Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Oct 06, 2015 12:11 am Well tomorrow is signing our contracts day, so finally getting real. We have got our final plans, made all our choices, have the final fixed price, already brought our land - so basically only thing left is to sign contract, get the unconditional approval for loan (as we can't get that without the signed contract - have all the pre approval and income, credit checks okayed) then start the journey. So exciting. We have made some changes on our plan - Bridgewater 203 - the layout not much, but we did extended the bedroom side wall out, so its really about 210m2 instead of the 203m2 it was. We have made a few changes and tomorrow I will post some of the things we did differently or changed. So excited to be sharing this journey with others doing the same thing. Also hoping this little blog/thread will be good for anyone building with GJ Gardener Clarence Valley to get an idea of how they go as I found nothing on the forums here for them. Update: Thought I would do a timeline in this post for people when they come along. 20th June 2015 - Put Offer in for Land and Accepted 20th July 2015 - Pay for Tender and Plans 10th August 2015 - Settled on Block of Land 29th August 2015 - Colour Selections Day and Final Plans Approved 25th September 2015 - Contracts Ready 7th October 2015 - Sign Contracts and Pay Deposit 16th October 2015 - Plans to Council 14th December 2015 - Plans Finally Approved (and yes no issues - slow council) 1st February 2016 - Building Insurance and Construction Certificate Issues 5th February 2016 - Bank Gives Final Approval for Construction to Start 9th February 2016 - Start Date Given - Delayed due to rain on delaying other jobs before mine 11th March 2016 - Site Scrap Done and Portaloo Delivered 14th March 2016 - Site Survey Done 23rd March 2016 - Plumbing and Power Box Installed 24th March 2016 - Form Work Begins 29th March 2016 - Sand and Form work finished 30th March 2016 - Slab Poured 5th April 2016 - All Excess Soil Spread Around 11th April 2016 - Retaining Wall Built 16th April 2016 - Construction Fencing Goes Up 18th April 2016 - Frames Delivered 20th April 2016 - Frame Put Up 27th April 2016 - Roof Frame Up 5th May 2016 - Guttering and Fascia Installed 9th May 2016 - Plumbing Rough In Done 10th May 2016 - Roof Tiles Arrive 12th May 2016 - Roofing Tiling Begins 16th May 2016 - Driveway Cut, Power Connected, Front Door and Lock Delivered 17th May 2016 - Roof Tiles Finished 20th May 2016 - Electricity Meter Installed - now have power onsite 23rd May 2016 - Windows Delivered 25th May 2016 - Windows Installed, front door installed and cavity sliders installed 26th May 2016 - Bath Installed 28th May 2016 - TV Antenna Installed 8th June 2016 - Bricks Delivered 9th June 2016 - Bricks started, termite barrier installed and external wall insulation installed 14th June 2016 - Rainwater tank delivered 16th June 2016 - Electrical Rough In Done 17th June 2016 - Bricks Finished 21st June 2016 - Downpipes and Rainwater Tank Installed 23rd June 2016 - Bricks washed down 30th June 2016 - Cabinet Makers do measurements 7th July 2016 - Eaves Done 11th July 2016 - Plastering Started 20th July 2016 - Eaves Painted 5th August 2016 - Plastering Finished 5th August 2016 - Waterproofing Done 8th August 2016 - Mudding Done for wet areas 10th August 2016 - Tiles Delivered 11th August 2016 - Cabinets Install Starting 16th August 2016 - Cabinets finished and Posts, Robes and Garage Painted 19th August 2016 - Garage Door Installed 22nd August 2016 - Doors, Frames, Trim Started 29th August 2016 - Driveway cut, Shelves Installed and Tiler Started 31st August 2016 - Driveway Recut, Doors, Trims and Frames Finished 1st September 2016 - Wet Areas Tiling Finished, Clothesline Installed and Internal Painted Started 8th Setpember 2016 - Driveway Poured 9th September 2016 - Internal Painting Finished, Fit Outs Delivered 12th September 2016 - Electrician Fit Out Started, Door Handles Started Install, Retaining Wall Being Finished, Insulation Being Finished Off in Ceiling 13th September 2016 - Plumbing Fit Out Done 14th September 2016 - Tiler started main floor and construction fencing comes down 19th September 2016 - Tiler Finished 21st September 2016 - Electrician finishes inside and does outside lighting, Carpet Installed 22nd September 2016 - Cleaners come in 23rd September 2016 - PCI done 26th September 2016 - Blinds, Flyscreens and site cleanup done 27th September 2016 - Mirrors Installed, Raintwater Tank Piping Repaired and Painter starts exterior 28th September 2016 - Electricians finish bollard light, alfresco fan and alfresco lights 28th September 2016 - 4pm Handover!!!! PCI due 16th September 2016 - delayed to 23rd September 2016 Handover 23rd September 2016 - delayed to 30th September 2016 Thanks, Shellby ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 2Oct 07, 2015 12:44 am So contract is all signed, now waiting for my unconditional approval and we go to council - so if everything works out correctly we should be starting construction end of next month *fingers crossed*. I have to say I loved the thread about things you forget etc and it really helped in the planning process, so recommend reading it. What I found though with our builder alot of it was standard with them so didn't cost any extra which was nice. Things like garage dropping down 15cm so giving extra height for higher cars, wet area slab work is recessed so tiles etc are done its the same level as the rest of the house and you don't have the gap to step up, higher ceilings to 2.55, LED downlights, straking (think I got that spelt right), insulation - roof and walls, key locks on windows, manhole in garage etc. So it was nice to see the builder also knows about some of this and just has it as standard. Changes we have made have been
Added a cavity door to activity room Moved wall of fridge out along with kitchen cabinets to 750mm so most fridges will not stick out past my wall and cabinets Added plumbing for future fridge Added gas point on alfresco Security sensors outside A/C junction box for future A/C Kitchen LED lighting wiring in place for future LED lights under overhead cupboards Changed all cupboard on bottom in kitchen to pot drawers Made the pantry into a small type of butler's pantry by adding a kitchen bench and then having shelves above and below Cavity door to ensuite for more room Sound proofing between bedrooms 3 and 4 - since 4 has a baby/toddler in it and other kids are in high school Ceiling fans including one on alfresco Made front posts and alfresco posts 190mmx190mm and also change cladding above the posts to timber to match Recessed sliding door tracks onto alfresco so no tripping on it Changed laundry tub to countertop and drop in sink Upgraded underlay for carpet Single sink in kitchen instead of double so more counter space I think that is most of the major things. I think all up our variations added about $8,000 to the original standard price - we could have easily done more but we did have a budget to stick to and tried to do things that wouldn't be easy to do later. So far I have found the GJ in Grafton to be great and very friendly. They always answered all my questions, happily responded to my emails - even at 9pm at night when I had a stupid question after reading something on this forum. I have never been told no to any changes I have wanted or where to put things - they really work with you and not just say 'suck it up'. Over the coming days I will post some of the choice we have made - the feature tiles I love - they just arrived at the tile store when we saw them and feel in love (and $1300 out of pocket for the extra cost). Shellby ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 3Oct 07, 2015 9:59 am Hi shellby I'm also building the bridgewater 203 but In The southern highlands. Our house looks nothing like the original plans, we have added a split and rearranged bedrooms, deleted activity room etc as we had a sloped block and tight budget. I look toward to following your build Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 4Oct 07, 2015 12:44 pm hi shelby helping a friend who is building with gj gardner in Coffs harbour they have been awesome just waiting on land titles and we are ready to go. building a very modifyed wide bay Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 5Oct 07, 2015 1:11 pm Nice to see someone else building a bridgewater I went a saw the display in Coffs - it was really nice. Are your friends building in the Shappire Beach estate area? I have to say, if I had the money I would have brought there in a heartbeat - it looks so beautiful. However I also grew up in Coffs, so do still feel homesick sometimes. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 7Oct 07, 2015 4:57 pm waiting on land titles for the elements estate in coffs. anytime now told in with council and lands office for titles. would love to see your tile choices. we have done all the color selections and in process with kitchen. the house will be spilt a couple of times with garage at top then minor bedrooms next level then kitchen alfresco and main bedroom on lower level with views out to mutton bird island mountains and city. whereabouts in grafton are you building. Sapphire estate is lovely and land sells so quickly there. Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 8Oct 08, 2015 9:34 am Here are our tile choices. For our feature tile in the bathroom, this will go on the wall of the bath tub and in the niches of both showers. We are the first here to choose this range, so can't wait to see it all done. Then we used the same but different colour as the splashback for kitchen and laundry. All the other tiles are fairly normal looking. This is the main flooring throughout the house - it is a 600x600mm. Then we choose its opposite for the bathrooms, toilet and laundry - in 300x300mm The wall tiles in the bathroom is just standard white tiles in 300x600mm size. I just can't wait to see the feature tile though. I like it because its one big tile, 300x600 size but made to look like a bunch of small tiles - so no major grout issues. I also like how it has like prints in it and the shading of the colours. So we did pay the extra for it - its about $1200 for that feature tile to be installed for us. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 9Oct 08, 2015 12:56 pm 1rocky - Just looked up that estate - Coffs is growing so fast. I remember that area before there was even a uni (my dad was the painter for the uni project) - now there is the uni, hospital, stadium and now a housing estate. It looks like once all done it will be a nice estate. We are building South side, one of the last lots of land in our estate. My inlaws were one of the first 12 years ago so we know the area. We already live over south, but now get to stop renovating and have a new house - oh I so can't wait - so sick of DIY after 8 years and so happy to let someone else do the work this time. I would love to build in Coffs, but the prices are just to high for us considering I brought my block for $85,000, flat, already scraped and retaining walls put in - it already had a approved DA but the couple broke up and I got the block for just $5,000 more than they paid for it 5 years ago - so sadly they lost out - but we won out. Otherwise our next choice was over Grafton side for $125,000 but that would mean downgrading the house to keep in budget - I only work part time as we have 3 boys. Kezham - In the estate I'm building in we have many split homes as one side is steep - I am always interested in how they redesign the houses to suit the block - I can't wait to see how yours comes out. I did forget another variation we did - we had all the shower heads raised and in turn needed the shower glass increased in height to match. We also upgraded the mirrors to higher. This is because my husband is 6'6 and my boys are also tall - the eldest 2 are 13 and 11 - so we wanted to make sure their bathroom also suited them. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 10Oct 08, 2015 2:19 pm great choice of tile and fantastic price for land. Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 11Oct 14, 2015 12:19 pm I hate this waiting for the bank's final approval - makes me nervous having to wait. Just sent them a email to see where it is out as the builder won't put in for approval with the council until we have unconditional from the bank - longer we wait the longer until our build starts...... ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 12Oct 14, 2015 1:48 pm Love love love your tile choices we are having bluestone hexagon tiles in our niches, similar to yours Such an awesome price for land. Wish they were that cheap down our way. Waiting for the bank is always such a drag. Hope you get your approval soon. Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 13Oct 14, 2015 10:55 pm Yay finally heard from the bank. Valuation came in higher than we are paying all up - so that is good. We just need to give them a couple extra pieces of paper and we should get our unconditional either tomorrow afternoon or Friday, then I'm running in with that first 5% so they can get that paperwork submitted. Kezham - The blue is also nice. There was another couple looking at that one who were just ahead of us in the building line but then decided to play safe and just do white splashback instead of it. I think it would have looked great - or they could have done what we did and chose 'snowflake' and kinda be safe but have something to go, that is different. However I bet your way though has more employment than ours - explains the cheapness of property here - we are lucky in secure employment but sadly there isn't alot of secure employment here. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 14Oct 15, 2015 10:04 pm Approval in, so will pay my deposit tomorrow and have everything go to council....now the waiting game. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 15Oct 16, 2015 10:39 pm Everything is in to council, currently they are taking 5 weeks. Fingers crossed it comes through quickly as I would love to see my slab before they knock off for Christmas for 20 days. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 16Oct 18, 2015 7:53 pm So this week we brought and installed a storm water pit riser, and this week we have our excess top soil going over from our current home where we levelled the backyard. Also planning out the small retaining wall we are building around the storm water drain at the back corner of our land so we can have it level with the rest of the block. Hope to do this next week so its then ready for when approval comes through and the builder takes over the block. Also went a mowed the block today - should be the last time before they start work...so exciting. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 17Oct 22, 2015 12:38 pm Had 10 loads of top soil dirt taken over to our land today from our current property after levelling the backyard here - found we have WATER Of course it also means my rates will now increase - but its a step in the right direction. ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 18Oct 28, 2015 11:12 pm Now we have decided we don't like the benchtops we have chosen for the bathrooms and laundry. Luckily we can still make changes - so tomorrow off to the cabinet maker to choose a new benchtops. Here I was thinking, yep happy with everything.... ~Shellby~ GJ Bridgewater 203 11/3/2016 - Site Work Started 29/9/2016 - Handover 142 Work Days 6 Work Days Over https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=80174 Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 19Oct 28, 2015 11:38 pm Exciting to see someone else bulging the gj Bridgewater! We are building the Bridgewater 186. Will be watching your build, good luck with it all. Re: Our First Build - GJ Gardener Bridgewater 20Nov 04, 2015 10:15 pm Like your tiles! Interestingly my current house is 60 years old and has those hexagon tiles on the bathroom floor (in nice sandy/earthy tones) ... I love how with fashions everything goes around and around nice floor plan too. Good luck 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… 0 946 Thanks NativeZen! 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