Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Jul 25, 2008 1:18 pm Hi,
I have read so many posts on this forum over the past few months, so thought it was about time I added my own! We are building the M3tricon Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens and had settlement on our land 45 minutes ago! So far, it has been so stressful! We have had bank issues, rubbish dumped on our block, part of our fence taken down, M3tricon not contacting us (only after we waited 6 weeks from paying the initial deposit and me leaving 15 or so messages did SOMEONE call me back!) We are booked in for final contract signing on the 19th August. I do have a few questions and any advice/assistance would be fantastic! Firstly, everyone keeps talking about having a budget for Studio 501. We are getting floor coverings already and a heap of extras through the recent promotion they had. What do you pay extra for at 501? What is the average amount spent? It is so hard to have a budget when we have no idea what we are looking at! Secondly, we are having the house financed and will be using the FHB grant as the deposit component. However, the bank won't release funds until Base stage, but M3tricon want 5% at Final Contract. Does anyone know of any ways around this? Thirdly, at what point after buying land do you organise insurance? Is it once building starts? Finally, in regards to water/power/rates etc, should we be changing that into our name immediately? I know you may think these are simple common sense things, but I am also organising our wedding and have just not had time to look into it! Any words of wisdom would be a godsend! Thanks Building M3tric0n Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 2Jul 25, 2008 2:04 pm Firstly welcome
Wow building a house and organizing a wedding!! - you will be wonder woman. There will be people on here who can answer your questions, I just wanted to welcome you. Oh and we love pics here - here is how. http://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?t=3466 Paula Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 3Jul 25, 2008 2:16 pm SarahandRyan Hi, I have read so many posts on this forum over the past few months, so thought it was about time I added my own! Hi Sarah welcome aboard, you will find bucket loads of good advice and friendly camraderie in here. Everyone looks out for each other here and you can be assured our main aim is keeping the dastardly builders in check!! We are building the M3tricon Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens and had settlement on our land 45 minutes ago! So far, it has been so stressful! We have had bank issues, rubbish dumped on our block, part of our fence taken down, M3tricon not contacting us (only after we waited 6 weeks from paying the initial deposit and me leaving 15 or so messages did SOMEONE call me back!) We are booked in for final contract signing on the 19th August. I do have a few questions and any advice/assistance would be fantastic! oh god that sounds like us minus the rubbish dumped on the block though have not been there for a few days so hopefully it is still clean. We also had last minute stuff ups with settlement, our prvious bank lost the title deed to our house and that is adocument required at settlement as we were re-finiancing to our current bank. Lots of last minute calls and in the end our bank agreed to settle pending the title being sorted out afterwards - unheard of normally so 10/10 to NAB. Firstly, everyone keeps talking about having a budget for Studio 501. We are getting floor coverings already and a heap of extras through the recent promotion they had. What do you pay extra for at 501? What is the average amount spent? It is so hard to have a budget when we have no idea what we are looking at! you will find Studio501 has a huge range of bits and pices, here in QLD it is quite limited, no home furtnishings, it is just the basics to make you selections of paints, roof tiles, colourbond, bathorrow yada yada. I believe that the one down your way has a huge range of stuff to help blow the budget! Expect to be thinking about out of spec roof tiles, floor tiles, carpets, splashback tiles, the amount of area to be tiled etc. Oh and electricals you can get carried away there. If you are going whole hog with M do all electircals and floors then get ready for a shock We are getting floor tiles and wet area tiling through M but carpets after handover. We are yet to do electrical plan so may just do min and upgrade after handover as it is much cheaper and I can get electrical gear at trade prices. really can not give a number to expect to spend, will depend on your tastes. e.g porcelain tiles will cost over 10k to do the newhaven. We are going for a ceramic with a nice gloss so it has the look of a pocelain - almost but is a 1/3 of the price. Porecelain cost more to lay too. Secondly, we are having the house financed and will be using the FHB grant as the deposit component. However, the bank won't release funds until Base stage, but M3tricon want 5% at Final Contract. Does anyone know of any ways around this? Well we meant to ask out bank the same question, we think that they will relase this to us but have to confirm. Who is your bank? If you have lots of equity or deposit to tip into it then banks are quite flexible but if you don't then dont expect anything. God Newhaven is some house for first home!! We lived in a friends garage for 2 years to save a deposit for our first home, which we are in now. Thirdly, at what point after buying land do you organise insurance? Is it once building starts? No idea??? Good point. what insurance exactly? Finally, in regards to water/power/rates etc, should we be changing that into our name immediately? umm not sure what you mean here, rates will go into your names at settlement as part of the transfer your solicitor does - talk to them. As for water it is covered under rates, power will be on the builder untill handover from my understanding. Talk to M about that. I know you may think these are simple common sense things, but I am also organising our wedding and have just not had time to look into it! Any words of wisdom would be a godsend! Thanks the only simple or dumb questions are the ones you don't ask. Happy to swap stories of your M expereince and options you chose to put in your house, you are futher down the road then us, we are still heading for PC1 and already require a PC2, FC is not untill mid oct. all the best cheers Peter & Sharon Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 4Jul 25, 2008 2:19 pm congrats on the upcoming wedding too! Wow new house and wedding, no wonder you are stressed out!
yes Paula loves to see pictures Sorry Paula no pics for you of late, still haglijng over options and trying to get PC right groan!!!! Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 5Jul 25, 2008 2:28 pm Wow - so quick to respond!
It is a big house for our first home - but we still live with our parents and don't have many expenses so its a great time to do it! There truly is just so much to think about, and yes, planning a wedding and house at once is just plain old stupid! But, come March 8, half the stress will be gone! Thanks for the great advice! Building M3tric0n Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 6Jul 25, 2008 2:39 pm SarahandRyan Wow - so quick to respond! It is a big house for our first home - but we still live with our parents and don't have many expenses so its a great time to do it! There truly is just so much to think about, and yes, planning a wedding and house at once is just plain old stupid! But, come March 8, half the stress will be gone! Thanks for the great advice! oh not getting rid of him already are you hehe Lets hope it isnt too hot for you. Ours was in Nov and weather was perfect. Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 7Jul 25, 2008 3:05 pm Quote: Thirdly, at what point after buying land do you organise insurance? Is it once building starts? hi sarah & ryan, your builder will cover insurance during construction, but once you get your certificate of occupancy you will need to take out house and contents insurance. please check with your builder when you need to take out insurance, it may not be until handover Jo Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 8Jul 25, 2008 3:32 pm what about insurance to cover yourself if any of their tradies injures them selves or a 3rd party who walks off the street or does builders insurance cover all of that?
Do they then indemnify the client untill handover? Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 9Jul 25, 2008 10:13 pm Hi SarahandRyan,
Welcome to the forum! Gosh, I agree with Paula. You must be a wonder woman to do two stressful things at the same time - preparing for a wedding and building a house. We're also building with M so I know the process quite well. To have an idea how much to budget for extras, why not visit Studio 501 one weekend so you know more or less what sort of upgrades you would be interested in. They have online facility to book a 501 visit. That's what we did. They will hand you a list of things that you would see there and you can jot down notes if you're interested When we went there, we saw the different colours/types of bricks, roof tiles, doors, windows, garage doors, cupboard doors, benchtops, etc. From there, you can ask your sales consultant how much are the upgrades and decide whether to go ahead or not. When you do your colour selection, that's the time to finalise your choices. It's very stressful and exciting, so a bit of research and budgetting would help you decide quite easily. Plus, there are people here who would help you out with your choices along the way. Good luck on your build! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Built the Nevada 42 Next project - landscaping! Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 10Jul 26, 2008 10:06 am SarahandRyan Hi, We are building the M3tricon Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens and had settlement on our land 45 minutes ago! So far, it has been so stressful! We have had bank issues, rubbish dumped on our block, part of our fence taken down, M3tricon not contacting us (only after we waited 6 weeks from paying the initial deposit and me leaving 15 or so messages did SOMEONE call me back!) We are booked in for final contract signing on the 19th August. I do have a few questions and any advice/assistance would be fantastic! At what point after buying land do you organise insurance? Is it once building starts? In regards to water/power/rates etc, should we be changing that into our name immediately? I know you may think these are simple common sense things, but I am also organising our wedding and have just not had time to look into it! Any words of wisdom would be a godsend! Thanks Congrats on the settlement of your land and welcome aboard. Some builders can be so anoying especially when they don't return you phone, I think a pet gripe of everyones here. But you need to keep at them and if they don't return your phone keep ringing and fill their voice mail and don't forget that for every phone meesage you leave, send an email. Re your insurance, you don't need any as already stated until your letter of occupancy at which time you will need to cover (contents) everything as if it is already in the house even if it is not. And obviuosly house coverage as well, Just make sure the building coverage you get will cover at least what you have already just paid for it to be built plus 12 mths rent. Because you may not have anywhere to live if it would become a rebuild. Re your water power rates, council will fined you for the rates, don't worry about that and for the water power, the builders will change it all into your name the minute they have finished the construction at move in time... Organising a wedding while doing the build, I know how that feels, I am doing (trying to do) the same. Gav & Vanessa Building In Melbourne (Sth East Suburbs) http://www.arkraider.blogspot.com/ Rawdon Hill Construction - Canterbury Heritage Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 11Nov 28, 2008 12:18 pm Well, finally after all this time, Metricon started on site today! Well, at least they were supposed to!!
We ahev had drama upon drama with the finance, the house valuation came in at $50k less than the build cost - not happy! But, our new CSR and Site Manager seem fantastic, so hopefully it will be smooth sailing from here. With 14 weeks until our wedding, and approx 22 until the house is done, we are hoping for a speedy build and to have it finished early. Wishful thinking I know, but a girls gotta dream! Will post pics soon.. hopefully not just vacant land now! Building M3tric0n Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 12Nov 28, 2008 12:25 pm woo hoo! lets hope they have started
14 weeks til the wedding? we're getting married in feb, so we have about 10 weeks to go! and hopefully 8 weeks for the house to be done! hehehe good luck with the build, and the wedding i know how stressful both can be! Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 13Nov 28, 2008 2:57 pm Hey Sarah, I think almost everyone around here has had similar problems with M3tricon! Some have given up in disgust and moved on (yay for them!), others (like you and me) have persisted.
Our site start was today as well. Perhaps we can have a race? I reckon you'll win though, 22 weeks is a very short time for a house to be built! Our is supposed to take 38. Good luck! --Mike Everything I know, I learned from SBS. LATEST: Frame Complete http://metricon-mercer.livejournal.com Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 14Nov 28, 2008 3:57 pm Let the race begin! What house are you building? We are building the Newhaven 33, and have only made a few changes. I wish they didn't start on a Friday - one days work then the weekend - such a tease! Building M3tric0n Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 15Nov 29, 2008 2:50 pm We're building the Mercer 35. Not too many changes--extended the outdoor room and the garage and reorganised the ensuite, but otherwise it looks pretty much like it does on paper.
We haven't gone out yet to see how far they've got--plus it was raining a bit down here yesterday (although I don't see how that should stop them from starting the excavation stage of the build). --Mike Everything I know, I learned from SBS. LATEST: Frame Complete http://metricon-mercer.livejournal.com Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 16Dec 01, 2008 8:10 am We have a hole!!! And a portable toilet - apart from that, thats about it. Still very exciting though!
Yes, you would think rain would not cause a delay, but with builders, who knows!! Building M3tric0n Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 17Dec 01, 2008 11:07 am Awesome news. We were going to head out on Sunday morning but never made it. We'll be heading over to our place tomorrow night instead.
--Mike Everything I know, I learned from SBS. LATEST: Frame Complete http://metricon-mercer.livejournal.com Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 18Dec 01, 2008 12:05 pm Good luck heading out there - take photos too - it changes sooo quickly!! I think I took about 10 - ok, they are all of the same hole, but I had to make sure I got the 'right' shot!! Building M3tric0n Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 19Dec 19, 2008 3:08 pm Hi Sarah,
Just came across you post and thought I would let you know my wife Sarah and I are about to start building the New Haven 36 in Lyndarum, Epping. I have a separate blog that you can watch the progress at. http://www.theatwills.com/housebuild_blog.html We are both very interested to see how quickly it goes up. Our Sales guy (Marty) was great. He was an ex builder and really explained the whole process and what to expect. Gave us lots of advice on what to and not to do. We had a really bad customer service manager but thank god she quite and the new one (Mendo) has gone out of her way to correct all the poor service received early on. We were lucky that we new someone higher up the food chain at m3tricon who blasted our first consultant. Please make sure you post some photos here or start a blog. Would really like to watch the build progress. Which facard did you choose from? We went the Plantation. Re: Building with M3tricon - Land settled today 20Dec 19, 2008 3:16 pm Hi jaxTux,
We had Marty too - he is fantastic - such a shame the rest of the staff aren't like him! We went with the Traditional facade, but were given standard brick to choose from. After looking at about 10 houses with this brick we decided on one of the Austral, then find out at Studio 501 that the 'standard' options have changed, and it has now cost us $2500!! Our site mgr phoned yesterday to say that the slab is complete, and the frame gets started on the 7th Jan. Bricks should be started week beginning the 19th Jan. Its such an exciting process, but we only have 11 weeks until our wedding and they will only give us a maximum time for the build. We really want to know a more realistic timeframe!! Oh well, I guess we will just have to wait! I will try and post photos soon - I have taken enough of them!! Building M3tric0n Newhaven in Sovereign Gardens I don't think you're getting a response because you are not quite clear on what the issue is. yep, the site is not level, no site is! but are you just building a garage?… 1 2265 Yeah I don't know why I came to a forum. Place is full of wierdos/pedos thought internet may help but I suppose I'll try my luck with someone in person. Cheers. I tried… 0 6445 Need advice on the backyard plan above. Should I excavate and cut all of the dirt to level with the house slab or semi-excavate as per photo above? Both left and right… 0 24872 |