is true. Eventually got most of it from them, but not with a LOT of back and forth (I'm talking nearly 2 months of emails and 'management reviews'). And then we get charged for exceeding our 6mth price hold by 2 months!! (currently fighting that). But, that was all because the salesman told us wrong - if that didn't happen then we would be breezing through it stress free!! So yes, they are good builders from what I've seen. Bricks and roofing was delayed a fair bit, but they've since kept up to speed with the rest of it, so very happy about that. (Sorry trying not to hijack, but feeling you needed to know the back story for me reference) Thanks NativeZen! I can't wait to start landscaping, though it's going to be a while away yet. No movement on site yet as of the weekend. Hoping to see some earthworks… 3 2160 Getting the permit for your wall because it's going to be pretty tall in some places isn't too hard, but it does mean you have to do a bit more work. If all these steps… 6 21800 hi guys. Please be nice. First time home builder in Qld. I would like some feedback please on whether I should build my granny flat first before my main house at the… 0 947 |