Browse Forums Owner Builder Forum 1 Sep 27, 2012 9:36 pm Hi everyone! Well we are at the beginning of our owner builder journey and i guess the first thing we are sorting is budget. We want to get a few building designers out to start the plans process and I'm worried they will just say "IMPOSSIBLE"- you can't do what you want with that sort of money. This will be our 2nd owner builder experience but our first was only additions to our existing house. We may employ a site manager to assist us this time. Hubby knows what he is doing and is very hands on but has less time on his hands these days. So I thought i would run it through you guys first.... Our budget is around 300k. Just for the house, no landscaping etc. We plan to knock down the existing small falling down cottage and rebuild a two storey house. Ground floor- guest bed/study and ensuite; open plan living/dining, laundry, kitchen, garage (7m x 12m- Hubby's request! ), covered alfresco First floor- Main bedroom and ensuite, 3 x bedrooms, bathroom, small kids play area/lounge In terms of size...I'm not how many squares we would be aiming for, but I dont want a mansion.. just something a comfortable size. Plus we only have a small block to work with (600m2). Level of finish, aiming for medium to high. We also have alot of mates in nearly all the trades... so think of plenty of time swapped for cash and beers Anyway, am I on the right track money wise.. Is this possible to do on 300k?? Thanks in advance Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 2Sep 27, 2012 9:47 pm 300k sounds very low. Last 3 bed, one off home we built was $ 570k full retail cost (ie no mates rates). Also, in more than 25 years building, I have never seen a mates rate that wasn't the normal full cost!! Mates tend to be very expensive!! @builderforlife Building inspector and passionate about construction When you need an expert to take a look. Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 4Sep 28, 2012 11:51 am Thanks for the input. I would expect that 570K must of been one pretty 'flash' house! What sort of 'profit' does the builder make on a house like this?? I know we def wont be paying full price through our friends. We have used them before, especially so the plumber/excavator who is a very close friend, and are quite happy for hubby to work along side them. We have the majority of the lock up work that can be completed by friends in the industry or hubby, with the exception of the tiling. The block we are building on is dual occupancy. It's 1200m2, we are living in the back house whilst we build the front house. Then will rent the back house out again once we move into the completed house. We paid 300K for the property which was really just the land value at the time. So I'm waaaayy off with 300K? How do you build something you want, without over capitalising then?? Thanks guys Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 5Sep 28, 2012 12:14 pm lozza81 Our budget is around 300k. Just for the house, no landscaping etc. We plan to knock down the existing small falling down cottage and rebuild a two storey house. Ground floor- guest bed/study and ensuite; open plan living/dining, laundry, kitchen, garage (7m x 12m- Hubby's request! ), covered alfresco First floor- Main bedroom and ensuite, 3 x bedrooms, bathroom, small kids play area/lounge In terms of size...I'm not how many squares we would be aiming for, but I dont want a mansion.. just something a comfortable size. Plus we only have a small block to work with (600m2). Level of finish, aiming for medium to high. We also have alot of mates in nearly all the trades... so think of plenty of time swapped for cash and beers Even owner building you will struggle with a $300k budget if you want medium to high level finish. Very possible for a low-med level of finish. I just read you're building on dual occ, well in that case you have to budget more for the drainage and and electricals (in my case I had to, as the existing house would have to meet current drainage and electrical standards) Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 6Sep 29, 2012 3:08 pm I only know from our own experience and we have built a single storey home of 43sq for a whisker over $300k.....and we paid going rates to most trades. Owner Building on 1800sqm Sanity Intact so far Locked up March 2012 Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 7Sep 29, 2012 6:26 pm Just my two bob Building a home is business and mates rates can be not only an illusion but also potential catastrophe if things go wrong. What are you going to do? Sue mates,friends and family, I have seen so many of these that have gone off the rails that I don't care to remember. Don't forget that favour taken is favour owed and favours taken may cost you lot more than you think precisely because they can't be quantified. I think you are better off just keeping it strictly business and build what you can afford. I am not negative, just tempered by experience and reality but that is not to say you won't be lucky, just don't try your luck without thinking it through. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 8Sep 30, 2012 9:25 pm Thanks everyone for your responses. We have done a bit more research and talked it through. Size wise we are thinking around 32 sqs would suit us and thinking the budget needs to be raised to about 360K, with our max being 400K. Next step is to meet a few building designers to discuss our needs/wants and see what they come up with design wise. Keep you posted once we have a plan Cheers Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 9Oct 02, 2012 6:19 pm I too agree that you should probably budget to pay for all trades, even if you think you can get them cheaper, not planning properly will be where you can really come unstuck on any build. Better to be overplanned than under. That way if you come in under budget you'll have more for fitout to the standard you'd love Also if you plan well enough in advance you can save loads of money by avoiding retail prices completely. lozza81 So I'm waaaayy off with 300K? How do you build something you want, without over capitalising then?? I'm also really curious about this. We're in the process of renovating/extending with the intent of selling. On the agenda afterward is another build from scratch but we're currently struggling to source land in our chosen areas that won't be seriously overcapitalising. Gotta love the real estate agent who last week told me that I can't overcapitalise with one block I was chasing My better half thinks that property values are going to remain depressed which means we need to look at our next house as being "for life" if we are going to bother. At this stage in life I'm not sure that suits us. Is this why the building industry is struggling? Will costs ever (relatively) come down? All I've seen in the last 5 years is the cost of materials (steel etc) going up up up. People make one happy, not houses? I do not think so. Houses are more to be trusted than people. Elizabeth Aston, Mr. Darcy's Daughters http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmDX0tgONFs http://lightndreamy.blogspot.com/ Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 10Nov 23, 2012 1:25 pm Hi Iozza81. I get a bit nervous commenting on how much it cost us a square to owner build when I hear other people's. But we have owner built eight times. Our last build was nearly 5 years ago and we are just planning our next build. Our last build for 38 squs was $6800 per squ and we are still hoping to build 35 squs for around $7000 -$7500. I think our homes are similar quality tomid splay homes around. I am careful with what I chose and shop around because I look at any extra costs as extra night duties I will have to work!!! But I think our finish is comparable and we have never had trouble selling. Our plans are fairly standard and interiors neutral because we do think about resell. We organize the trades, people we know usually bit sometimes from the phone book. We paint and tile. Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 11Nov 24, 2012 9:07 am There's all levels of cost, too... depending on the quality of the final product. Not just the quality of fittings: things you don't see (like the type of insulation) can really bump up prices. This is where you decide if you want the house to be a long-term, solidly built home... or just something you may sell down the track. You might also be subject to fire regulations, which will add another unexpected cost. My advice would be aim for a fairly modest house, but do it well -- with a view to expansion in the future. My storybook home build: https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=38&t=57987 Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 12Jan 21, 2013 12:34 pm It is a usual feeling as an owner builder to be skeptical of prices being quoted. your designer should have some idea of the cost of their designs so ask them to design to a lower cost (maybe $280K) because you can guarantee that they will be the lower end, so with the finishes you want it will take it to $360K. Also it is worth getting a professional estimate done. We followed our estimate to a tea and really helped us budget our build. It made us aware if someone was trying to rip us off and also if we could save money in some areas and spend in others rarely do we save the money but spend it on higher quality finishes elsewhere as with anything it is a time vs money quandry. The more you can do yourselves on the home the more you save but also the more time flies by. I did a lot of work with my carpenter on our house: viewtopic.php?f=38&t=62345&p=968325#p968325 we used a lot of recycled Jarrah, and bought a lot of steel and timber from auctions to keep costs down we had an estimate of $360K to lock up and we will manage to finish it to completion for $360K you have to plan and know what you want and buy things in advance if they come up else there is never anything available when you need it and you pay full retail costs which can blow your budget very quickly. Hope this helps Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 13Jan 31, 2013 10:10 am I would like to hear back from the OP(lozza). I'm planning to build a dual-occupancy (2 townhouse complex) as OB later this year. The townhouses will be each 29squares. My budget is certainly going to be less than $300K for each. I'm more on the $6000-$7000 per square. That said, my target budget will be around $400K for both with a safeguard of about 50K-100K (so 400-500K overall budget). I think there is a 'subject to interpretation' when you talk about low-med-high finish. What builders see/promise/quote as a high level finish, may in fact only be low-to-medium finish in other peoples eyes or wiseversa, a low-medium finish may not necessary be the cheapest quality. My friend just finish OB his 50square house, for the cost of less than 300K, and the finish is much much better than what the builders quoted as "medium" finish with a tag of close to 500K. Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 14Jan 31, 2013 10:12 am building-expert Don't forget that favour taken is favour owed and favours taken may cost you lot more than you think precisely because they can't be quantified.. Totally agree with you here mate. Gotta be careful that the "mates" rates are not more expensive that the standard rates, in one way or another. And when they do a poor job, it only gets worse from there. I think same rules should apply whether it's a stranger or a mate, Business is Business. Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 15Jan 31, 2013 11:15 am Thank you escoworx One more thing that I have come across with favours that I think is most unwelcome. Some people think that if they did you a favour you are forever indebted to them even if you more than return it. In their eyes at least they are forever on a higher ground and hold you in contempt. I have seen it and experienced it myself and it's unhealthy relationship (especially in a family). So be careful who you take favours from and don't do it unless you absolutely have to, then repay it fast. Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 16Jan 31, 2013 11:17 am escoworx I would like to hear back from the OP(lozza). I'm planning to build a dual-occupancy (2 townhouse complex) as OB later this year. The townhouses will be each 29squares. How are you going to get around the rules of owner building one at a time? Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 17Feb 05, 2013 2:23 pm JB1 escoworx I would like to hear back from the OP(lozza). I'm planning to build a dual-occupancy (2 townhouse complex) as OB later this year. The townhouses will be each 29squares. How are you going to get around the rules of owner building one at a time? The Land is currently only in my name, i'm adding my partner (defacto) to it, and then each of us will get a OB permit. I can't see a reason why that wouldnt work. Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 18Feb 05, 2013 3:17 pm Think you better look again, as if your partners name is listed she too is classed as an owner builder for your development, thus barring her from the second unit. In Vic anyway Settlement 1/2/12 New Shed 23/3/12 Slab poured 27/3/12 Frame complete 4/5/12 Roof complete 1/6/12 LOCKUP 29/6/12 Our new build blog http://kareenhillsownerbuild.blogspot.com/ Re: So I dont want them to laugh in our faces...cost ? 20Feb 18, 2013 11:51 am Thanks delatite13/JB1, The way I see it, the Building Commission is different to the Council. If I apply to Council to add my Partner under the Spouse Exemption to the title, I will avoid the Stamp Duty. And when I apply to Building Commission for a Permit, I'm applying for one unit, and she is applying for the other unit. I don't see a logic that they can treat it as 2 Properties if I want one Permit, and then treat it as 1 property if i want 2 seperate permits. I think it this way. If me and a mate bought a large block of land, and each of us wants to build a townhouse to live in, then these are two different properties, and therefore should be treated individuals. I would be wary. Is you site demilished but nothing else done? Sounds like liquidity problems to me. Our builder did the same. Got hundreds of thousands of dollars of… 2 15393 Sounds like rubbish to me. Ask for the contamination report which I doubt they have. If it's part of a normal subdivision it would have had a contamination report done… 9 5645 I haven’t. But have a Lowe Design home. Not only did I find Matt Lowe patronising and a bully, but the home is NOT TO CODE. I have water coming through the bricks… 1 14362 |