Hi all
Wanted to get some feedback on your thoughts about going for an owner build VS signing with an established builder like Clarendon, Eden Brae or Wisdom
First time building a house and bit confused on way ahead. The general feedback that I have so far is that going owner build will:
- Save money.....considerable amount.....approx 100K if planning to give 600K to an established builder for a similar build
- I can custom design the house plan
- Choose where end finishing etc of my choice
BUT
- Have headache of finding a good architect
- The headache of finding tradies
- Spend time managing the build
I am a Project Manager by trade so don't mind the managing side that much but finding good trustworthy architects and tradies will be a bother
THOUGHTS!!
That's the problem who to trust ?
hint..Engineers offer Data, Simulations & Proofs and are amongst the
Most trusted Professions 2017 Architects & Builders are not even listed? .. go figure
Those savings are more based on knowing all the trades so you get mates rates. Also easier organising. The other side to that is getting them to site as they are working for cheaper so their motivation may be less and they will always prioritise their work towards their aligned builder/s. If you’re engaging an architect then expect a fair chunk of your savings to go towards their fee. You can definitely save money and have much greater freedom in selections, but it takes a lot of work, research and time.
Those savings are more based on knowing all the trades so you get mates rates.
So if I dont know the tradies......which I dont really, better off going to a proper builder
In case you are availing bank finance, how do you propose to pay the tradies for work done? The bank will only release "stage" payments.
How much an architect cost to design a 2 story house approx??
How much an architect cost to design a 2 story house approx??
Working on a $600k house about $60-$90k for an architect (10-15% of build cost), or you could get a draftsmen/designer for 10-20k.
Working on a $600k house about $60-$90k for an architect (10-15% of build cost), or you could get a draftsmen/designer for 10-20k.
What is the difference between the two
I'd be very surprised if owner/builder doesn't result in the project taking twice as long to be at the stage you can move in (and maybe 5x as long until full completion). My experience with
other people's DIY builds has been that they get to the stage it can be lived in (eg. the carpet won't be installed) and they move in ... and the remaining stuff then takes
forever.
As for custom design, that's very true, but if it's certain functionality (rather than purely form) you're after then you can get pretty close by taking a project builder's design & getting them to modify it. OK it's been 5 years since we started getting serious about building, but at that stage the majority of builders were happy to make pretty large mods to their designs (and without it costing significantly or disproportionately more).
How much an architect cost to design a 2 story house approx??
Working on a $600k house about $60-$90k for an architect (10-15% of build cost), or you could get a draftsmen/designer for 10-20k.
Who ever you choose make sure you get a complete BIM 3D Service (Design, Engineering & Construction Quantities & Costs
Software like Sketchup, Revit, Vectorworks,etc can all do the 3D Modelling, you will need an engineer tho to Certify and approve the engineering part. Shop around you should be able to get a complete AEC Bim Service for around 5% of the contract price
Consider then Linking to google apps (sheets,forms,data, etc ) before you Build
There are sheets/Data up on google but you'll need access. hth
Get builder to do to lock up stage, then you complete the rest with you finishing trades