Building first home - adelaide

Hey everyone!

We are looking into building our first home and wanted to reach out and get some experiences and advice!

Currently we are meeting with sterling homes and really like them.

We do have some concerns...
1. The "turn key" packages, are these basically everything done EXCEPT landscaping?

2. Is all building materials, rubbish etc removed from the property before we move in? (My fiancé is concerned we will be left with an expensive mess)

3. Are there any hidden extras etc we should be aware of? We are going for a fixed price option but want to make sure everything is clear and there are no surprises!!

I am pretty nervous, this is our first home and we have scrimped and saved to get here and I am so worried it will go wrong!!

Any advice would be amazing!

Hi, I am currently nearing completion Sterling, haven't had really any issues, a bit of a Variation with the footings, however wasn't to bad, just have to be aware their build time is probably more than other builders, so you just have to be patient, however I have had no issues at all, I should hopefully be having handover in about 4-5 weeks.

Thank you!!
Are you building in SA?

What are your plans for landscaping? My parents are both retiring next month and have offered to do the landscaping for us - they are keen gardeners!

Yeah I am, Its gone really well, so far has been a great process.
Landscaping i'll just do myself, no issues with that.

Hi there,

1. Turn-key packages are supposed to mean a property that someone can purchase and immediately use. Having said that, there are a lot of builders who advertise turn-key that is not truly turn-key. Most of the time there will be things you will need to do.

The home I am currently building is about 90% turn-key. The home will be built and I could move in after it is complete but there are several things missing that I will need to do myself because the builder simply doesn't do it (or will charge an arm and a leg for). Here are a few things to consider:

• Rainwater tank & water pump install
• Curtains/Blinds
• TV antenna
• Letter box
• Landscaping
• Data cabling (Ethernet, addition tv antennas)
• Electrical (We got the builder to install light points and we will be getting our own sparky in to change them over to downlights, install pendant lighting, ceiling fans etc. Builder wanted $135 per downlight point)

2. Soil removal is usually quoted on the contract as an allowance. Our allowance as $1,000 and when we went to the final builders interview it was revised to $4,000. Most builders will get a skip bin placed on site for rubbish removal.

3. Yes there could be hidden extras. The Sales Consultant will provide you with a quote make sure you check it properly. If the quote indicates an allowance for tiling for the whole house at an unrealistic price then this will be revised later on. Make sure you check the quote, for example evaporative cooling is not the same a ducted air-conditioning system. Some builders offer you evaproative cooling and it kind of looks like ducted air conditioning but it isn't (and would be an upgrade to go to ducted air.