Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Aug 07, 2008 9:24 pm HI all!
My husband and I are looking around for a builder in Adelaide. Just wondering if anyone has any good advice or tips about who is a decent builder here in SA (who is reasonably priced). We have had a few quotes and it's all very confusing as to what is included and what isn't. If anyone has any tips for a first timer I'd be most grateful! Thanks Mel Re: at planning stage - Adelaide SA 2Aug 07, 2008 9:37 pm meltuz1 HI all! My husband and I are looking around for a builder in Adelaide. Just wondering if anyone has any good advice or tips about who is a decent builder here in SA (who is reasonably priced). We have had a few quotes and it's all very confusing as to what is included and what isn't. If anyone has any tips for a first timer I'd be most grateful! Thanks Mel Hi Mel Welcome to the forum. What is reasonably priced? I ask because it is important to know what your budget is before you select a builder. Are you looking at building a single or dble story. Do you want it to be built from brick, light weight masonry e.g. hebel, or cement sheeting. Are you keen on eco friendly homes or happy to go with the project builders. Where are you building and what inclusions would you like in the home. Sky is the limit but I'm happy to help if you can give some more information. Re: at planning stage - Adelaide SA 3Aug 07, 2008 9:53 pm we would like a four bedroom home with a study (no second lounge room and no formal dining). The homes we are looking at are around 227square mtrs (not including garage and alfresco).
We like the idea of building with steel but are not totally opposed to building with timber. It would be great if we could have a fully finished home with all flooring, carpets, blinds etc for less than $280K Our block is 18.1 wide and 38 long so we would like a single story. We are looking at project builders but we are open to suggestions. We were told to check out N.E.X.T - not sure if you have heard of them? I guess we are looking at brick. We are also interested in double glazing (which we have had a few quotes back and they are not too bad) hmm I forget what else you asked me.. thanks for getting back so quickly! Re: at planning stage - Adelaide SA 4Aug 08, 2008 12:54 am meltuz1 The homes we are looking at are around 227square mtrs (not including garage and alfresco). We like the idea of building with steel but are not totally opposed to building with timber. It would be great if we could have a fully finished home with all flooring, carpets, blinds etc for less than $280K Our block is 18.1 wide and 38 long so we would like a single story. We are looking at project builders but we are open to suggestions. We were told to check out N.E.X.T - not sure if you have heard of them? I guess we are looking at brick. We are also interested in double glazing (which we have had a few quotes back and they are not too bad) hmm I forget what else you asked me.. thanks for getting back so quickly! Double glazing is not a major requirement for the Adelaide plains ... unless you are particularly sensitive to the cold I wouldn't bother to be frank. I haven't heard of NEXT so I couldn't comment. I'd break down the costs and see what you have left for the build itself i.e. 40K for landscaping, carpets, flooring, paving, driveway, fencing, curtains, lights etc is realistic depending on your taste! That leaves you with about 240K for the build itself (which includes upgrades to the specs if you control yourselves ). We built 2 storey so I'm not aware of the costs for single storey but it seems feasible for a builder like Rossdale, Henley, Longridge perhaps. Some project builders we considered were Rivergum & Ian Wood and boutique builders like Serenity. Look around and try and find a floor plan you like and then see what you get for your money. The cheapest is not necessarily the best as they will pile on the costs for upgrades to the spec. We chose a builder who appeared honest enough to give us the bottom line costs for footings etc and made sure we had a fixed price contract for almost everything. Steel or timber ... makes little difference in the end in terms of cost ... some builders prefer to use steel others timber. The size of your block is to your advantage as you could fit lots of project homes on the site. Good luck. Happy to answer any other questions you might have and make sure you have a back up plan in case you spend more . If I break down our extra costs it would come out something like this: landscaping incl. decking 12K fencing 2K floors (tile or wood) 13K carpet 5K lighting 2K driveway & crossover 4K perimeter paving 4K stormwater 2K Others might be able to comment on these costs ... it's pretty accurate for our circumstances. And then you have your decorating . Re: at planning stage - Adelaide SA 5Aug 08, 2008 12:41 pm You talked about storm water... the builder we are getting a quote from at the moment said they did not do the storm water if they didn't do the paving..
is this a common thing..?? I would have thought storm water would have at least been included! Thanks for the ideas.. you've given me some more builders to consider.. and ones i haven't even heard of. Re: at planning stage - Adelaide SA 6Aug 08, 2008 4:07 pm meltuz1 You talked about storm water... the builder we are getting a quote from at the moment said they did not do the storm water if they didn't do the paving.. is this a common thing..?? I would have thought storm water would have at least been included!. Stormwater was an optional item with our builder but we chose to get our paver to do the stormwater. Same cost for both. Re: at planning stage - Adelaide SA 7Aug 09, 2008 8:44 pm DeeElle,
Beware of the standard footings included clause. Some people in the know have told me that some in the industry are "a bit *******" on this item (some being more "standard" than others). ChrisL Re: at planning stage - Adelaide SA 8Aug 10, 2008 1:51 am ChrisL DeeElle, Beware of the standard footings included clause. Some people in the know have told me that some in the industry are "a bit *******" on this item (some being more "standard" than others). ChrisL HI ChrisL A fixed price contract on the footings means that if there are any surprises then it is on the builder. But yes, builders can escalate the fixed price to more than cover the slab if they know what it will cost. In our development, where there is a controlled fill the builders know what type of slab is required. No surprises there. But some builders are charging more than others for the fixed price. Ours was pretty honest which was why we went with him. Give Jonathan a call. Tell him you know me. He is in my opinion the best surveyor I have ever worked with. His number is 0425 285 622 All the best Simeon 3 12372 I am not based in Victoria however i had a quick look into your question to understand what you were asking. The way I read the regulations, overshadowing relates to the… 1 2218 "is it exempt or do I need to get permission from council" Call your Council and ask them 1 1538 |