Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Nov 25, 2013 3:08 pm Gday guys, My partner and I have recently bought land at Durack Heights up in Darwin. As per usual, Darwinites seem to not be up with the newfangled internet thingo, and thus finding information or reviews about builders is next to impossible. There are a fair few largeish builders up here. I am currently trying to find a builder and thought that a list might be useful. I will add to this list as my research continues. In addition to this list, I have taken the liberty of working out the cost per m² for each builder as a means of trying to establish where the value in the marketplace ******. To make it fair, as some builders don't include carports or garages, I have priced the following (ascertained from a few different builders): Double Carport - $30,000 Double Garage - $36,000 Undercover Alfresco area (concrete or decking, covered by main roof of house. incl Lights and Fans)- $200/m² I have then removed the price of these items from various builders quotes to get a fair comparison. All comparisons done on houses with roughly 115sqm - 155sqm of interior living space, in the price range of $270k - $345k I have also made notes of inclusions that different builders have made above and beyond the norm. This list will get better as I research further. All include split system A/C to every room, 300L Solar hot water and 2700mm ceilings. About NT - $1985/m² incl Driveway, Stone Benchtops http://abouthomesnt.com.au/About-us Beare homes - $1995/m² incl Driveway http://www.bearehomes.com.au/ Tropical Lifestyle - $2079/m² incl LED Downlights, $30/m² tile allowance, Stone benches, Aggregate Driveway, Floor to Ceiling Tiles. http://www.tlhomes.com.au/cms2/ Vanguard Homes - $2214/m² incl Stone Benchtops, Glass Splashbacks, 600mm Tiling, Floor to Ceiling Tiles, Driveway http://www.vanguardhomes.com.au/ The House Factory - $2421/m² incl Tiling, 25yr Structural Warranty, 9* Energy rating, Driveway, Handleless cupboard etc throughout, ECOwall construction (steel and foam prefab blocks) http://www.thehousefactory.com.au/ Northern Star - $2490/m² incl Driveway, Mesh security screens, Stone benches http://www.northernstarhomes.com.au/ Matrix -$2536/m² incl Window treatments, Driveway http://www.matrix.com.au/index.php?id=106 Abode Homes - $2645/m² incl Bifold doors in 2 rooms, Driveway http://www.newabode.com.au/home The Total Group - $2647/m² not incl Driveway, Ensuite. Incl Steel frame on stilt construction (no slab), Decking, Actual good design (monsoon design). http://thetotalgroupnt.com/homes/ Killarney Homes - $2675/m² incl Driveway, $26/m² tiling allowance http://killarneyhomes.com.au/#killarneyhomes S&M Construction - No prices yet Kassiou Construction - No prices yet Habitat NT - No prices yet Unfortunately 95% of the builders on this list don't build appropriately for the climate (except they use louvres). They build cement filled blockwork homes on a slab and expect you to AC the whole lot. Total Group are the exception, but unfortunately one of the most expensive. I have meetings with some of these builders this week. We are leaning towards Vanguard as their inclusions are very generous and all of their homes are finished to a good standard (except painting). They have a "no more to spend" philosophy it seems. Re: Darwin Builders 3Feb 06, 2014 11:45 am G'day guys, One of my builders has gotten back to me with some numbers, but I'm not happy and want to know if it's fair, and if there are any options. Advice much sought after please! Construction is steel frame, elevated about 1m off the ground. Colourbond roof etc, very basic inclusions but includes tiling etc. Internal spaces - 119m2 - $2.1k/m2 - $249,900 External areas decking/roofing - 33m2 - $1k/m2 - $33,000 Degree of difficulty of design - $23,100 extra. Exposed aggregate driveway - $130/m2 - $9k Stone bench tops in kitchen - $4k extra. The house is a pavilion style with 3 buildings, 2 joined by an internal corridor and the 3rd joined by roof and decking. I just don't know if the cost is justified, they also want to charge us am additional $28k to put an ensuite to the main in... I am talking very basic fit out also which isn't what we really want. I have heard that steel frame slightly elevated houses should be cheaper to build than concrete filled bessa block on a slab construction? it's a medium sized contractor that is moving into the residential housing market. Re: Darwin Builders 4Feb 06, 2014 12:18 pm Hey mate, I'm probably not the right person to answer your questions, but to help those who may be able to it could be very beneficial to post a copy of plans, or even draft layouts you've drawn. Cheers, Met Re: Darwin Builders 6Mar 08, 2014 9:35 pm We are building something very similar in the rural area of Darwin and we spoke to a builder who we knew had built something similar but on a larger scale. He said the extra $ comes from the extra external walls that comes with this style compared to a traditional rectangle house. He said you are hard to find someone to build under $2500/m2 so your quote is pretty good by Darwin standards. We looked at the company linked to that design but I wasn't sure about the quality vs quantity. Have you had a look at some of their houses? (assuming you got a quote from the company who is linked to that design?) Re: Darwin Builders 7Mar 09, 2014 7:55 am Wow, you guys have quite the price per square metre up there in NT! I thought ours were high here in Nth Qld because of cyclone ratings and freight blah blah etc. Makes me drool at the types of houses and prices you can get in SE Qld. Sorry, this is no help is it. I do like your plan though. Good luck with finding a builder you are happy with, and with a price you are willing to pay. Sandra Re: Darwin Builders 8Jul 28, 2014 7:59 pm Hello we building in Darwin Durack Heights too, we found it very hard information and reviews, it seems you just have to ask around friends and colleagues. We have decided to go with Abode as our builder, will update you how we go no problems so far.. Re: Darwin Builders 9Oct 10, 2014 12:02 pm I did see this thread quite a while ago and have held off responding to it. Why because I need the time to get some experience regarding pricing and specification. I have now worked with a builder here and can now respond in a way which I hope will be helpful. 1. The biggest cost difference between Darwin and the rest of the capital cities is specification. Many of Darwin's builders include the following. min. 600x600 porcelain tiles throughout including bedrooms, living areas, stone benchtops to kitchens and vanities, split system airconditioners throughout, aggregate driveways and perimeter paths, downlights throughout, ceiling fans throughout, floor to ceiling tiling to bathrooms and ensuite, overhead cupboards, garages with remote doors, fully rendered concrete core filled blockwork, cyclone rated homes and really the list goes on. The thing is that you can realistically move straight in without having to lift a finger, other than curtains & blinds, fencing and landscaping and many of the builders will do it without any arguments. Unlike many of the home lift outs you will see in the weekend papers, the prices given are the final price depending on what extras you want. The lift outs are purely marketing documents and don't really give you a good idea as to the pricing and many builders won't finish a house to turn key where Darwin's builders do. I do know of several builders that will average between $1600/m2 and & $1850/m2 for a fully completed home. The other item is that the soil is really quite good up here, so other than siteworks, generally the foundations don't generally go over what is already included in the standard home, so no variations for that. The majority of new housing is constructed in one of four developments. Muirhead, The Heights Durack, Johnstone Ridge and Zuccoli, so the water, sewer, electricity, foundations are a known quantity. Once outside these developments, the extras can include water, sewer, electricity and transport especially on the larger allotments that are 2.5 acres and 5 acres of which you can generally pick up for +$450,000. Re: Darwin Builders 11Feb 10, 2015 6:46 pm Hi Guys, Just a quick update. We FINALLY received titles at the end of November and have received a quote on our house design from most of the bigger builders up here. We are in final talks with one of them now with pre-approval from our bank, so everything looks good to go! We are really keen to get the whole thing started! Re: Darwin Builders 12Mar 02, 2015 10:38 pm Hi there, I am building in Zuccoli, I went with Galaxy Constructions after meeting and reviewing quotes from at least 10 builders. Quote for 190 m square 3 bedroom 2 bathroom house is 315 k. Will let you know how it goes. Basic Inclusions: 600 x 600 floor tiles Tiles upto ceiling in bathroom Exposed Aggregate concrete in driveway, Verendah and mowing strips. LED lights, steel fans and stone bench + gas cooktop. Crim safe for rolling doors and windows. Microwave and dishwasher. Pendant lights above kitchen bench. Soft closing cabinets in kitchen. External feature wall with stones Double Vanity in En-suite and Walk in Robe. Re: Darwin Builders 13Mar 13, 2015 2:51 pm Hi everyone, Happy to see some info about Darwin builders on this forum! We're building our first house at Durack Heights and currently approaching all builders and checking out home displays in Darwin and Palmo. We're not really into concrete bunker-style houses, our block is fairly thin and it's on the corner which makes it a bit tricky as most builders' plans would not fit or don't meet the criteria. Anyway, if you've got any recommendations for a decent builder or want to share your experience, please post it (alternatively PM me). Many thanks in advance! Re: Darwin Builders 14May 16, 2015 10:46 am I'm in the process of getting a quote on my plans for a house in Muirhead. It is hard to compare because different builders give different allowances for things like tiles and cabinetry. Air con units can be quoted at smaller size/capacity. Then you just have to pay the difference. Has anyone else been caught with bills from the difference in an allowance? One quote had $35/m2 and another was at $125/m2 Re: Darwin Builders 15Oct 05, 2015 7:39 am How is everyone going with their build in Darwin? We chose Bendella, a small husband and wife building team. They took on our totally custom design and are bringing it to life. Very pleased, we are just about to fit out stage! Re: Darwin Builders 18Nov 02, 2015 2:24 pm Hi Insane, Thanks mate for quick reply. I was given a quite for 410k, for 236.9m2 Living, 175 Main living, 40 m2 garage and 17.8 varandah, and 3.86 front porch from supreme homes. Land price is 345k for 650m2. Total is about 750k. http://s22.postimg.org/j0pcm3ixd/aaaplan.jpg What are your thoughts ? Cheers Hi all, We are looking to build a new two storey house in western Sydney. Can anyone recommend a smallish builder to go with? We are trying to stay away from the big… 0 12723 I would never build with Fowler homes. I built with them in 2021 and till date maintenance issues are pending. All their existing trades and businesses don't work with… 14 109713 Thank you so much. This has been very helpful. We definitely wish to settle and get these people out of our life. They are trying to charge us interest on late… 7 14971 |