AFFORDABLE HOMES

IMPORTANT POINT: No new home is a perfect creation – it was made by human beings and not by a factory. Many people think that their “new” home will be like other new products they buy in the shopping mall and it will have no defects. This is not true of homes becuase they are built by people and each new home has a number of minor defects. There is no such thing as a perfect new home. Understanding this point and expecting this will relieve a great deal of stress for anyone having a new home built.

Step One: Design: You will need a plan. You can look at plans that a builder already has, and which are costed with prices, or you can design your own. If you design your own it will need to be quoted. When designing your plan, consider things such as what direction the house will face, prevailing wind direction (and where to place windows), rainwater tank location, solar Hot water System placement and other things. Ultimately your friendly builder and draftsman will help you with some of these finer points.

Step Two: Costing: You will want to know how much it will cost. Typically a home is costed with a “base price” which means that the house will cost this much with standard fixtures and fittings, and typically no soft furnishings, driveways or other landscaping. You will want to obtain a list of what standard fittings and fixtures your home is costed with. For exampe this may mean you get a standard plastic bathroom tap instead of the pretty brass fixture your wife is wanting. Understanding what comes standard in your home means you will know what extra money you will need to spend to bring your new home to where you want it to be. Each builder should be able to give you a document showing what is standard and what is not. They should then be able to give you estimates for the ‘extras’ like driveways, curtains, carpets/floor-coverings, landscaping, pools, lawns, extra fancy kitchens (marble tops etc) and such.

Step Three: Pre-Contractual Agreement and Deposit: At this point the customer will make an initial deposit (don’t forget to get a receipt) which will cover drafting, costing, soil tests, and other early incidentals. Some builders will accept deposits as low as $1000. This deposit is to get the ball rolling with many of the things needed before any building can take place at all.

Step Four: Finance: Most people don’t have enough cash to just buy themselves a new home – so they need financing. At this point you will approach your bank and obtain the backing required to proceed with the project.

Step Five: Contracts: Your soil test is back – hopefully the soil is no reactive which means the house will not cost any extra. If the soil is Highly Reactive it can add up to 10% to the cost of your home. Plans are now drawn up and contractual agreements are ready to be signed. You get your lawyer to go over the detail and once you are happy with everything – sign on the dotted line. Make sure you understand the terms and conditions that have to do with going over time with construction, and to do with unforseen circumstances. Make sure you count rainy days that hold up construction (the builder will be counting them).

Step Six: Selection of Colours & Fixtures: Plans are now submitted to the local building authority for approval – this can take from several weeks to several months. While this is happening, now is your time to pick the colours of everything in your home – BEWARE, this can be a big process. Paint colour, brick colour, concrete style, tiles, bathroom fixtures, bath & toilet types, kitchen colours, roof and window colours, door types and door knob types…. the list is long. Make sure your builder gives you a list of his suppliers and what things you need to select. Take your time and proceed to choose everything in the home. If you choose better quality items – this will cause the cost of your home to rise. Also, be careful not to take too long in selecting everything because if this holds up construction (the builder can’t order if he doesn’t know what to order) – it will be your fault and you will not receive penalty delays in your favour.

Step Seven: Construction: Building commences – and takes place in a number of stages. As each stage is completed, there is often a building inspection and it must be approved by the local building authority before construction can continue. Once each approval is obtained, the builder submits the approval to your financier to recieve a progress payment. This is a part payment towards the total cost of the home. Under a normal building contract the stages of construction are:

• Base Stage (concreting, underslab plumbing, initial electrical, site survey and house layout etc)
• Frame Stage (frames and trusses are erected – roof is sometimes installed along with guttering and fascia)
• Lockup Stage (prewire electrical completed, plumbing rough-in completed. External walls completed with all external doors fitted.
• Pre-Paint Stage (the internal walls and doors are completed, plastering finished, and the house ready to be painted.)
• Completion (all other jobs are finished including kitches, tiling, electical, plumbing fit-off, floor coverings etc)

Step Eight: Handover: The builder usually does his final inspections, the house is cleaned by a professional, locks are changed, final payment is made and keys are handed over. In most houses this happens without incident, but sometimes there are disputes. Very simply this is what usually happens… The builder will not usually hand over keys until he recieves all his money, and the owner will not usually pay until he is satisfied with the new home. So at completion, as an owner, make a list of your final fixups and other requests, give the builder time to organise them and then make the final payment.

And… pray that your home is not being built in the leadup to Christmas…

If you’re looking for a Builder in Rockhampton I strongly recommend visiting Scott Kilpatrick’s Affordable Quality Homes Display Home in Rockhampton.

Peter J. Bennett

CEO Innovative Alliances

Know yourself and exactly what you want and expect out of your business. So many people enter into business and spend years in that business environment without having any idea of what they want, or what is possible to get out of their business. And it’s no different in the insurance profession. In fact, most business owners are working so hard in their businesses that they don’t have time to work on them. As a result, they’ve become slaves to their business. They’ve got things backwards. They’re working for their business rather than their business working for them.

Take the time to carefully analyze where you’ve come from, where you are now, and what you want to accomplish in your business, your job or your career. Then begin to set some meaningful goals to help you accomplish your
objectives. You see, if you don’t know where youwant to go, you’ll have no idea of what to do in order to get there. Meaningful goals are an essential requirement for success in business. With goals, you have a target to aim for, a purpose for being, and a direction to travel. Without goals, it’s easy to wander aimlessly, getting sidetracked with any little thing that comes along.

Most builders tend to specialise in one type of construction, so choose a builder who specialises in the type of house you want. Avoid those who claim to be experts in all types as a “Jack-of-all-Trades” is usually a master of none.

2. Is what I see in the display homes what I am going to get in my home?

When you visit a display home, make sure to ask if the inclusions you see in that house are the standard inclusions (as most of the time they aren’t), and if they’re not, what are the standard inclusions. You want to be able to visualise the end product accurately.

3. How long have you been building homes in this area?

Building a new home is a big investment and may well represent your life savings. Therefore you want to build with someone who has a proven track record of at least 15 years. Another tip is that choosing to build with a major franchise isn’t necessarily a guarantee of getting someone with the right experience to do the job. Often they will contract the work out to a local, much smaller builder. Check out the person who will actually be doing the work and not just the franchise who they pay royalties to.

4. What are others saying about this builder?

Find at least two people who have built with that builder in the past, as well as two of their suppliers, and ask lots of questions, such as:

-          Are they happy with their new home?

-          Would they recommend that builder?

-          What was their overall experience like?

-          Did they get everything they were expecting?

-          What was their after-sales service like?

-          Do they honour their warranty?

-          How long did it take to build, and was it on time?

Ask the builders suppliers if they pay their accounts on time and if they are well organised? The last thing you want is for a builder to stop halfway through the construction of your home. That could be a never-ending nightmare.

5. Are there any hidden extras or costs?

Documentation and integrity are the keys to a good relationship with your builder. Make certain that absolutely everything is in writing so there is no confusion or disputes later. Nobody likes surprises, especially when it involves money – your money. The only unknown factor should be the ground works, which will be clarified after the engineer has completed the soil test report and foundation recommendations.

6. Does the builder use a non-chemical, permanent termite protection system?

To protect your investment, an effective termite protection system is essential. Not all systems for new homes are the same. Some cheaper ones require chemicals to be reinstated every year at a cost to you, while others bank on the chemical impregnated material not breaking down over time. Stainless steel termite protection will most likely give you the greatest peace of mind, because you really want your home to be built to last a minimum of 50 years.

7. Has this builder had many complaints lodged against them with the BSA?

In Queensland, you can get all the details and carry out a full licence search at www.bsa.qld.gov.au. Go to the top tab “Online Licence Search” and make a note of the number of homes built over the years and the unresolved complaints lodged against them. If the ratio exceeds one percent, you should be very concerned about that builder.

8. What sort of guarantee do they offer?

There is a statutory six-year structural and six-month defect liability on defective materials and workmanship, but what further guarantees do they offer? Most builders are only prepared to offer the minimum required by law. It would be much better to choose a builder who is confident in their product and workmanship and who backs it up with a fair dinkum, no hassle, no questions asked guarantee. And make sure it’s in writing as part of the contract.

9. Does this builder have an “open book” policy?

It’s unfortunate that in the building industry, suppliers are often instructed to tell you the retail price for fittings instead of the lower price that’s actually charged. Make sure you get what you pay for and deal with a builder who has an “open book” policy.

It was so frustrating…if you wanted floor coverings, the Builder would write you a list of carpet companies. If you wanted landscaping or turf, the Builder would recommend a few landscapers. In reality, you were working for the Builder. It didn’t seem like anything was included.
…for example the curtains, light shades, ceiling fans, clothes hoist, drive way or even screens…they made you take care of yourself.

Now the BIG PROBLEM with this is that it means that it’s all too easy for something to get overlooked…and that can mean both delays and extra expense and complications.
It seemed like everything was extra! You knew whenever the Builder called you, there was more bad news you didn’t budget for.

Most people were prepared to pay $20,000 more for an existing older home. It wasn’t what you wanted, and it was high in maintenance, but at least you could see exactly what you were getting.

AT LAST…AFTER ALL OF THESE YEARS OF ABUSE, A COMPANY THAT KNOWS HOW MUCH YOU ARE WORTH…

Totally embarrassed by the treatment Builders were giving customers, I wanted to be different. I started a company that would focus on you the customer and try to make it so easy, that I could count on you to refer others after moving in. I wanted Affordable Quality Homes to be known as the “One-Stop-Shop of new homes with the best guarantee and after sales service in Central Queensland”.

DID YOU KNOW… We had to pay a price though… we upset all of the other Builders in town because they wanted us to be like them. I had upset so many Builders in CQ, that when we applied to become a Queensland Master Builder, our application was rejected on the grounds of keeping the peace with their members. We were also black listed by suppliers and trades that were loyal to some of the old Builders. Where are they now? Only the Builders that knew the value of a customer in the 90’s are still here. (Out of the 219 Builders listed in the 1992 yellow pages, only 5 are still in business).

We want to provide you with a “One Stop Shop” where you are in total control. You choose exactly how you want things and what’s included…so you will not need to fear letting your loved ones down.
…so that when everything is ready, all you have to do is collect the keys and move in, enjoying your time off.

“We love our home! Scott and his staff helped us through the whole process and made it so easy. We can’t wait to build again…”
Attila and Pam Star, Ranger Street Gracemere

“Our home was finished two months ahead of schedule! It was so simple because we were able to make decisions.”
Justin and Tiffany Nelson, Constantia Crescent Frenchville

“They took a lot of time to help me find the right plan to suit our needs. Then they made all the modifications we wanted to make.”
Steve Stratton, Jamie Crescent Gracemere

“I have built six investment houses with Scott. What I like most is the after sales service. If there was ever anything wrong, they got straight in and fixed it”
Dr. Lynda Lorraway, Rockhampton