Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Oct 24, 2017 6:33 pm I am writing today to seek your suggestion for the experience I am having with the builder. I bought this house and land package from Hamilton Property Group (HPG) for 427K. Out of which we paid 200K for settling the land a few weeks back. When I signed the contract they told me I need not pay anything extra beyond this amount. It includes all the estate and council charges. The building work has been given by HPG to Builder named Snowdon.com.au Lately, Snowdon has been sending me variations for approval and asking for money. My understanding was that HPG told me it is all included and is a fixed price work. But I wanted to check with you if this is normal from your previous experience. Variations sent by them so far are: 1) Asking $1500 for adding recycled water tap at front and rear. Washing machine tap. How can they miss tap ? 2) Returning $2600 for Bush Fire Levy. They charged $3500 in the contract and I was told it will be returned if Bush Fire Levy does not apply to land. They did not return the full money but only $2600. Is this normal way? 3) Asking for approval $575 for filing council permit I read on Consumer Victoria website it says Variation "Your client should not have to pay when variations are ordered to deal with issues that you should have identified before starting work." I expect they should be aware of things they need to do for building the house at the time of contract. Do you think this Builder acting as per law? I will appreciate if you can suggest me something. OR it is normal for builders to charge extra like this. Thanks for your time. Re: Questions for variations and costs first home buyer 2Oct 25, 2017 9:05 am It is impossible to give you a meaning answer without your contract review. For example, it will state in your contract who pays for the building permit. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Any advice on a builder in NSW who is demanding an extra 22000k after the house is completed and contract paid in full .Standard HIA contract. Never received a variation.… 0 20523 Not much in this responce. My suggestion is, what are you looking to build and why. This will all be impacted by the local councils planning scheme. Familiarise yourself… 6 5867 It seems very clear to me that your contract states that a security account does NOT need to be established so the answer to the builder is NO. If in doubt find a contract… 1 8510 |