Building Your Home

[Moorf]

Has anyone built their own home in NZ? Or investigated the costs of doing so?

We are toying with the idea of buying some land and having one of the "Heritage" designs put on it.. they are really cheap to build ($150 for 4 bed ensuite wraparound veranda type thing) but I can't believe the total cost is just land and build.. or is it really that simple?!!

Woz seems to think that that's that (wow how many "thats" in one sentence!!). But surely there must be other costs such as connections, foundations etc or hidden costs that need to be budgeted for?

I must admit the whole "build your own" is a bit scary to me so I'd be really interested in hearing from anyone who has done/is doing this!

[eric_amanda]

Hi Moorf

We have not done it, but we did look into it and these fact stick with me:

At least $20,000 to have services conected, incl water and septic tanks fitted for rural

A general rule of thumb for building was about $1000 for every square metre

We have a couple of friends who have done this and they have both said that their are LOTS of hidden costs.

It would be interesting to see what you find out.

Amanda

[Yogi]

There's a housebuilding website for Christchurch area at:

http://www.cdh.co.nz

Their website is quite good and lists extensively what is included and potential build prices for all properties on their site.

They don't include central heating however (a must for us) but I've gathered to budget around NZ$20k for an oil fired system in a 4 bed house.

Cheers,

Yogi.

[Bubbles]

Moorf,

http://www.enz.org/forum/viewtopic.p...590b2ad6c0852f

john

I think you may have posted this link to me some time ago

[Diny]

This is one of the avenues PB and I have thought about going down. When you say the 'heritage' is $150k, is that just the house supplied and built or does that also include all the electrical supplies too - i.e. the wires, cables, plug sockets and light switches. I would imagine you have to get a sparky in to wire it all up.

Does the price provide just a shell or do you get a fitted kitchen and bathroom too. Is any decorating in with that price (I wouldn't imagine not).

We kind of came to the conclusion that once you've bought the plot of land (or should I say section), bought the house and paid for all the other stuff you end up with quite an invoice. But - you do get a brand new place built just how you want it.

I'd be interested to hear what folks have found out on this one.

Diny

[Moorf]

Diny - the company we have seen and made initial enquiries with is Murray Homes in Chch. The "Heritage" price is fixed and includes all kitchens, bathrooms etc in the price ($150 is actually their big Heritage - they start at approx $120k!). Also includes all electrics and connections to water/sewage/phone etc providing these services are at the site already. They claimed it's a walk-in solution and they take care of everything. You can spec in your own brands of kitchen/bathroom and change around the internal walls or add on externally or extend decking etc.. it can all be done and priced accordingly.

There is a small deposit to pay at the beginning of the contract and the remainder is payable on completion.. ie. no stage payments.

I personally thought this sounded too good to be true hence my post asking for anyones personal experiences!

What is doesn't include is any sealed drives, landscaping/levelling of site.

We enquired about double glazing and were told this was an extra and could be done for $3k extra.

You can view their plans at http://www.murrayhomes.co.nz/house_plans.htm

[Jo and Andy]

The only info I have for you is that when we visited an emegration consultant, he said that building your own house was the best idea and he had built his own just outside wellington. You got exactly what you wanted and cheaper than buying a premade one.

Have not looked into it yet, bar a looking at a few sites ages ago. Fantastic one about straw, yes Straw houses, don't know the cost but they look fantastic and very good with insulation. http://www.strawbale.co.nz/htm/product.htm could be the end of heating problems, but probably very expensive

[Moorf]

OH JO.. not you too!

Woz doesn't seem able to stick to the norm.. oh no.. he's getting excited about strawbale houses, mudpack houses (yes.. MUD :eek ) and log cabins.. nothing is straightforward in this house!!

[Diny]

Blooming heck Moorf that IS a good price !!!!! And only an extra $3k for double glazing ...... bargain I'd say.

Diny

[Moorf]

Yep and I'm always slightly suspicious of bargains!