5 common mistakes to avoid when building a new home

Building a new home comes with its fair share of speed bumps! Being in the building industry, we are not prone to it, but we also hear horror stories about people’s building journeys, many of which could have been avoided. 

1. Cutting costs on consultants at the start

The first step of the building journey involves getting your building design drawings and external consultants engaged, such as an engineer, surveyor, certifier, and soil testing technician. Unfortunately, many homeowners don’t want to hire these consultants in the preliminary phase to save money, but this could cost them much more in the long run and extend the project timeline.  

For example, if a certifier is engaged after the home design is done and they recommend changes, the design drawings and the building costs must be updated too. The engineer might also need to make structural changes and redo those plans. You can see how this can easily blow out the timeline and budget!
 
To avoid this, we agree on the concept plan with the client and engage a surveyor and certifier simultaneously to prevent surprises and enable us to price the build accurately. We seek the client’s approval before starting the design and construction to ensure it is within budget. Some engineers and certifiers can provide preliminary feedback by paying them a deposit or full fee in instalments. This option is better than not engaging them from the start at all. 

2. Unaware of the design details 

It is easy to get caught up in the excitement of building your dream home, but it is critical to focus on the design details at the start so you don’t get a surprise during the building process or when the house is complete. Take time to understand your building design drawings, and ask your architect and builder plenty of questions if you need help reading the details on the plans before you approve them. For example, ensure you are fully aware of what your finishes will look and feel like by viewing the samples your builder or designer provides. 3D renders make it much easier for a homeowner to visualise what their home will look like. Also, a VR headset lets you walk through your model to see all those details that might be hard to imagine on the drawings. 

3. Misunderstanding the builder's contract 

Not reading your builder contract properly or fully understanding your terms and conditions before signing can lead to a very costly mistake. Building a home is a significant investment, and before you sign the contract with your builder, take your time to read everything and don’t be afraid to sit down with your builder and ask questions or make changes if you are unsatisfied with something. As a homeowner, you also have obligations under the contract, such as payment terms, things you must provide, and timelines to agree to, such as a practical completion date. Pay attention to those terms and timelines to ensure you are happy before signing off. Ask for legal advice if necessary.

4. Not knowing your scope of work inclusions 

With your build contract, you will also get the builder’s quote and the scope of work, an itemised list of inclusions being delivered as part of the build - such as boundary fencing, landscaping, retaining walls, pool etc. Study the scope of work list carefully to ensure it has every item you expect to be covered under the building quote, and ask to have things included or excluded, depending on your requirements.

5. Not allowing for time and cost contingencies

Despite everyone’s best efforts, things sometimes don’t go as planned when building new homes, especially custom homes. So you must allow for time and cost contingencies for unexpected events like extreme weather and delays and cost increases for materials and trades. The way the industry has been for the last 18 months, even if you are on a fixed-price contract, the builder can come to you with variations for time and budget to ensure they deliver the project to a high standard. So have a buffer to prevent yourself from being caught out, and keep communicating with your builder throughout the process.

As a recap, read everything in detail and stay well-informed throughout the build journey, don’t just assume and keep asking questions - the more you know, the better! 

Bluebird Design + Build are Brisbane’s luxury custom home design and build specialists who work with you every step to design and build a home that looks excellent, matches your budget and meets your family's needs. Find out more about our team here or book a discovery call to see how we can help.