Better Built Homes

notknown · Jul 01, 2020 6:25 pm

Hi all

Just a question for anyone who is building with better built homes (or anyone else who had the same concerns)

We acquired the land ourselves and we’ve gone to get a quote for the house price. We were given the house price and we are really happy with the design etc.

My husband decided to go onto realestate.com.au and saw house and land packages at the same development but not with Better built homes, similar land size and house size and was considerably cheaper.

Some of these packages included extras that we don’t even have such as landscaping and fencing!

Should I be worried? Will the banks when we go for our approval have an issue with this?

We know Better Built has very good inclusions but I have heard they are a bit pricey!

EnthusiastNewbie · Jul 05, 2020 9:05 am

Hi. We’re also looking at BBH. So far the admin side of things has been fine, but we’re finding them a bit evasive with pricing. That they don’t have a price list like other builders make it very hard to compare and concerning.

GrahamB · Jul 05, 2020 2:11 pm

EnthusiastNewbie

Hi. We’re also looking at BBH. So far the admin side of things has been fine, but we’re finding them a bit evasive with pricing. That they don’t have a price list like other builders make it very hard to compare and concerning.

I wouldn't worry too much, other builders price lists are that full of terms and conditions and never include everything that they could basically be thrown away, the official tender is where you need to be careful. As long as you know costs and inclusions PRIOR to signing a contract you need to go with who you feel comfortable with. if they build 5 or 500 a year they all build basically the same way, just different materials and different admin/pre construction processes

gogo65 · Jul 05, 2020 6:03 pm

Ive been following a build on instagram, with someone who is building with Bettabuilt, and they’ve had a very stress free build, cant help with pricing but maybe in this instance it is your get what you pay for’

EnthusiastNewbie · Jul 05, 2020 10:17 pm

gogo65

Ive been following a build on instagram, with someone who is building with Bettabuilt, and they’ve had a very stress free build, cant help with pricing but maybe in this instance it is your get what you pay for’

Thanks gogo65. Can you provide a link to the instragram story in question? Much appreciated.

EnthusiastNewbie · Jul 05, 2020 10:25 pm

The other thing that concerns me about BBH is that their reviews are TOO good and TOO little. They’ve been around over 10 years and yet only have 102 reviews on Product Review? I checked out their Facebook page about a month ago and saw a very negative review. I’ve checked today and the post is gone leaving nothing but positive reviews. It feels fishy and not consistent with those of other builders of the same scale.

Norfolk · Jul 06, 2020 7:57 am

Agree, Better Built Homes reviews all look like fiction to me, fluffy prose based on templates and cunningly treaked to look a bit ‘balanced’. if this is an indication of their business ethics, then I recommend avoiding them. Give them a fair opportunity to validate their online reviews though. I suggest asking them for the contact details of at least 5 recent clients (with the clients' prior permissions of course) that you can selectively speak with directly about their BBH build experiences. Genuine people would be happy to help others with some details of their experience. If they can’t or won’t provide this transparency then thank them politely and find a more straightforward builder that will.

Product Review says they have been engaging with the ACCC to improve the honesty of their online platform, particularly regarding builders and home removalists who they say have been "gaming the system" however it looks like a few errant builders have still not got the message as there are still some embarrassing authenticity and 'fake news' type challenges there.

If you are seeking comments about any builder to help you make a big decision do not expect every anonymous avatar on any social media, including this site to be genuine. Ideally, I recommend speaking with someone face to face, or at a minimum with an identifiable mobile phone number. Be suspicious of anyone who will only engage in conversation with you by private messaging or in a public forum. Its quite possible you will be chatting with the builder or their associates!

D350mh · Jul 06, 2020 1:30 pm

I have handover booked for this Friday with BBH.

Happy to answer any questions, but we had an extremely easy time building with them.

D350mh · Jul 23, 2020 9:00 am

Hi,

We had no problems with our tender in regards to price. They seem to do a realistic job when estimating, but I will note we had quite a simple site to work with so we didn't really have any provisional sums.

I will note, that they don't want to put themselves in a position where you are unhappy, and one of those first stages is pricing.

I was speaking to my site supervisor Josh who stopped in a week after handover to check up on us and i mentioned the above post in regards to the reviews. The whole BBH team takes the reviews very seriously, and I can't see anybody in the office guessing on $15k which could potentially upset a customer.

Let me know if you have any other questions and good luck!

notknown · Jul 23, 2020 9:38 am

Thanks. We know that the price is probably as worst case scenario until they have access to the land. So I’m not too concerned I would rather they put more than less until we get the final figures

Please don’t get me wrong I’m very happy with them. I think that their houses speak for themselves. Their quality is so much better than other builders and I can’t find anyone who compares to them.

I was wondering which house did you end up building with them?

D350mh · Jul 23, 2020 10:03 am

Hi,

We built the Trinity 31 - our handover photos are on facebook and instagram from the 10th of July

notknown · Jul 23, 2020 10:06 am

D350mh

Hi,

We built the Trinity 31 - our handover photos are on facebook and instagram from the 10th of July

How exciting! Do you have a link to your Instagram page? I’ve been trying to find builds on Instagram a found a couple

If you don’t want to post it on a public forum more than happy for you to PM me

Norfolk · Jul 23, 2020 10:53 am

notknown

Thanks. We know that the price is probably as worst case scenario until they have access to the land. So I’m not too concerned I would rather they put more than less until we get the final figures

Please don’t get me wrong I’m very happy with them. I think that their houses speak for themselves. Their quality is so much better than other builders and I can’t find anyone who compares to them.

I was wondering which house did you end up building with them?

notknown how do you know "Their quality is so much better than other builders"? Which builders have you compared Better Built Homes to?

notknown · Jul 23, 2020 11:43 am

Norfolk

notknown

Thanks. We know that the price is probably as worst case scenario until they have access to the land. So I’m not too concerned I would rather they put more than less until we get the final figures

Please don’t get me wrong I’m very happy with them. I think that their houses speak for themselves. Their quality is so much better than other builders and I can’t find anyone who compares to them.

I was wondering which house did you end up building with them?

notknown how do you know "Their quality is so much better than other builders"? Which builders have you compared Better Built Homes to?

A lot of different builders. We have been doing this for months. It’s in my opinion better quality. I find their finishing and their attention to detail better.

Every builder has their pros and cons and no one is perfect. But I feel that their inclusions and the workmanship of their builds are different.

That’s my opinion anyways

Norfolk · Jul 23, 2020 11:48 am

notknown Which particular builders did you compare Better Built Homes with? How did you assess their finishing, attention to detail and quality? How about you lazyychef ?

We are interested in understanding more about your opinion: "Their quality is so much better than other builders and I can’t find anyone who compares to them".

Particularly given its common knowledge that most 'verified' reviews of builders on productreview are not genuine, making relying on such online research very risky for new home buyers.

lazyychef · Jul 23, 2020 12:07 pm

I'm also building with BBH, have just finished our colours selections. Happy to answer any questions anyone has. We are also impressed by their standard inclusions and the quality of their work.

notknown · Jul 23, 2020 12:59 pm

lazyychef

I'm also building with BBH, have just finished our colours selections. Happy to answer any questions anyone has. We are also impressed by their standard inclusions and the quality of their work.

Thanks I hope you don’t mind I’ve pm’d you

Norfolk · Jul 23, 2020 3:21 pm

A general comment for all members: Be cautious considering information provided by anonymous online avatars via PM's. If you want to verify information, and members are indeed real customers its advisable to speak with them on a recordable mobile phone number or in person. There are still no guarantees of authenticity but the likelihood is higher. I have experienced some situations like this where the responses were highly questionable. Consider in the current uncertain environment companies may use all sorts of such tactics to promote.

lazyychef · Jul 23, 2020 3:53 pm

Norfolk

A general comment for all members: Be cautious considering information provided by anonymous online avatars via PM's. If you want to verify information, and members are indeed real customers its advisable to speak with them on a recordable mobile phone number or in person. There are still no guarantees of authenticity but the likelihood is higher. I have experienced some situations like this where the responses were highly questionable. Consider in the current uncertain environment companies may use all sorts of such tactics to promote.

Pot and kettle here I think.

You’ve got a lot of interest in warning people off BetterBuilt Homes don’t you think?

notknown · Jul 23, 2020 5:57 pm

lazyychef

Norfolk

A general comment for all members: Be cautious considering information provided by anonymous online avatars via PM's. If you want to verify information, and members are indeed real customers its advisable to speak with them on a recordable mobile phone number or in person. There are still no guarantees of authenticity but the likelihood is higher. I have experienced some situations like this where the responses were highly questionable. Consider in the current uncertain environment companies may use all sorts of such tactics to promote.

Pot and kettle here I think.

You’ve got a lot of interest in warning people off BetterBuilt Homes don’t you think?

I agree Lazy Chef

All I was asking was for constructive feedback on the builder which I would prefer this thread be about and not about challenging my opinion.

I’m happy to hear from people who have built with them. The good and the bad and I thank those who have responded to my original post.