We recently got a call from someone we had been working with to design and cost their home.
They weren’t happy! They had decided, after seeing our suggested budget range for their project, that our price seemed expensive compared to other builders.
They had met with another builder and signed a contract to build based on the preliminary drawings they had.
So why weren’t they happy?
The price they had signed the contract on was going up…and rapidly!
What happened was that they had signed a contract prior to doing a number of things which left them wide open to cost changes. These included:
- Carrying out soil tests
- Having a site survey completed
- Gaining Planning Approval with their local Council
- Having Engineering done
- Getting an Energy Rating certificate
- Having the plans go through Private Certification
- As well as selections for items such as:
- Lighting
- Plumbing
- Appliances
- Cladding
- Window finishes
- Flooring
- Tiles
- And often much, much more!
When you work with a professional builder, they may charge for the time they spend working with you and other consultants getting all of these things worked out, and doing it with your budget in mind.
This might cost a bit more upfront, but it saves you being stuck in a building contract you can’t afford. The issue with a building contract is they are generally very expensive to get out of.
It’s why I won’t offer a building contract until we have checked all the items on our checklist.
It also means you know exactly what the whole project will cost and exactly what you are getting, and not getting with your new home.
So how can you protect yourself from being locked into a building contract with spiralling costs?
Don’t sign a building contract until you have got all the documentation that’s in our 16 point checklist.
Fill in the form below to have it emailed today.
