Browse Forums Owner Builder Forum 1 May 10, 2012 1:08 pm Hi H1ers We are about to commence contract negotiations with a builder to get our rather large 5 bedroom + home office OB (550+m2 inc attic, garage and verandahs) to lockup. DW and I both have extensive I.T. project management backgrounds in large corporates so managing the project and scheduling trades does not worry us nor does any of the interior fit-out, but getting the slab, frame and blockwork done correctly terrifies me as you only get one chance at it. hence why we have decided to get a builder to assist. Our options are a) outsource the build to lock up entirely under our OB licence to the builder and have him register the job with the MBAV and supply insurance & warranties etc or b) employ him as a project manager to source and engage the trades on our behalf, and engaging him directly for the frame and associated carpentry activities. Option a will be more expensive with the builders margin on everything but simpler to manage and execute (and get the builder to agree). This would be effectively just a subset of a standard build. Option b means each trade is contracted to me but engaged and managed/overseen by the builder. The builder has no warranty obligations other than on the activities he has been engaged to supply as a carpenter. Will be easier on my budget but potentially much longer to execute. So questions for you out there. How have others structured their contracts to lockup only? what pitfalls should I be looking out for? any other thoughts about these types of contracts? At the end of the day I am OB'ing and am fully aware of the risks that entails but have attempted to mitigate that with 2+ years of research and I will have whole-of-project insurance, inc fire/theft/personal injury etc and an independent building inspector to review each stage, particularly the pre-pour and post frame stages. Your thoughts will be most appreciated. Thanks RiH Re: Contract options for getting a builder to complete to lo 2May 11, 2012 1:31 pm What we have done with our 800sqm house is contract our builder to build the house (+ garage and associated structures) to lock up stage as a standard fixed price contract with the builder assuming all the normal responsibilities. Thereafter we have engaged a project manager (you would do this yourselves in your case) to manage the fit out, landscaping,pool etc etc in conjunction with our designer. Our Building on 118 acres in South Gippsland thread - https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=54556 Re: Contract options for getting a builder to complete to lo 3May 11, 2012 9:39 pm Hi RiH, You will love it. I decided not to use a builder because i wanted to be the owner builder. but have some thoughts for you. If you are having a building inspector i personally do not see the point in contracting it out to a builder, unless its a friend or someone u know well. They will be doing the cheapest part of the build for you. Not really cheapest as in $ amount but you throw some money into finishings. Shouldn't the builder build under there licence, when they have a licence? Why use yours, 1 every 7 years in WA to valuable to give away. If you choose for them to build use theres. I've seen builders advertising build to lock up in perth. If they use your licence will they let you make a change whenever you want at No extra cost, will they give you your truce OB Flexibilty with out slugging your back pocket? Quality Trades = Quality build. Your Building inspector will tell you if anything is wrong thats for sure. He's signing his building licence on a document even though you are fully responsible as an OB. Explain your concern to him/her and i am sure that they will be an asset to you. They are getting your money at the end of the day. I started OBing In December 2011 and love it thanks to great trades.. Planning & Budget stick to them and everything runs smoothly. At the end of the day follow peace, if your uneasy about something don't do it. Happy days ahead for you. Tristan Thanks. I called VBA today and they said it was a Consumer Affairs issue, the old handball. Seems like the government organisations don't want to do their job at the moment. 2 7540 You talk about deletions, are they variations or PS and PC adjustments? pleas list them 1 16542 Hi All, I just wanted to close this topic out with an update. So we ended up agreeing to a number with the insurance company, and after an extensive amount of hand… 8 23387 |