Browse Forums Owner Builder Forum 1 Feb 10, 2011 2:26 pm I'm in the middle of getting all my things together for my construction certificate for a moderate sized renovation. I just called the builder to get a copy of his home warranty insurance certificate (I assume this sort of thing was standard) and he said he normally works 'owner builder' as it would be cheaper for me. Is this right? I checked it out and I have to sit a course (online) but I have no time to do this and don't want to take on any responsibility I don't need to. Can anyone give me a very quick rundown of the pros and cons of us being owner builders or getting the builder to apply for his own insurance. There is a lot of info out there but so much to trawl through and I need a quick, honest rundown of whether I should do it or not. THANKS Re: Help - should I be owner builder 2Feb 10, 2011 4:03 pm Sounds like a ******* deal to me. He wants to take your money but you have all the responsibility. Fine if you are knowledgeable and comfortable with the responsibility but what happens if there are problems? The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: Help - should I be owner builder 3Feb 10, 2011 8:48 pm Framboise I feel very qualified to give you my unreserved opinion on this one from a very personal and raw experience. NO DONT DO IT! REGARDLESS OF WHAT HE SAYS! My husband and I are in the middle of a living nightmare, I am on valium and anti depressants as a result of this. We are having to borrow significant additional funds from my parents to pay for the remainder of the home as our funds are running out and despite have MASSIVE equity the banks will not lend to OBs very easily. We we convinced that OBing was the way to go for us as our architect would project manage the whole project for us. He promised us the world, charged us a fortune and delivered NOTHING except great big errors and heartache. And then he turned around and walked away, not to be seen of or heard of again with no recourse for us ( well there is but I cant focus on that right now) and NO responsibility for him. If we had our time again we would have simplified and built with a builder. We are not builders nor in the construction industry. We work full time and have two young kids. This has nearly destroyed our lives. The only thing that is getting us through is the goodwill of amazing tradies we have met along the way. Pay a few extra bucks and go with a builder. Re: Help - should I be owner builder 4Feb 11, 2011 11:41 am Thanks so much for all of this. I'm about to call the builder and get him to do it all - he did say he would do it all but wanted to saveus the money, but I wasn't sure what exactly the risks were. So far he has been good nad has an impeccible reference, so here is hoping he proves himself to us with this! kayandandy - I really hope things start looking up for you soon. Thanks for taking time to post a reply Re: Help - should I be owner builder 5Feb 11, 2011 11:24 pm Fambroise am i reading ur post right or not, u ask a registered builder for a copy of his warranty insurance certificate & he wanted u to be an o/ber and he'd work for u cos its cheaper???? if thats the case i would not use him, cos it looks to me that he's moving all the "risk" to u. why would a reg builder want a client to be an o/ber....doesn't sit right with me? i'f u engage a builder it should on a building contract with a price - if u are the o/b u assume the full & total responsibility of the project full stop & as such u can't sell the building for 7 years here in WA unless u take out separate guarntee insurance. maybe i've got it wrong? cheers T&V Re: Help - should I be owner builder 6Feb 12, 2011 12:49 pm T&V - yeah. Odd right? I was floored? But he says he always works owner builder.... but this time is going to take out his own warranty insurance certificate for our building work. He was happy to do so and I didn't have to do much to convince him.... He says he hasn't done it before though!? He is def a registered builder as I double checked with the Office of Fair Trade (has no complaints against him), so I'm not entirely sure what is going with this idea of his about us being O/B. Our next door neighbours used him for their reno and had no issues.... so I must ask them if they were O/B? Anyway, he is now going to take out his own insurance - and worse case scenario, it falls through then I have another builder as a back up. They were neck and neck when we got all our quotes in but the current builder came with the recommendation of our VERY hard to please neighbour. So we'll see how it pans out.... Re: Help - should I be owner builder 7Feb 13, 2011 2:20 am Hi Framboise, well u've done all the right things, checked on B/Reg, Checked Insurance & checked out his work, it should all go well 4 u. Even though ur not O/ building, keep the site clean, safe & tidy, & be enthusiastic to all tradies . its amazing how they will lift their game if they see ur running a good site. a home built with goodwill always has a good feel to it after good luck T&V Re: Help - should I be owner builder 9Feb 16, 2011 11:58 pm hmmm a builder whos never had building ins and only works with owner builders be very very careful personally it sounds fishy most builders ive spoken to hate the fact that they went to school for x amount of years to get their trade yet obers can pay a small fee to build. maybe i watch to many current affair shows with * builders but id be very careful id go with the other builder who was neck and neck ive seen too many people on here get stung by so called good recommendations. i hope it works well for you whatever you decide good luck stay safe happy building Re: Help - should I be owner builder 10Feb 17, 2011 8:06 pm Hi, My take on it is that it will be cheaper(initially), because no Home warranty Ins will be needed if you OB, unless you sell the house within 7 yrs (im talking NSW, dont know about other states). The last time I looked into it (2yrs ago), builders could get HW ins on a per job basis. The builder will also encourage you to OB, as he has very limited paper work, if you do it all, he also does not take responsibility for the job, you do!. Good to hear, the builder will attempt to get the HW ins himself, some builders cant it or its expensive. If this was going to be your first OB, best to start small first, moderate sized reno's are often more complicated than starting a new house from scratch. cheers woodchip Hi VK, Think it's worth investing time in an Owner Builder course to equip you with basic knowledge on Australian Building Industry and its regulations. Also, I suggest… 11 23601 Hi all. Anyone know when the $11,000 limit was set in legislation for renovations in QLD? Ive been renovating for 5 years now and this was the limit back then. As we know,… 0 4250 |