Just wondering who plans to build there house when they get to Adelaide?

I am seriously considering it and hope to first rent for about six months while looking at areas and land possibilities.

My favorite so far is one of the Henley homes, but i may have to set my sights a little lower to enable me to have a less stressful family life and spare money.

It is hard to work out exactly what you can afford until you are there. You need to take in to account house sale, moving expences, exchange rate and pay from job before you have a more definate budget.

What is everyone else going to do?

Thanks
Kevin

Which one do you like? I'm dreaming of the Cheval design :)

We have looked into a few designs of new houses but we still plan to go out and rent for a while just to get use to the areas. We will look at other houses for sale but my favourite is the Cheval house by Henley. I love it! I've emailed them for some more information as it doesn't say whether the price includes the cost of land, appliances etc. I'm assuming that it doesn't but it's always worth checking.

Our plan is to go and stay with a friend initially, then rent somewhere whilst hubbie finds a job. We will then hopefully be able to live off his income without having to go into our savings. We want to rent for a minimum of 6 months (if not longer) to get a feel for things. Then we will start to look into housing - we have always ploughed our money into houses and have renovated several from scratch. I am now fed up with never finishing a house totally so I would love to have a brand new house where I can just move into without all the mess around. My friend out in Adelaide has bought a nice house in Flagstaff Hills that requires work as he had a smaller budget. This suits him and his family as he works in the trade.

We've been searching on the net for information as to wages so we can judge what income we can hope to receive. Then by looking at other information posted on this website and looking into others I can work out how much bills etc will cost, so hopefully we can budget ourselves to just hubbies inome once we get out there.

Have you thought of areas yet you would like to live? and what are your plans?

Sasha :)

Thats the one snappy the cheval 33.

I also emailed them for more info expecting them to email me, but about a week later i received more details in the post.

We have pretty much the same plans as you- stay with wife relies for a while then rent and then hopefully decide where to build.

We visited last September Me the wife and two children (aged 2 and 4) stayed with wifes Aunt in Seaford Medows area and liked that, so will start search around there.

Kevin

We are dabbling with the idea of building... we liked the Seaford Rise estate Kev...very nicely laid out and landscaped.

Hi, sorry to but in, but I was just wondering what site you are both looking at to see these houses?
Me and hubby are also thinking of getting a house built. We've only done up one old house in England and that was enough! so to have one built from scratch would be wonderful! I want to see the Cheval 33 you are talking about, even if I am only to dream about owning one, one day. :sigh:
Cheers guys.
Natasha
:dance:

Hi Natasha, thought I'd do a search and came up with this for you ~

http://www.hngs.com.au/housePlan.cfm?house_id=115

I have to say I cant believe that price so presume this website must be a bit out of date!!! :bouncing smiles:

This might be an interesteing show to go to......by the way is it OK for me to put links on here or should they go into the 'links' thread? :blink:

Natasha here's the web addresses I have gathered for new houses so far (actually I think some of them are from a thread off ex pats from PP)

http://www.henleypropertiessa.com.au/
http://www.marshallthompson.com.au/
http://www.sterlinghomes.com.au/pages/page.cfm?pageid=4
http://www.hickinbotham.com.au/index1.htm
http://www.sarahhomes.com.au/
http://www.longridgehomes.com.au/home.php
http://www.devine.com.au/
http://www.avjennings.com.au/SA
http://www.fairmonthomes.com.au/
http://www.rossdalehomes.com.au/
http://www.distinctivehomes.com.au/


The first one is with the Cheval design yum :D

Sasha :)

Kevin and PP

Where is Seaford Rise Estate? What is so nice about it? More info please ;)

Sasha :)

OK folks, I see that Snappy is unsure of what is included in the cost of the house, so here goes. Unless the advert specifically states 'house and land package' then the land is not included. You will be looking at $100K - $150K upwards for land, which obviously depends on the area you choose to live in and the size of the block of land you buy.

On top of the cost of the house you should allow a few thousand, say five, for footings costs. Most house builders allow for standard footings in the cost of the house, but if your block needs any extra work then you have to pay for it. "Footings' refers to preparing foundations on a flat, stable block of land. Until they start to build you really won't know if your block has rock in it, or needs compacting before they can build, although you should commission a soil report before buying any land - tihs will tell you if it's a dud or not. Many blocks are offered for sale complete with a soil report already done.

You will get a cooker, (or a rangehood, hob and oven in the more upmarket homes) but not a heater or airconditioning. You'll have to pay for driveways, landscaping, retaining walls, letterbox, curtains, carpets and tiling (except for the bathrooms and laundry, which will be tiled), security doors, window locks, etc etc. A few builders offer some or all of these in the price of the home (which will be correspondendly more expensive of course) so check all the house ads to see what's included. If it's not listed, it's probably not included.

Having a house built can be a really great experience, or a stressful one. We built when we first moved here, and I found it great fun choosing the house and all the fittings etc, and watching it being built, and it helped to take my mind off the initial homesickness.

Lastly, and this will sound horribly snobby I know, but I have to say it - some new housing estates are co-owned by the Housing Trust, Throughout the estate you will find Trust homes scattered in amongst the private dwellings. This can (not always of course) keep the value of your house from rising, because Aussies are very snobby about living next door to Housing Trust tenants. Podgy, I am sorry to say that Seaford Rise is one of these areas, although I have to agree that it is a beautiful area with many lovely homes. Just be sure to choose a street or section that is all private homes, if capital appreciation of your own home is high on your agenda.

adelaidegirl

Thanks for that Adelaidegirl

Even though my hubbie is a panel beater he also works on civil engineering digging out for footings and drainage. Do some developers allow you to build up to foundation levels and then they can carry on? Is there like over here building inspectors to check your work in progress? Our friend is also a plumber by trade so do they allow you to use other trademen to do the jobs? Is land hard to come by? Sorry I have so many question for you now as you really have me thinking about this one :o

I know what you mean about the housing trust as we have the same thing over here - all new estates have to allow a certain percentage to be used for the housing association a similar set up. My hubbie helped out on one site where they built houses worth around £250, all of which sold instantly only for the people to find out that the housing association owned some smaller ones on the same street - they then shipped a load of people from a really rough area to live in them! ooopps :blink:

Sasha :)

Hi Snappy. I think you could probably negotiate with a builder to use your own tradesmen for certain parts of the project, though whether this would be cost effective or affect the house guarantee would have to be discussed and built into the contract beforehand I suppose. The builders use subbies anyway, the same brickie can be laying bricks for Hickinbotham one week, and A V Jennings the next, so it is certainly a possibility. Yes, there are building inspectors here, so any work would no doubt be sighted and signed off by them.

Buying land shouldn't be too much of a problem, the new estates are usually heavily advertised for months before they are released onto the market, and you often see stories in the newspapers where people have camped out overnight in order to be first in the queue on the day they go on sale. However, this is only so that they can get the block they want, perhaps the one with the best view or whatever, there are usually plenty of blocks for sale in any new estate. On the older estates or in established areas you can often find blocks that people have decided not to build on and have put back on the market.

Do you have any rellies here that can post you the real estate section of the Sunday Mail? It is full of adverts for house builders, with plans and prices, and is only a few pages so shouldn't cost much to post.

adelaidegirl

Thanks for that Adelaidegirl I'll speak to my friend out there and see if they can send it over to me. :thumbs up:

Are the people like AV Jennings and Henley Properties like the Aussie version of Westbury homes or Barrett homes? Do they design new estates like they do over here with various developers who build certain design spec houses but this is intermingled with self builds and housing association? So could I go to the developer and buy my dream home without having to go searching for the land etc etc?

Sorry to be a pain but I haven't come across anyone who has actually gone ahead and built out there before now - so you will have me annoying you now FOREVER :medium smiley2:

Sasha :)

Henley homes ,check out some recent ,court cases , i can say no more :ph43r: ...mm

check out DELFIN realty , web site...mm

Mr Mover

You are excellent at giving us the low down on things.

I'm now gutted if Henley homes are dodgey dealers though as I WANT THAT HOUSE! Maybe I can just nick their designs :devil:

Sasha :)

I cant say too much ,but they have had a few structual problems at Spring hill,{golden grove} wether its design, or as they put it dodgy contracters ? i don t know. but they had some very expensive repair bills . if you pinch a design make sure you make some minor alterations, as they are pretty hot on this here. :ph43r: ........mm

Hi Kevt here,
My wife Kelly has just signed on at home, i am signed on at work as Kevt.

Seaford meadows and seaford rise estate are way down the coast, past glenelg past brighton, and a little bit down past christies beach, about 30 mins fron the centre of Adelaide.

Not heard about the bad press for Henley homes but as Snappy said i would also be very disapointed.

I know that AV jennings will only sell a completed house, i asked this when i visited the show house as i am a decorator and asked if i could paint the house to save a bit of money, they said no, but said some builders do allow this.

Any one looked at building at aldinga beach area, there seems to be lots of land that keeps coming up for sale there. This is about another 20 mins down the coast from Seaford meadows.

From what i saw of builders when i visited, most of the builders offer land and house packages, but some developements have several builders on all selling there own designs, such as Mawson lakes, North of Adelaide.

Mr Mower, do you know of any good builders in Adelaide?

Mr Mover

Do they tend to be timber framed houses? Over here they seem to be building houses everywhere in some really stupid places - i.e. on marshy land and then afterwards have no end of trouble is it the same out there?

I can remember that one developer had terrible trouble with the designs of a certain timber house and that caused no end of trouble - do you think it is the same with Henley?

Sorry for all the questions as I'm just trying to work out if the developers out there are similar to the ones over here - i.e. better off building it yourself rather than using a developer!

Sasha :)

PS I was only joking about pinching the design :devil:

Good morning Snappy and everyone. Ummm, well I did think when I saw Henley mentioned that I had seen some bad press for them a couple of years ago, but they could have lifted their game now so I didn't mention it - I'm glad that Mr Mover said something, I've been agonising over whether to tip you off or stay out of it.

Once you get here you'll find there are lots of builders who offer similar homes to Henley so don't worry. If you see a design that is close to what you want all the builders will allow you to modify it to suit your own needs (providing it is one of their designs of course) , ie move a wall here, add a room there - depending on what you want they might charge a bit extra.

Most houses here are brick veneer, that is a timber or steel frame with a veneer of bricks. These are perfectly suitable for our climate, but you can pay extra and have double skinned brick if you want - I don't think many people bother though.

Some new estates are owned entirely by one builder, so you can only build their houses (ie A V Jennings tend to do this) and some estates (ie Blackwood Park) are sold block by block by the developers to the public and you can build with any builder.

Some builders (Marshall Thompson, A V Jennings, builders at Mawson Lakes) also build spec homes, ie half a dozen houses in one road, which they sell off the plan - you see the plan and sign up for it before it's built.

Also, you might find a house and land package that will save you from going out searching for your own land - many builders will buy up a few blocks in a new estate and offer you a choice of houses to put on it.

Someone mentioned Aldiinga - it's about an hour's drive from the city - but then not everyone wants to live near the city. Nice beach there, lots of new development because it's the absolute end of surburbia, but in my opinion set to rise in value as the new homes go in. Lots of people have holiday homes in the area. For anyone into capital appreciation, the real estate guru's here in Adelaide tip the next areas to rise steeply in value to be anywhere that is not directly on the esplanade but which is set on a hilll so that it has views of the sea - the top picks being Marino and Hallet Cove. We'll see if they're right this time next year!

This is turning into another one of my long posts - every time I post I tell myself to keep it short and sweet but I can never quite manage it, heh heh.

adelaidegirl

Hello Everyone

Subject: House builders in SA

Just a response in reply to the comment earlier on the "Cheval 33 Mk2 - $164,900" house by Henely Properties as seen on the Home & Garden Showcase website.
----------------------------------
(Anniegran March 9 2004 2:50am)
Hi Natasha, thought I'd do a search and came up with this for you ~
http://www.hngs.com.au/housePlan.cfm?house_id=115
I have to say I cant believe that price so presume this website must be a bit out of date!!!
---------------------------------
I would like to mention that the HnGS website is up to date and the price only includes the house value and not the land associated with it. Henley Properties are a reputable South Australian builder and have cemented themselves as one of the best residential home builders in the state.

If you are planning to build a new home in South Australia, I would also look at Ian Wood Homes as an alternative> http://www.hngs.com.au/plans.cfm?business_id=3667&type=house < Ian Wood Homes have 23 house plans with us.

For the latest information on homes please visit www.hngs.com.au
or email us at info@hngs.com.au for enquiries about houses in SA.

Have we upset someone? MM how could you? :devil:

Sasha, have you checked out the Manorwood by Ian Wood Homes?! :P

oooooooo nice! :thumbs up:

I think I would rather move the rumpus downstairs and the master upstairs though. I live in a bungalow at the moment and I can't wait to have a bedroom upstairs, I hate the fact that if someone comes round and I'm having a lie in they literally walk passed my bedroom door.

I like the way the kitchen is the serious centre of the house, nice plan. It's trying to find everything you want in a house design - I'll have to check out the others by them. Like the look from the front though better than the Cheval which we did think was a bit plain.

Sasha :)

I guess thats why ,we have been moving people , in to rental accomodation while Henly have been fixing up their mistakes,? solid brick homes in the Eastern part of Adelaide have been , cracking due to the lack of solid foundation . do research on BAY OF BISCAY clay and the problems it causes, in house construction. And [this is only my personal opinon} any one who builds a 2 story house in Adelaide, has rocks in their head , cooling a top story in 40 degree heat in summer , is expensive and from my experience not very practicable, lost count of the number of houses i have been into were as the kids have been sleeping down stairs in summer ,because the air conditioner cant cope. .......the early pioneers , had the right idea , low houses , full verandahs, big doors /windows. tin roofs [ exchanges heat very quickly} but we still insist on building , european style houses . ......... :ph43r: .....mm ps sorry about the rant.

Lots of good builders in Adelaide , henly have probably built more good homes than bad ones, but then you only hear about the GOOD ones, most builders subbie 90% 0f their work so the job you get is only as good as the people they employ. JUST do your home work there is not a lot of transparency in this industry..... :ph43r: ..mm

Thanks for the tip I will look into that. I did dream of having a two storey but that said I did see a really nice design from a website in Queensland for a single storey. I think it is just a case that from living in a bungalow I know what is a complete design let down so I know exactly what sort of single storey I would want but it's a question of finding it or trying to build it! I hate the fact that bedrooms are always so close to the main living areas or the bathrooms are in a stupid location.

Sasha :)

KevT Have you checked them out yet? Julia was right it is worth a look!

Sasha :)

If you are thinking of a single storey, our (current) favourite design is the Belmore 310 from A V Jennings.

We've been having a look tonight. There are some really nice houses on the website. I'm looking into the Bay of Biscay clay as recommended by MM.

Sasha :)

Hi All,

Its hubbies dream to build our home, he too is hoping to build for others as well! :thumbs up:

He's worked on many housing projects and can't wait to 'see a finished product' as he puts it again. At the moment he's in facilities management! And bored as now they know he's leaving they won't give him anything interesting to work on.

Tracey

Hi Sasha,

Im still drawn towards the cheval 33, but take on board all the advice of what to look out for. Even in england you can have nightmare problems when the house has major defalts and the builder is dragging there feet to rectify them.

I have been trying to rougthly work our finances out and think that i will definatley have to lower my sights or risk being in a simular posistion as i am now with a mortgage taking any spare money.

The plan is to have spare money to spend having more family time together.

Until ihave sold house, exchanged money a got a job i am not going to know exactly what i can afford.

I will just have to dream at the moment.

Kevin

Hi Guys, regarding building a house. The actual builder who sells you the home ie Henley, Av jennings etc etc only sell you the home and are resposible for it. They all sub contract the work out. But you do get a 25 year structural guarantee, 50 with steel framed. There are hundreds of designs out there, spend 2 weeks looking at showhomes and you will still not see them all.We personally like Henleys, AV Jennings, Rossdale and Fairmont designs. The land in Adelaide is a bit scarce these days, but a four bedroomed house with land, driveway, paths, tiling, cutains, light fixings, air conditioner, heater, establish the garden,, carpets, stamp duty and other fees will cost at least $275k. But you could sell it within 6 months for $300k, as you've done the hard work.

Steve and Lynsie <_<

anyone interested in building a classic queenslander home???? something a bit different to check out - > http://www.hngs.com.au/housePlan.cfm?house_id=129
Forest Glen Kit Homes - there is also weblink to their main website

Hello its Daz husband of rach here

Did i hear somewhere that a load of cheaper land is going to be made available by the councils this year specifically aimed towards first timers.
Also i read from someone earlier about estates on hills being the big movers this year.This doesn't suprise me as esplanade prices are ridiculously high and Rach and i have been looking at alot of houses in these areas and especially seacombe heights which seems an area about to take off.
We looked at a house in the bel air area and went to the auction (Andy and Melanie were there) and it was tatty,had a bit of a view but had 2000ish sqm on a bit of a slope and it was left unsold at $245k highest bid(i think they wanted 259k) whereas we went to look at one at seacombe estimate 245 - 290k and it sold for $310k before the end date for offers was up(Wish we got it!).
When you go to look at houses unlike uk they set a time for everyone to go at once(i'm sure this is to work up a bit of a fervour) but the impression i got is that people are being very cautious with there money at the mo and some places are going unsold.The boom period has definately slowed up big time and with a couple more interest rises due i think now is a period of wait and see.
We thought about building and maybe i'm a bit to cautious but i can't see any great savings,land in established areas is too expensive and if its unestablished its a bit to much of a gamble for me as to what that areas gonna be like.I think renovation properties in established areas are the best bet and having made a few quid using this method i think i'll stick to it for now. :rolleyes:


Take it easy.Smell ya later DAZ :bouncing smiles:

I was reading over here about the property boom slowing down Daz, which has put us in a bit of a quandry really, as we were thinking of buying some land whilst we were in Adelaide on hols later this month. We are now thinking of holding off and maybe renting or staying with relatives when we finally move over in November. It's just that I think it's help make the transition easier if we have our own place, especially to give the kids some sense of routine. Mind you, they seem to get on fine without that half the time! ;)

What does everyone else think?

We plan to rent for at least 6 months if not more to get used to the areas. That said there is no harm in you looking at plots when your out there. Just go with the flow but be careful you don't jump in and find you hate the location later. I suppose you could always sell straight away like Daz said and make a profit if you do hate it. As for could the costs come down it's a risk you take - they said for ages that the boom has finished over here but in our area houses went up by 10% from Christmas. I don't know Julia I think you'll have to make up your own mind on that one as it's difficult to say.

Sasha :)

PS

I haven't heard that one in ages Daz - made my laugh :lol:

Beware of opinions thrown around as cold hard facts! MM seems to have a strong dislike of said builders. There are standards and regualtory authorities in the building industry, and if said companies were producing defective homes at the rates claimed by MM, then there would be a public / industry outcry and investigation
I think we all need to beware of biased and self-serving opinions on public forums such as this.

Peace :dance:

Gander - Welcome to the site by the way. :)

We can not see these houses so I would rather be aware of all the facts before we get out there and buy a house. Mr Mover has been there for years and knows the areas very well so I know he has seen quite a lot of things in his time. I think it is a case that like most developers over here the brand new housing estates look fantastic but it is always good to know someone who actually knows the background of certain developments to guage the whole picture.

As we are not over there yet we do need to have every view possible to get a better picture and if we do get a view good or bad we can then look into it. MM is very good at pointing things out for us to look into, his opinions do not necessarily persuade me but they give me something else to research to make an informed choice - this I think is invaluable so thank you MM :)

Where do you live? are you in Adelaide? and what do you do for a living? are you a builder for a developer? If you live on such an estate then please give us your opinion on it as we would love to hear it. Like I said all information is useful for us so please expand on your experiences.

Sasha :)

Sorry if I sounded condescending but I am being genuine I do value everyone's opinions and want to hear more.

Sasha :)