LeeM Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 So we're looking at maybe (probably) knocking down our place and building something new Anyone gone through this and can steer me in the right direction as to where to start and what to look out for? Try our bank first, or a broker for the finance? We owe $200k, current property value is anywhere from $450 to $550k (going by recent sales and similar properties on the market in the area) It's a 1955 built 3 bed house that probably needs $100k worth of work to basically gut the place and tart up nice, yet we think that will be a waste of time and money as we're over the nostalgia/old home thing. We already have a major builder and site supervisor we want to use with a couple of their standard house plans that we'll tweak a bit (I install robes and shelving in a lot of their builds, and their attention to detail is much higher than I see with other builders) Any advice appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Philbee Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 Lee, I've started down this road too.... All new to me and I'm not in the industry. Look forward to hearing from anyone who has. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter John Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 Always a broker- that’s a relationship where as with a banker they are biased and they change over a lot. Check out three brokers, check out there resume, pick someone you like and someone who works with people like you. Get 3 quotes from builders- go the big ones as they are a polished machine. Modifying their plans as you may may not know if often not allowed or costly so when they give you options that’s often all they give you for a streamlined process. Good luck- out with the old in with the functional! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian in buddina Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 Start by writting down a list of what you are trying to achieve. Not too early to show on your list: estimated building footprint area X estmated $ per M2 = rough $$$ what does your $ per M2 cost include & not include??? ( be careful here) Consultants fees, permits, expensive footings... add in 'other' costs like landscaping, driveway, Pcar garage, window furnishings, pool, " The $50,000 kitchen", flash flooring, special lighting............... then add a 5 to 10% contingency on top of everything. This is first try project costs , with an unknown range of error. So refine your list and your estimate. Does your project costs equal your budget? A builder can help you with costs & refer you to Building Designer/Architect. Broker/banker will tell you how much dept you are good for. A Building Designer or Architect can turn 'a list of what you are trying to achieve' and rough square meter areas into a design/drawings that can be quoted on by builders for a fixed price contract. A Building designer/Architect should come out at no cost for a first visit, to see if they understand what you are trying to achieve and if you like them. They can then give you a fixed quotation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeM Posted 30May, 2018 Author Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 Cheers guys. We have an aerial pic of the property and plans with metreage etc, and have overlaid how we want the property to sit on the land available to show any builders. I'm sure we can keep our existing driveway/garage etc, so we'd like to delete any carports on the plans to trade for ducted air conditioning or the like (told the missus no air cond, no build!), yet that's getting a bit ahead of ourselves I know that this will be an utter pain in the arse and I'd prefer not to do it for our own sanity/financial position, but this is what we want/need to do Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tips Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 Lee also factor in the storage of your gear and the rent during the build with a slight overlap for contingencies, unless you have a family member that you can all ‘enjoy each other’s company’ for 6 months!! maybe if you are keeping the garage that can be your low cost storage? That’s what we did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hugh Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 You need to be realistic, expect things to take longer than expected (due to any unforeseen issues etc.) and this will also have an impact on costs. The nature of the business unfortunately isn't an exact science but in my experience so long as you are engaging professionals the quality needs to proportional to the time & $$$ invested. Like most things and in most instances, you get what you pay for. As Tips has also mentioned above, you need to ensure you have factored in all your costs (rent, extra travel time, landscaping etc.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevepGT3 Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 10 hours ago, LeeM said: So we're looking at maybe (probably) knocking down our place and building something new Anyone gone through this and can steer me in the right direction as to where to start and what to look out for? Try our bank first, or a broker for the finance? We owe $200k, current property value is anywhere from $450 to $550k (going by recent sales and similar properties on the market in the area) It's a 1955 built 3 bed house that probably needs $100k worth of work to basically gut the place and tart up nice, yet we think that will be a waste of time and money as we're over the nostalgia/old home thing. We already have a major builder and site supervisor we want to use with a couple of their standard house plans that we'll tweak a bit (I install robes and shelving in a lot of their builds, and their attention to detail is much higher than I see with other builders) Any advice appreciated Just move, and save yourself the heart and wallet ache. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tips Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 @Lee agree with @Peter John in the current lending climate with the recent attention and pending interest rate changes next year I would also suggest a broker. I just spent 3 days with a few thousand agents over the weekend and the unanimous feedback was that banks were being tougher. Certainly loan to value ratios, scrutiny on property valuations and income verification are all mandatories now. A broker will better understand your requirements and what the lenders are requiring, to hopefully recommend a couple of options. Get some advice on potentially locking in all or part of your mortgage as well as rates will eventually rise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter John Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 Def @Tips I’m sure a few business men amongst- hurdles a plenty and hoops to navigate. It may age you 10 years! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeM Posted 30May, 2018 Author Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 16 minutes ago, StevepGT3 said: Just move, and save yourself the heart and wallet ache. Try convincing my missus that one! ? ? 1 hour ago, Tips said: maybe if you are keeping the garage that can be your low cost storage? That’s what we did. That's the plan mate. Also a big skip to dump a load if crap I don't need! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakroo Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 Lee, don't forget to budget for the removal of the old house. Bricks, concrete, glass, tiles etc are expensive to get rid on a big sale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevepGT3 Posted 30May, 2018 Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 1 minute ago, LeeM said: Try convincing my missus that one! ? ? Piece o Piss,get her to talk to people who have done it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeM Posted 30May, 2018 Author Report Share Posted 30May, 2018 23 minutes ago, hugh said: As Tips has also mentioned above, you need to ensure you have factored in all your costs (rent, extra travel time, landscaping etc.) Landscaping is covered. Cement the whole front yard and use an Italian broom to clean it ? Well aware of the unforseen problems onsite mate. I deal with them most days Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avon Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 Good advice above. Currently going through the process at the moment. Old house down, new one about to start. tips so far: 1) Demolition companies - be careful here - while they need some sort of building license, they fall into the lower end of the category and don't have the same level of responsibility as a proper building contractor. Make sure they have insurance, establish an agreed time to complete job, progress payment schedule, do as much communication by email as possible so you have things in writing. Ours took 5 months to knock down the house and then has the cheek to ask for extra money. Get clarity on how they deal with stumps, broken fences, neighbor disturbances (go around neighbourhood with a box of wine and distribute generously helps enormously to get them onside), is the driveway / crossover included, make sure site is raked to 500mm or so and check the footings are all gone before paying final installment. Demolition usually $15 - $25k but depends on asbestos / tip distance / fees / disconnections / house size.. 2) Get quotes for the items the builder won't do. This can extend to lighting, carpets, driveways etc. The bank will need to know these costs if you are not doing a complete finished build. Some builders charge a premium for lighting, carpets etc as they don't want to deal with the interior decorating aspects, and you might find a big difference in the cost between arranging the finishing yourself vs. getting them to do it. 3) Don't neglect to get the design of the outside of the house looking great, hire an architect just to help with the exterior presentation if you want to really nail it. Our old house was early 1980's and looked utter garbage from the street, there wasn't much you could do with it visually. However one down the street still looks sensational and it was the same era, its not going to get demolished any time soon. 4) Builders often don't like working with existing structures, they can cause warranty dramas if there are leaks, supporting structures, old foundations... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deano Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 and go private for all of your permits wherever possible. Our local council is truly manned by a group of numpties. They split their staff into Building and Engineering, who don't talk to each other, and the communal brains are shared depending on the day of the week. I was told by the pleasant receptionist that I'd need to write to the planning minister himself. This was to replace the backyard shed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeM Posted 31May, 2018 Author Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 I'm getting a headache already! ? Cheers all, keep them coming ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian in buddina Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 what does the misses want? New kitchen & ensuite? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANF Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 You know the simple answer Lee.... sell the 911 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeM Posted 31May, 2018 Author Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 1 hour ago, brian in buddina said: what does the misses want? New kitchen & ensuite? Ensuite and walk in robe mainly. We have a newish kitchen. We've looked at a reno/room additions before, yet it just doesn't make financial sense to me. If it was just me, I'd sell up and move semi rural with no neighbours, a big shed that's half living space half garage, but I have another head to deal with so that's out of the question. She's not mega fussy, but she wants what she wants which is understandable and I want to keep her happy 2 minutes ago, ANF said: You know the simple answer Lee.... sell the 911 Was waiting for that. Funny, as I was looking at 2 928's on Gumtree here earlier. Provably why I have a bigger headache now ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian in buddina Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 review doing a reno/addition a 75 to 100k addition will be cheaper than a knock down/all new talk to a builder & or designer who specialises in that kind of work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GC9911 Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 Lee, you are about to enter a world of pain. I just finished a reno/build additions (my sixth to date) that the builder estimated @ $330K but I allowed $500K & I’ve all but used it (this does include some additional things we added along the way that weren’t part of the original estimate). I have 46 years experience in the building/facilities management business & IMHO the old adage of allowing 10% extra doesn’t cut it anymore, add 20/25% to the estimate to avoid the shock. Personaly I’d move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troubleshooter Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeM Posted 31May, 2018 Author Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 1 hour ago, GC9911 said: Lee, you are about to enter a world of pain Personaly I’d move. Cheers for that mate I've run out of my daily 'like' allowance so I have to quote instead. I usually add a 20% contingency to anything I do. I always expect unforseen problems, a.k.a tradie/supplier bullshit in my job as a contractor in the industry, so I'm not sugar coating what to expect to the missus. If we have a budget, that's it no more, and I refuse to get into a huge financial debt just for 2 bathrooms and a walk in robe! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevepGT3 Posted 31May, 2018 Report Share Posted 31May, 2018 7 minutes ago, LeeM said: Cheers for that mate I've run out of my daily 'like' allowance so I have to quote instead. I usually add a 20% contingency to anything I do. I always expect unforseen problems, a.k.a tradie/supplier bullshit in my job as a contractor in the industry, so I'm not sugar coating what to expect to the missus. If we have a budget, that's it no more, and I refuse to get into a huge financial debt just for 2 bathrooms and a walk in robe! In 12 months time the vent thread is going to blow up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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