First time poster, so please be kind
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
My situation is as follows:
* Australian currently living in London.
* Planning to return in another 2-3 years time
* I want to buy a piece of land in the Sydney north shore and build a duplex so I can potentially have the folks stay near us.
* Have never done anything like this before!
Couple of questions:
* Is this a crazy idea? To manage a development project from overseas? Has anyone done this before?
* I was thinking of hiring a project manager to manage the full development process for me - are there firms offering such service in Sydney? I want to be fairly hands off as I will not be able to fly back to Sydney every few months.
* What is the construction cost likely to be? I am thinking of going with a project home, however I am sure that the prices they quote are not the final all in costs. Say they quote $400k, what buffer do I need to build in to have the place all in order (i.e landscaping, flooring, driveway, the lot!)? 10%? 20%? more?!?
* How easy is it to get DA for a duplex?
* Is there anything else I need to consider?
I would greatly appreciate any other words of advice!
Happy new year to you all!