verystormy

Hi all.
We have been looking on realeastate.com.au at house prices. One of the options on there is for land and house packages and they seem very good value for money. Has anyone done this? We are looking for the Sydney area, but would be interested in peoples experiences anywhere.

mand8002

We did this and it really is pretty straightforward. I found it cost effective and it also meant that we could pick exactly what we wanted. We purchased the land and house from the same builder which probably made things easier.

Amanda

MisterTwo

We built our own house. We bought the land separately as our chosen builder did not have any land in the town we wanted to live (Berwick in Victoria). We chose the house design we wanted first and then found the land, you will then know that the house will fit. If you choose the land first you may end up compromising on the house size. There are many properties built around here where the land was chosen before the house as there is no space either side of the house. We found things fairly straightforward, however the price you see will not be the price you pay for the house as this price will only include the basics. We upgraded a lot of things in our house and ended up spending another $40,000 on top of the house cost. It was worth it though as we have exactly what we want and all of the enhancements have increased the value of the house, such as paving all around the house, Granite kitchen surfaces, Refrigerated Air Conditioning (anyone who says Evaporative Cooling is good has not experienced Refrigerated, it is like the air con in your car), upgraded oven and hob, heated bathroom mirrors and heated towel rails. You will be amazed at how many houses are built without patios or paths around the house as they are not included. Some builders don't even include floor coverings (ours did) and light fittings aren't included either, although the basic wiring is. Work out exactly what you want, work out what the builder includes and budget for the upgrades. It will be worth it!!

Tiawamutu

I got a house and land type package ('off the plan'), and have done a whole thread on the subject.

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...63#post5808263

Just to warn you, it is 56 pages long, and the thread was started Feb last year. I have covered the whole process from empty plot of land, to finished house

Happy reading and good luck

Timber Floor Au

Theres a great magazine out, in the shops. Build Home
There is a Qld and NSW combined edition, monthly.

Has heaps of info in.

We have just built, bought land, built a house. Similar to Tias, blog thread above.
Plus just about to do it again, if I can sell the darn thing

Be wary of Owner Building, as an option, unless you are extremely confident, and wish to stay in the house over 6 yrs, as no warranties are passed onto purchasers of your home, and as most house builds have a stat 6 yr warranty, then anything past this date, means its on a level field.

Things to be wary of,...sloping blocks, covenants, easements, power lines, and feral neighbours.

Ste

ozzieeagle

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ozzieeagle

I've been sucked into looking at Display homes this week, and fighting all kinds of silly urges...

Basically I went along to look at the possibility of putting a house by Burbank by demolishing my house here in Coburg and building a new one, Burbank were quoting from 122,000 for a 6 star energy rating house. Basically after talking to the consultant and being told a 30,000 buck preparation fee was likely on top of the house build price, plus the flimsy look of the Burbank homes, I decided they were a non starter. I decided on the spur of the moment to look else where.... What I found was head turning, seductive and totally desirable.

Check this out... I went to this exact house up in Mernda, 300,000 as displayed (on your land of course) to say the place is an oasis is an understatement. Thats the whole lot right down to plantation blinds.. bifold doors.. swimming pool... full landscaping front and back the whole kit and kaboodle.

http://www.simonds.com.au/

Then tick single storey, Liana, the go to the photos. and Virtual tour.. check out the Entry photo (thats a glass wall).....

Put that 25 ks north at Highland Craigeburn.... "with absolute lake frontage" (600 to 700sq metres)and it will cost 500,000 bucks.... or 450,000 alongside the golf course.

If I were to sell my very much needing work gaffe here in Coburg... I'd end up with a fair chunk of dosh in my pocket, plus that house.... Like I said very very seductive. F all public transport nearby though, although the Suburburn Railway line goes to Craigeburn now. (25 mins to the CBD by car)

My question is... Porter davis and Metricon seem to do at least if not better standard of finish than Simonds... So who is the best..?

For 450,000 Negotiable... You can get the following Metricon "display" Home at Craigeburn, Adjacent to the Lake. The Linden next door to this place with swimming pool is 456,000 bucks as a Display home.


http://www.metricon.com.au/victoria/...r/default.aspx

Buzzy--Bee

Ozzie, there's two places to help you out. http://forum.homeone.com.au is full of people building houses by project builders such as these.

www.newhomeinspections.com.au does not recommend Simonds by ommission, have a look at his page about who he has inspected.

If I was going to build with a project builder I would choose a smaller one who builds only a few houses a year. They will be more accommodating to change and will be more hands-on themselves.

Buzzy

Timber Floor Au

I must admit, Metricon are bloody good quality houses !

The standard of fit out, level of finishes avail' is second really to none, in their category.

Also, now try this out yourself.

Go on Metricons website, after 8pm of a night, email them.. and i swear you get a response, immediately ( and not an auto responder )

They man all media with military precision.

That to me, shows a greater degree of focus, and customer care, which can only be amplified within their overall contruction experience !

Ste

Buzzy--Bee

So how come the house 3 doors down from us being built by them has been partly constructed for about 4 months now with no sign of any progress?

Buzzy

ozzieeagle

Progress payment delay perhaps ?

BTW Buzzy, I've got to admit I havn't looked very hard, but I've never seen a house finished to the specs that Porter Davis, Metricon or indeed Simonds do by a small builder.

I'm talking about one with the works... Outdoor room, yards of deck... outdoor heaters... landscaping, bifolds... etc etc.

What does the 7 year HIA warranty cover, if it doesn't cover building faults that fellow on that site you pointed at cover ?

If this topic is confusing me a Long term Aussie resident, god knows how it must confuse new Migrants

lissaloo

is it cheaper to buy your own housev ??

Geelong Gent

and feral council

We are doing 2 at the moment including a subdivision. The costs are coming out only just above a Metricon (when you consider the big cost is the inside fittings). But our build will achieve 7+ star ratings.

Ozzie watch out for the Glam appeal in show homes - thats what you are paying for. In my opinion never sacrifice land value for build value. One is long term the other is short term. One grows one dies.

We started off getting quoted $32K per square - now I have comfortably costed the project bottom up its coming closer to $17K per square (including a decent contingency fund). To go below this is cost would definitely be dropping the standard of build.

I do agree with Steve, that when I reviewed the possibility of using a std builder Metricon were in the top 3 for me. This is after visiting several of their showhomes (in different locations too ensure consistent standards). The other one I liked was Porter Davis (partly because one of the directors has a daughter in my daughters class).

I am getting a builder too oversee the entire build (I will do some work myself but under their guideance). What period of guarantee will I expect therefore from them?

Geelong Gent

Depends what spectrum of the market your building

ozzieeagle

If only I could afford to build a Metricon style house on my site here in Coburg.... Trouble is If I sell someone will do exactly that, and I'd never be able to drive past this place again.

I should have done it 15 years ago dammit. The early 50's is too old for a 200,000 plus mortgage despite the end value.

Worst case scenario for me would be... Building a dream home here, then getting laid off or sick, or some other unforeseen circumstance and having to sell.... Bloody tempting moving 15 k's north, building a fantastic house and having no Mortgage.

Edit plus and this is a biggy .... It would'nt surprise me if they placed a historical preservation order on this place within the next 10-15 years...

Does that issue normally reduce values ?




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