TIPS - our top 10 tips for building a new home PRE-CONSTRUCTION...

Now we have signed off on our FINAL plans, we thought we would list our top 10(ish) tips for new home builders to consider when building with a volume builder like M.


Double check everything prior to signing off on your final plans.  Its YOUR new home, so if you're not happy with everything, dig your heals in and take the plans away with you for detailed review and consideration.  Its not a insignificant amount of money you're signing off on, it your hard earned! Best make sure it's all correct.  This includes preliminary contracts.

Salesman are just that.  Take everything they say with a grain of salt especially contract and build times.   They are looking at the commission.  If its to good to be true... well.....

Provisional amounts.  I just don't like them!  In what other purchase do you effectively sign an open cheque.  These amounts can change significantly so be very careful and do some research yourself.  The problem is they are unavoidable but take care.

Your builder is happy to undertake work on your behalf, but you will pay for it.  So, if you can arrange for some  items yourself your likely to save 000's.  Remember most builders have a margin of at least 20% on everything - they are in business after all.

Try to ensure your CSC will go in and bat for you.  It will make the process a little easier. This means developing a rapport with them from the get go so that they will go the extra mile for you. Never be rude or abrupt as this will only get them offside. It seems like we're stating the obvious, but so many blogs we have read about people going off half cocked at their CSCs. In our opinion (and remember that these are just that), you get everywhere with good manners. Proof is in the relationship we had with our own CSC!

Try to ensure your other consultants ie.colour and option selections, electrics, tiles etc are FULL TIME employees and knowledgeable about their area or expertise's.  PART TIME consultants (like our Studio M) are difficult to find when you need them to resolve something.

If you doing a re-development, ensure your demolisher provides an pre and post demolition asbestos clearance certificate.  If you're doing a redevelopment, its most likely an old place and most likely contains asbestos in some form.  Your builder wont go to site if they think there is any risk of any residue asbestos on site. Nor should you expect them to.

No question is a stupid one.  OK, some are, but ask anyway.  The more you know the better the process will flow.

Prepare for the selection meetings.  Without a reasonable amount of preparation you may well struggle to make the right decisions (but you could also be lucky)

Start with the biggest wishlist, build without a budget.  Once you see what each item is worth you can make an educated ($) decision if its truly worth it or if for that price you can live without it.

Building a new home will test you.  Test you in patience and if you're like me they test you ability to visualise design and colours. (lol says Kirst)

We are sure that there are more things and will add them when we think of them. Please feel free to add any of your own tips to the comments section below :)

Cam

FINALLY – passed to the construction team

It’s taken awhile but we have been advised that our job has been handed from pre-construction to construction….   

So after weeks of reviewing largely the same plans (small variations made by M – mostly by their hand without any discussion) we have signed off on final plans as pre our requirements and requests….

QA, Drafties and to a lesser extent Studio M have a lot to answer for.  Illogical and unrequested changes without any discussion as to why or communication as to what had changed is unacceptable – there... I'm feeling better already.  DOUBLE CHECK EVERYTHING!!!!

Well, we also took advantage of their multiple versions and requested a number of small changes ourselves.  I look at it this way – it’s not final til it’s final.  M can change items around without any fuss, so why can’t we….  So while reviewing the plans, for the god knows how many times, we decided to move this, change that, etc etc.   “Just make this change to the next version if you wouldn’t mind”   

On a more positive note, our CSC has been great and followed up all our queries and ensured any illogical / unrequested changes were reinstated.  Felt a little sorry for her a few times, as she was the ‘middle man’ the majority of the time – but that’s what her role is I guess.

So, the next step is to wait for our construction service consultation (made that title up) and / or our site manager to contact us.  We have been told its usually 2 weeks b/w pre-construction and construction til you see anything actually happen.  The construction team has already made a start on our job so work on the slab could be as early as this time next week. 

Now that's progress….

Patience = A minor form of despair, disguised as a virtue.

They say, whomever “they” are, that patience is a virtue. Good things come to those who wait.  Timing is everything. And according to my beloved… patience is not a virtue that I possess. I get impatient waiting for the toast to pop, for the lights to change, for the family home to be built.

As I wait I become more and more consumed by the decorating that is to come. I subscribe to blog after blog on design and decorating and my latest obsession is lighting and thinking about how we are going to make the space that will be there into something family friendly but relaxing and sophisticated at the same time…

These are a few more ideas that I have had recently.

In our powder room, we have gone with a glamorous dark tiled wall and I was thinking a black chandelier might be a nice touch.

Something like these…

Or maybe even something a little more out there like this…

BUT...What’s actually been going on with our build as we wait in anticipation for the real stuff to begin.

This week we have finalised the following

• Council Permit received (snaps to Booroondara Council for fast turnaround)
• Final site plans received and signed off on
• Selections confirmed and signed off on
• Resurvey/soils test/reestablishment done, and
• Final engineering completed

We are still waiting on the following to occur this week –

·         slab design/cut and fill/provisional amounts finalised

·         sewer point finalised

·         asbestos clearance from our demolisher to go to M

·         final sign off is booked in for the end of next week.

After that the files will be handed over to construction and we will no longer deal with Cassie our CSC but be handled by another staff member.

We have also just regained access to our “My Metricon” account and have found out our site manager is a guy called Doug. Anybody know of him?

Time wise we are still looking at site start in 2-3 weeks. Too long in my book. Perhaps all I need is just a little patience...

Kirsten

PS…“What we wish we knew then, that we know now !” - New builders pre- construction advice post – TOP 10 tips to come next week… stay tuned.