Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Feb 09, 2017 7:41 am Hi all, Im new to this site and looking for some advise and help. Here is a brief overview. 1) We received our sales quote in May 2016. We were given advise by the sales team about which land lot we should buy to fit our budget 2) along the ways the plans and specs kept changing based on council requirements and additional things for the land (that we werent to know.....) 3) We were told to sign building contracts and not make changes to them till after by McDonald Jones and we still had things we werent comfortable or happy about 4) Our pre-approval for finance was based on our original sales quote, when we went back they said we had to provide a signed contract to change what we were applying for (as it had gone up 40k) 5) After contracts were signed we were advised that we needed 2 more retaining walls to get through council and the quotes we got were between 30 and 50k....so we had to add that to our finance request as well. 6) We were declined finance based on the valuation because of all the new additional site works that didnt actually add value to the property. 7) McDonald Jones said they could just batter around the house (for every 1 metre out it would go up 1metre in height) meaning we would have all around the rear of our house a 2 metre batter from the house to 2 metres out, which also means we cant get OCC till we still retain and/or we have a block that floods our house every single time it rains. We are now in negotiations about a 'mutual termination' as its not what we originally entered into with them and are getting quite a lot of grief from there. They are telling us for a mutual termination we need to pay them 30k in fees and lost profits, if we dont agree to it they will put us in as breaching contract and go for the full 70k in charges and lots profit. I dont know what to do. Im heart broken because the dream we were sold into at the start is not where we are at now. We were told by the sales guy what house was the best and what lot to buy to best fit our budget and he gave us what his thoughts were on how much extra we would need for site costs and additionals (flooring, retaining walls etc). We were told $500k max for our turn key build and its not at $585k and there is still a likely hood based on their contracts of another up to 30k of costs. We havent even lodged to council so nothing has been put in or even started on site. We cant go forward with finance as its way above our budget. McDonald Jones are pressuring us to go through their internal finance department so they can proceed even though we have told them its not in our budget. I feel like its either build and go broke or breach contract and go broke. Has anyone else had these type of issues. Can anyone give me any advise? Thanks Re: Building Contract Issues 2Feb 09, 2017 10:22 am I honestly don't know what to tell you but I think that you need to get some advice from a property lawyer. I know that will cost money but it may save you a lot in the long run. The involvement of a solicitor may scare them - at the moment they think they have the upper hand. It could take a simple meeting and then the solicitor writing a letter to the builder to get them to make a better offer. Good luck, I feel sorry for you and your situation. My blog: tashandpaul.wordpress.com Re: Building Contract Issues 3Feb 09, 2017 10:33 am Ouch - that's not a good situation to be in. At face value, though, it sounds like McDonald Jones might be trying to claim excessive termination costs - these should generally be limited to reasonable losses incurred, not as penalties. Have you spoken to a solicitor at any stage, either now or at contract signing? Re: Building Contract Issues 4Feb 09, 2017 10:34 am TashPaul I honestly don't know what to tell you but I think that you need to get some advice from a property lawyer. I know that will cost money but it may save you a lot in the long run. The involvement of a solicitor may scare them - at the moment they think they have the upper hand. It could take a simple meeting and then the solicitor writing a letter to the builder to get them to make a better offer. Good luck, I feel sorry for you and your situation. Agreed - I suspect they're trying to scare/pressure you into going ahead with them. If you haven't already had a solicitor review your contract, please do so now. It will save you a lot of stress and money. 12 5334 You talk about deletions, are they variations or PS and PC adjustments? pleas list them 1 16569 Industry type domestic contracts are prepared by industry bodies for the benefit of the builders. This means that if you are the owner watch out. One of the points is… 0 3235 |