Blossom

Have been looking at the Storybook cottages website, and love the designs of these homes. Just wondered if any expats on here had used them, and are they expensive? Would you build a kit home - or employ a builder to do it for you?

Your experiences and advice would be welcome! We're coming over in January for a holiday and hopefully we will be able to find a block of land, before we actually return for good upon retirement.

calNgary

i have looked at a few kit homes unless i wanted a small house 2 bedrooms when you add all costs up it was better to buy a brick house & land package for under $400k, although iam now looking at a steel kit home a bit cheaper than others but i want to have full solar electric & large water tanks so can get rid of utility bills

Sammy T

Can't help much but there is one of these houses near us and I think it's lovely but when I looked into it, it worked out more expensive than the average land/house build around here but I guess you do get an individual looking house for your price.

Sam

OzWannabee

I think it would only work out cheaper if you can do the majority of work yourself. We did look into it but when we approached builders it seemed cheaper to use their own plans.

aasmith1957

Hi
We built our double storey home on poles (3 metre) off the ground(1st floor) on 10 acre block in Jurien Bay Western Australia in 2003. It was a steel framed home clad in Western Red Cedar.We used a company called Ross Squire Homes.We looked at the one we liked and changed it,made it longer and on poles with metal flooring.My husband and i applied to local shire for building ticket and the only thing we couldnt do was the plumbing and electrics.We had family do the electrics cheap and a friend did the plumbing cheap.Hubby and son put up solar hot water system themselves and plumber just hooked it up and did pipe work or whatever.Took us 18 months working on it at weekends(3 days flat), all holidays etc.Was a great feeling of achievement i can tell you.We also did verandahs and decking all the way around and also the decking out from the huge games room.With the left over cladding we put it on the internal walls of the games room. We had sea views from games room and it was really lovely.Made a packet on it when we sold it 3 1/2 years later.Sold it due to getting older and hubby having bad knees and it being too much work trying to oil the western red cedar every few years. It was my hubbies project and i know he felt really proud of what we achieved.Only thing that worried me was when he made me go up on the roof and i felt myself start to slip.(completely freaked out at that point).He was bolting the roof down sitting across the ridge!!!
Cost us $220,000 to build house, finish it off, build American barn and water tanks,that included the land as well.

Petals

Oh built our house and we looked at kit homes. However had builder client who said why buy a kit, trusses and wall frames are made up in the factory these days. Just take plans along.

So oh laid the slab with the help of a team of very good concreters, oh built the frame and roof trusses, got a brickie, plumber Dad did the electrics, plasterer and drainers as we are on septic.

Saved us heaps of money and we have a very good house now, well built and just how we want it.

There is a magazine now called Owner Builder.

bristol123

Hi there, im new here but read youre post and found it quite funny youre in the same situation i was a few years ago, we finished building one in victoria a few years ago just after moving out to australia and found the whole thing a piece of cake. The place we live in now (our second storybook) is the most beautifull house weve had and i think well be staying for a long time... this latest house which is about 30squares came in at just under $290,000 complete which i thaught was pretty competative with some of the volume builders, etc but you get something totaly different and more individual.
Let me know if you want any more dets of my experience with them.

Blossom

Hi, thank you for your post, your experience sounds really interesting and I would be grateful to learn more, see photos etc.

Can you PM me? Oh and welcome to BE!

Blossom

POW148

Why would you want to go full solar electric if you have power near by. I have neighbours who have solar and everyday come rain or shine, they have their back up generators running. as for getting rid of the utility bills, the money you save by not paying an electric bill will have to be put aside to go towards paying for the next set of batteries and replaceing the generator. You will need a gas fridge and they are approx 3 times the cost of a comparative electric one. You have to be careful of what appliances go on and when. All very well going green and saving he environment but old batteries do not save the environment nor does generator exhaust fumes.

Barney

Blossom

We all have our own ideas on homes, and what suits one person does not necessarily suit another. I personally am looking for a house with a bit of character and homely feel. I've lived in a fair few Australian homes, and they were virtually all like big boxes, very boring and mundane to say the least. i prefer traditional / federation / queenslander style homes to the more modern designs, and that is my choice.

Storybook cottages give me exactly what I am looking for, and they are not all small 2 bedroom tiny homes as you imply.

Blossom

Sounds great, and what an achievement, you obviously felt very proud of your own built home.

Blossom

If we were 30 years younger we would probably do the same, but unfortunately not, so we plan to have built the house we really want and can afford, and then enjoy our retirement!

copa

are they solid long lasting homes? I've always thought kit homes were a bit "cheap" ... although I've never seen one in reality ... its just a perception i've had.