Browse Forums Building A New House Re: Simonds Homes problems 4Sep 17, 2008 12:07 am hi mg. what stage are you on.?
we were supposed to build with simonds. but because of delays and no customer service, we backed out. we complained to our cso and then to her manager but nothing happened. when we finally cancelled, the area manager called us. trying to convince us back. too late... anyway, i think if you can request for a change of cso that would help. i hear there are some good cso's that provide better service. good luck \/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/ Re: Simonds Homes problems 5Sep 17, 2008 9:24 am Hi,
We built our home with Simonds. It was completed late last year and all I can say is the customer service was horrendous!!!!. I was frustrated out of my mind with them. They never returned calls or responded to emails and when on the odd occasion they would finally respond, they were rude and abrupt. I spent the whole year prior to building .. (yes thats how long it took to start ).... regretting having gone with them. However, I have to admit that the actual building once started ,went very smoothly and pretty quickly. Our site supervisor was great and we are happy in our house. I honestly dont think I could ever go through that experience again though. Spoilt princess Re: Simonds Homes problems 6Sep 17, 2008 9:36 am Hi,
Forgot to mention that we escalated our concerns to the appropriate managers and had a couple of meetings at their offices in Sth Melb but it really did nothing .... bottom line is they just dont care! Spoilt princess Re: Simonds Homes problems 8Sep 17, 2008 12:56 pm So is the house finished yet? You say you are about to be homeless but also say you built last year.
Has it taken this long to build and still not finished? Just not clear on what the argument is over. Dale. Re: Simonds Homes problems 9Sep 23, 2008 2:08 pm It's not really an argument with Simonds. I guess I'm just really frustrated over the whole situation and the delay.....my house is not yet complete and we have now passed the contracted date.
All I can say to new home builders is to make sure the builder's compensation for late handover (in the contract) is at least $1000 pw. If they won't do it, then walk. Learn from our mistake... The quality of their work is not an issue (Our current site supervisor is strict with his standards), it's just the co-ordination of the process that has been poor. The problems they seem to have had with retaining staff early this year have now become my problem. We signed on with them June 2007. Site start was end of November 2007 - slab poured Christmas eve, frame complete late february, brickwork completed in may. Too much lost time early on. We have had 5 CSO's and 6 site supervisors - no real continuity in their service. Currently they are trying their best to finish as soon as possible, but it should not have come to this. It is now just frustrating, as we are paying 90% of the mortgage and they cannot confidently advise when the house will be complete. They don't seem to have enough control over their tradesmen - I'm sure this is a common issue. My frustration stems from the added costs involved for me now. My family and I are in temporary accomodation until the house is complete (due to our rental lease expiring), I have flooring, carpet, driveway, blinds etc that we have arranged but keep delaying until after handover, my annual leave has been wasted (i was going to start the garden myself), i have furniture in storage and will have to wear the costs and stress of moving twice. Re: Simonds Homes problems 10Sep 23, 2008 2:36 pm mg It's not really an argument with Simonds. I guess I'm just really frustrated over the whole situation and the delay.....my house is not yet complete and we have now passed the contracted date. All I can say to new home builders is to make sure the builder's compensation for late handover (in the contract) is at least $1000 pw. If they won't do it, then walk. Learn from our mistake... The quality of their work is not an issue (Our current site supervisor is strict with his standards), it's just the co-ordination of the process that has been poor. The problems they seem to have had with retaining staff early this year have now become my problem. We signed on with them June 2007. Site start was end of November 2007 - slab poured Christmas eve, frame complete late february, brickwork completed in may. Too much lost time early on. We have had 5 CSO's and 6 site supervisors - no real continuity in their service. Currently they are trying their best to finish as soon as possible, but it should not have come to this. It is now just frustrating, as we are paying 90% of the mortgage and they cannot confidently advise when the house will be complete. They don't seem to have enough control over their tradesmen - I'm sure this is a common issue. My frustration stems from the added costs involved for me now. My family and I are in temporary accomodation until the house is complete (due to our rental lease expiring), I have flooring, carpet, driveway, blinds etc that we have arranged but keep delaying until after handover, my annual leave has been wasted (i was going to start the garden myself), i have furniture in storage and will have to wear the costs and stress of moving twice. Holy Cow mg I feel for ya pal, I told my builder straight from the bat 'don't spit on my back and tell me its raining' because that sh!t wont stick. I truly hope that you get into your new house soon, its saddens me to hear that a family can be put through this. Re: Simonds Homes problems 11Sep 23, 2008 6:06 pm Really sorry to hear about the problems you're having, mg....unfortunately, I think they're all pretty much as bad as each other. We 've had similar issues - signed with PD June '07, ready to go mid Jan this yr, they delayed us until mid March, we've had 2 CSRs and 4 SSs, we're way behind, doubtful we can finish within contract period, and things get started, but then just left sitting for weeks...and weks...and weeks, 3/4 finished! No one ever seems to be there!
So, I feel your pain! We are renting atm, and not sure that the lease can be extended. If we run into Christmas, there's a whole month of nothing happening over Christmas/New Year, and even longer to wait....Our eldest starts secondary school at the end of Jan, and I desperately want to be in and settled by the time he starts!!! Sorry to rant on, but I really wanted to say that , unfortunately, I think they ARE all the same....frustrating isn't it???!!! Hope they can finish for you ASAP! Solidarity, not solidity.......The Lexicon of Life Re: Simonds Homes problems 12Sep 23, 2008 6:49 pm OMG... now i'm getting worried with our handover date.
Penalty rate is $250/week only... not big enough for them to force themselves to finish the house on time. mg, the consolation is, your house is of good quality, but definitely you should be get more compensation due to too much inconvenience you're suffering. how much do they pay you per week? petal, how long is your building time? i remember PD bragging that they finish double-storey houses within 7 months.. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Built the Nevada 42 Next project - landscaping! Re: Simonds Homes problems 13Sep 23, 2008 7:53 pm Bloody hell!! Really feel for you. I hope that doesnt happen to us as we are trying to co-ordinate the sale of our house to suit the completion date. Moving twice doesn't hold much appeal for me either. Re: Simonds Homes problems 14Sep 24, 2008 12:53 pm VJ petal, how long is your building time? i remember PD bragging that they finish double-storey houses within 7 months.. Well they won't be finishing mine in 7 months, THAT'S for sure!!! We are 6 and a half months in, and they haven't even started the fixing the cornice isn't finished, even the cabinetry is not all done - about 15 handles one of the basins, and the HT built in top missing! So , absolutely NO hope of finishing in 7 months!!!!!!!!!!!! Our cantract date is Nov 20, so about 8 & 1/2 mths....but they'll really be struggling to meet that We're the same, too - $250 per week they go over - which doesn't even cover the rent - plus, it would be SOOO inconvenient, as there are all the othe things you need to do before you actually move in, and the closer you get to Christmas the less likely you're able to get those things done.....oh, I'm getting stresssed and depressed just thinking about it!!!!!! Solidarity, not solidity.......The Lexicon of Life Re: Simonds Homes problems 16Sep 29, 2008 1:50 pm I've just read this post on Simonds and my heart sunk. We handed over the initial deposit and signed up to build with them 5 months ago. I was notified the other day that we can start building in 4-6 weeks and we havent even been to the gallery or anything as yet. Am I stressing out over nothing or is this normal for them? Also my rep NEVER returns calls or emails which doesn't help the stress levels. Any ideas how to deal with this situation? Re: Simonds Homes problems 17Sep 29, 2008 2:20 pm lyndaurch3201 I've just read this post on Simonds and my heart sunk. We handed over the initial deposit and signed up to build with them 5 months ago. I was notified the other day that we can start building in 4-6 weeks and we havent even been to the gallery or anything as yet. Am I stressing out over nothing or is this normal for them? Also my rep NEVER returns calls or emails which doesn't help the stress levels. Any ideas how to deal with this situation? Yes you are stressing to much, if you haven't selected your external colors yet, then dont threat there is still awhile to go before your hair starts to fall out. Volume builders have a huge back log, they haven't forgotten about you, they are just taking there sweet time. It took me 7 months just to get my drawings correct With my builder I dont even goto into internal color choice till way into the build, and I dont even choose my kitchen till the cabinet maker meets me Re: Simonds Homes problems 18Sep 29, 2008 2:28 pm Thanks heaps snake. I'm all new to building a house and even owning one as this will be our first and I guess I just want it to be perfect! I suppose the fact that nothing has been done and we can start building in 4-6 weeks just freaked me out! Re: Simonds Homes problems 19Sep 29, 2008 2:35 pm lyndaurch3201 Thanks heaps snake. I'm all new to building a house and even owning one as this will be our first and I guess I just want it to be perfect! I suppose the fact that nothing has been done and we can start building in 4-6 weeks just freaked me out! For piece of mind maybe call your reps boss, head office, visit a display village that Simmons have and ask them what todo, it can't hurt and maybe the stress levels may come down . Best of luck. Re: Simonds Homes problems 20Sep 29, 2008 2:37 pm lyndaurch3201 Thanks heaps snake. I'm all new to building a house and even owning one as this will be our first and I guess I just want it to be perfect! I suppose the fact that nothing has been done and we can start building in 4-6 weeks just freaked me out! we are very interested in a floor plan from Simonds, but the problems that others have had really frighten us - depays, lack of communication etc etc, but all the volume builders seem to be the same. anyone has any experience of the quality of simonds homes? is 7 year structural warranty a norm? (i am abosolutely new to building a house) any comments would be much appreciated nh I am not a brick expert, but rendering would be 1 option, it would be costly to do the entire house though.... 2 6802 Hi all, has anyone been ask to do the weeds in their property while in the middle of build? We are under the impression that they are in control of the site while they… 0 3663 Have had a few issues with out recently done bathroom floor. Probably around 18 months old First there has been been a crack running through a grout line which I put… 0 2615 |