wez130

So, we've been looking at options for when we move to New Zealand, fortunateley, we're in a position where we can stay with my wife's parents for as long as we need to. So, the obvious options for our own place are to buy at auction / open home etc, or we could buy some land and build our own place.

I like the idea of buying some land and i've seen some of these houses for removal on trademe, which seem really cheap for what you get, i already know that you're mainly paying for the land when you buy a house.

Anyway, back on topic, how do these houses for removal work?

For example,

3 BEDROOM CHARACTER FILLED HOUSE FOR REMOVAL | Trade Me Property

$15000 for that seems a bargain. Assuming we had the land, what process would we have to take to get that house for example. They say it would cost approx $35k to relocate that house, is that just delivery? Or would that include erection etc?

What hidden costs are there? Is it actually worth it?

Moses2013

Not in New Zealand myself now but you might want to read this
FAQ - The Relocatable House Co.– The Relocatable House Co.

To give you an idea about average shift costs, the general rule of thumb to shift a house within a 100km radius of where it is currently sited is, we say:
For a standard TWO PIECE SHIFT onto standard pile foundations allow $25k to $30k plus GST , plus a further $5k for brick cladding (to be removed and re-instated once relocated)
You may save between 20% and 50% off a new build if you plan and budget well.
You will need to have a budget of around $100K to relocate a house from start to finish (this EXCLUDES the actual price of the house).


I don't see the value of a house like that when you can build so cheap these days, or let's say you have far better materials for energy efficiency available. A modern container home would be far better than anything like the link you posted if you calculate the whole price.

LittleGreyCat

I was quite taken with the idea of a "used" home (partly because you just don't see them in the UK) and had a look at a couple of "used house lots". One just outside Auckland and the other just north of Whangarei.

Suffice it so say that if you think average older NZ houses are bad, consider what a house which is so far below NZ standards that it isn't worth fixing up would be like.

Most of them had "character".

So - complete new electrics, plumbing, rip out the foul interior and replace/redecorate. Probably some roof repairs. Need insulation and double glazing. Oh, replace any wood that is damaged, rotten, infested or otherwise sub-standard.

Hmmm....what haven't you replaced? Not much, really.

Unless you are moving an historic building to a new location, you are better off with a new build.

In the UK beyond a certain point it is cheaper to knock a house (or office block) down and rebuild than to refurbish to the latest building regulations.

Genesis

I thought it was about 2k per sq mt to build an average home plus the land. If you look at the cost of this, $15k and say $30 to $40 for the resiting which was what I had been told it costs too that is say $60k all up allowing for a 10% overspend. That is about $550 per metre all up plus the land. That looks like a bargain to me, especially if you like art deco houses. Not in a million years could you build that property for $60k. I would do it.

wez130

That's also what i read, a decent house costs $2k / sq/m to build. They reckon to have one of these taken down, moved and rebuilt on your own piece of land, all renovated and reclad will cost somewhere in the region of $100k. I'd imagine the costs would come down if you're handy at DIY yourself (which i am). Although, building the house needs to be done by a licenced builder etc.

I've found one of these houses that was built in 1989, has 213 sq/m of floor space and looks pretty good to me for $10k + $65k (+gst).

LARGE AND MODERN TWO STOREY BRICK HOUSE WITH GREAT KITCHEN TO RELOCATE - The Relocatable House Co.– The Relocatable House Co.

Stick that on some land with a beach view, eg.

CLIFF WATERFRONT SECTION... | Trade Me Property

That's an easy $100k profit once complete.

SSky

Some of the old villas are beautiful, I would have considered buying one of those and relocating to our land but there was a waiting list of us buyers when I looked into it in Christchurch.
It can't be completely out of the question can it if so many folk do it here and if you're handy with the old DIY you can do a lot of the work and just get it signed off by a registered trades person.
I can't remember the costs now, I think the stilts that a lot of the older houses sit on was about 11k. Just remember to cost in all the permits and your septic system.

Genesis

You are on the money there. You are so right and if like me you are good with your hands you will do well and it will save you heaps plus you have the satisfaction of living in a home that you have had a huge input into.

You are right about the LBP thing. You must have all work carried out by a licenced builder unless it is replacing like for like which is what you would be doing.

I hope you do it. I am sure it will be a huge success for you.

Robbie2010

Make sure the land you buy doesn't have a covenant on it banning relocated buildings.

Moses2013

Exactly and apart from the character there are no other benefits. Every project will be different and depends on the house but you'll probably end up with cracked walls and will have to replace everything. The other issue is red tape. Even with import taxes and other costs, you'd be better off shipping in a German manufactured kit home that will have a real value(including better energy rating).

Bo-Jangles

Not exactly hidden but you would have to factor in significant cost of getting services, connecting to water mains and sewerage or installing water tank and septic tank systems, a concrete pad, piles or whatever the house will sit on, landscaping, retaining walls access driveways, storm water drainage - I imagine the list could go on.

escapedtonz

The cost per sq m all depends where in the country you are living. Here in Tauranga bottom spec starts around $1200-$1400, middle of the road $1500-$1600 then high spec maybe $1800 plus up to whatever you want to spend and of course plus the cost of the land with seperate title.
Ours build is around $1685/$1700 per sq m and was a design from the medium spec that we have upgraded. One thing you cannot do is downgrade a high spec home so we thought it best to go for a larger home with a medium spec (which is pretty good) and then pimp it up

escapedtonz

The actual cost to buy a relocatable home is peanuts in the grand scheme of things and all you are basically getting is a shell as anything else won't be good for anything other than the skip.
It'd be a good idea to buy a more recent relocatable home than an older one as it may have better spec and less issues. It may even have some insulation whoopee!
So lets say $20k to buy and $40k to relocate on to your land. Bottom dollar it'll cost at least $25k for your earthworks and $10k for the slab so you have a build platform so with a bit of contingency that's $100k gone in the blink of an eye.
A massive unknown cost will be for your utilities.
Gas isn't an issue as if a mains connection is possible it's probably stupid money to get so you'd forget going the mains gas route and just opt for LPG if you need gas which would be a much lower connection cost.
Electricity can cost $25k depending on where your section and property is situated in the vicinity of the nearest LV overhead line or cable. Note: If it's a rural section you will not be able to have a single phase supply so the costs go up. Problems with volt drop with a large load on the end of a tiny cable so you'll generally use 2 phases of a 3 phase supply.
Then you've got to think about water. Is a town water supply possible?
If so, how far is it from the boundary where the supply terminates to the house. A trench has to be dug for it - this is where you take the opportunity to drop in a fibre for future use and a copper for current broadband use. You also put another power cable in there and maybe CAT5 so you can have a powered entrance gate and an intercom - which all cost money but you'd be an idiot not to put them in at that point).
Is the town water supply sufficient pressure? If not you may need a separate tank for fire fighting.
If you have no town water supply then you'll need a gravity fed tank so this has massive implications on how you collect the water. May mean you need a new roof on the house so all the water goes in to one corner to collect the rain water for your fresh water plus you'll need something for fire fighting ?
Then you have to think about wastewater. Is there a town sewer connection available. If not you'll need a septic system and I can tell you, rock bottom price for a septic system is $17k.
Then you gotta think about stormwater on the site because of the septic system as it cannot get waterlogged as we all know what happens. You'll need a stormwater trench, culverts, sump holes etc.

Get the house on site and with all the above questions worked out you may have spent $150-$175k already.
It generally costs $70-$100k just to re-clad a house. That is strip down, make sure everything underneath satisfy's latest building code and then re-clad in brick/weatherboard or whatever.....and you've not even started on the inside yet!
Biggest headache will be meeting build code. I'd expect you'd virtually have to strip it down to a shell and start all over again but then I'd question whether it's worth it. Even if you don't want to be spending $1700 per sq m on a new build there are other options. There are kit set homes that can be built in a factory and just delivered to site and plonked on your slab virtually completed indoors out of the rain.
In my honest opinion, understanding that you feel it's a great and cheaper option...in the long run it wouldn't be. I get the urge to live in a traditional Kiwi villa and turn it in to a beautiful home but refurbishing old houses is just as expensive if not more expensive and more stress than building from new.
Good luck with whatever you decide.