Million dollar home in Perth

I did a lot of research even before I selected the builder as I am sure you have done. I had done the soil tests and engineering reports done beforehand and asked Riverstone to not charge me for that at any stage so they deducted that from their quote. Basic approach was very simple, I looked at the quote, took the biggest numbers and checked whether I can get it done cheaper at the same level of quality. Riverstone uses pretty high level experienced trades who have been building with them from the get go so in some cases it is better to pay more and use their staff. When I started out things were turning more expensive, now things are worse with acute shortage in almost every trade and item, so my approach may not work, bear that in mind. Another thing is anything you do on your own, Riverstone obviously will not warranty it or any other damage it does to the structural work.

We had a house on the block so first thing was demo. We did that ourselves but Riverstone gave us a few names. This saved us a bit.

Aircon, do it yourself.. it will be cheaper.

Solar , do it yourself.. it will be cheaper.

Smart wiring, do it yourself. Riverstone uses the biggest name in town and they charge like a wounded bull. Same with security.

Here are the rest of the areas where you might save ..

Windows and doors..Avanti (Italian) vs Jason( Aussie/Chinese) .. big difference in pricing and quality.. go to their display homes. see it for yourself and decide. We have gone with a mix. We have an upside down house with a large glass sliding door overlooking the swan river. This was probably the biggest price saver for us.

Stairs.. if you like traditional stairs ..not a problem.. stick with Riverstone. But if you want something else be prepared for the cost.. a floating staircase can be very expensive, as can be any other diversion like concrete or stone. Riverstone is a traditional company , they do not like to experiment outside their comfort zone. I imagine because quality matters to them. So if you want something unique you are on your own.

Flooring is a big cost in a 500 sq house. If you are looking at tiling stick with them as their tilers are very very good unless you know someone who does a better job. You can buy the tiles on your own for cash and that will save some money. If going with wood or concrete use your own, find the best deal with a company or person with experience and good reputation. We will have Marri flooring with our own supplier and installer. Tiling and carpeting we have left to Riverstone.

Swimming pool is another big ticket item, if you do not mind the feel of a fibre glass bed , stick to fibre glass as it is cheaper and can support salt water systems without any corrosion and may last longer. I chose concrete because I wanted a fresh water pool and dislike the feel of fibre glass underfoot. My pool is built up to the foundation so I was never going to risk hiring another company but I did take quotes and surprisingly Riverstone were cheaper than the quotes I received. So they are doing the swimming pool and fence.

Lift is another big ticket item.. if you have that, get your own do not use Riverstone. We have saved a fair bit here.

Appliances, if you want Miele then stick with Riverstone because Miele does not offer discounts to anyone. If not.. you can save a lot here if you are willing to buy and hold when a sale comes on. We went with a mix of Miele and Non Miele. Our Butler's pantry is a wet kitchen, all Non Miele appliances from Rick Hart's seconds. Main kitchen is all Miele. We have saved a lot here.

Landscaping, do not use Riverstone. As soon as the house plan is finalised get a good landscaper to draw up a design most councils need a plan these days and you will need that to get the approval to start building. You will need to be careful with your selection here because designing a landscape needs a lot of knowledge and skill.. do not use a gumtree landscaper for the design. Riverstone uses Tim Davies, they are very good but very expensive. Once you have the plan which outlines species, retic etc get quotes on implementing the design and go with what you think is right. Big savings here.

Paving, in our case it is exposed aggregate , no one can guarantee it will not crack so in our case we will use our own and save money.

Fireplace, we wanted a 2 sided real wood fireplace, pretty expensive saved a lot by buying it ourselves when the sales came on. Obviously I had done the research before hand.

Lighting is a big ticket item. Riverstone uses a local company to provide a lighting blueprint where they give you a plan what light is needed where. Unfortunately while I know that the same lights are available online way cheaper, they are not Australian standards approved so Riverstone will not install them. Having said that..I have tried to find a better alternative but in Australia there is none unless you are an electrician in which case woohoo massive savings here. Otherwise no savings here.. you can of course replace individual lights with cheaper lights over the course of the year that it will take to build your house, as sales come on. But the lighting designer knows her wares and her client..very impressive details in the plans.

Inbuilt bbq ..do yourself a favour do not waste money, looks cool, has no value. Save some money there.

Fans.. buy them yourselves and do not forget to put an electric charging point in your garage..may seem useless now , 3 years down the track you will thank me.

Hope that saves you some money..ask if you need more info, But barring the 60k jolt, the supervisor replies to me instantly, the sales guy replies instantly even now if we have any issues. Like I said I read a lot of horror stories on building but Riverstone seems to be doing the right thing all along so get the no price rise in writing and you will be golden. So far Riverstone have been pretty good except the 60k.

Ah yes, you did mention that previously. BTW, how do you know the allocated amounts for each item? At the quote stage, they just have listed ‘included’ for everything and when I asked the price they said it all makes up the base build cost. Did you get a detailed breakdown during the detailed design and planning phase?

Apologies, I was not sure how you were aware of the cost breakdown since Riverstone have not mentioned that I would get a cost breakdown at the detailed design stage, which we are about to do next - 2% of the cost of the home, detailed design and council planning. You have been super helpful Shai, thanks for taking the time to respond.

Here is there process: https://riverstone.com.au/our-process/#design-process

See the "Concept Design" section:

Concept design

This is one of the steps clients find the most exciting because they can really start to visualise what their new luxury home will look like. As part of our design service, we’ll present you with a 3D elevation that helps you see your new home from all angles. We’ll also present a budget estimate at this point.

Once you’re completely happy with the concept plans, we’ll ask you to sign off on your Preparation of Plans Agreement (PPA) and pay a non-refundable contract package fee, which is 2% of the budget estimate.

Well you had me going there for a second scamster. Most people building in the million plus range are not looking online but that is changing rapidly so hopefully this helps someone out and my effort in posting does not go to waste

Mate , there is no Anna in Riverstone. You are not a girl. You are just trying too hard .. everything comes with time. Stop struggling so hard and making a joke of yourself. Or keep trying.. your choice kid.

didnt you know, building a million dollar house in Perth earns one the right to be a cnut.

Actually is just one misogynistic Perth millionaire who for some reason reads subtext in posts that doesn't exist and flys off the handle like a 5 year old who just had their toy broken.

I think the bigger joke is on you, you keep digging a bigger hole. Get over yourself