What's Happening?

What's happening with our build?  Nothing, zilch, nada!  It has been almost 2 weeks since our slab was poured, there is complete inaction in our site - a big disappointment especially for the hubby who visits our site almost everyday.  I'm pretty sure this is not the case with the other houses being built near our site - we had our slabs poured almost at the same time and yet theirs now have frames.  We are absolutely jealous of them!  Anyway, got a phone call from our CLE this afternoon and she said the framers will start next week - next week, not tomorrow, not on Friday, but next week and it could be any day next week! 

Slabbed!!!!

Thursday 27th was momentous day for us when we received a call from our CLE advising that our slab will be poured this Friday 28th.  We quickly went to the site late in the afternoon to bury in the porch area's soil our eight Feng Shui coins which according to our Feng Shui consultant would bring luck and joy to our new home.  This might sound a bit superstitious but hey, there's no harm in doing it to invite good vibes into our building.  On Friday night, we came back and saw that the slabbing was all completed.

The slabbed porch where the lucky coins were buried

The Ball Has Rolled

Happy 2011!

It's been a while since I last visited the blog site, had a busy holiday period with family from overseas coming over to spend christmas and new year with us.  We also spent a few days in Sydney and Canberra which the kids really enjoyed.  Went back to work on the 10th and was inundated with heaps of urgent tasks. 

At the building front, we were relieved when the land settlement finally happened on the 17th December.  We promised not to hire the same conveyancer in the future because his customer service was nil, we had to chase him just to get things done for us.  I guess thats what happens when you opt for the cheapest service offered in the market.  In saying that, they were highly recommended by our land vendor's agent and we thought that they really knew what they were doing.  Enough said....

On the 23rd December, we have received and signed our final plans.  Our house has a 6.1 energy rating and  there was only one variation asked by the developer before they approved our plans - that was to provide translucent glazing to the bathroom and ensuite windows.  Our slab was also going to be H type, which made us feel happy for choosing fixed site costs because the standard inclusion was only for M type of slab.

Our FHOG and FHOB was approved on the 5th January, after a few dramas because we had to submit our documents four times due to some stringent requirements e.g. the certifier of our documents need to put in their full name with no initials accepted, we also had to dig for our missing marriage certificate which was another requirement.  It was all worth the troubles when we received our letter from the Victorian State Revenue Office approving the $20,000 grant (yey!!!).
Our construction loan account was opened on the 11th January, the bank  transferred across our land loan and advised us that everything is now set and ready for our next progressive draw down which is going to be when our slab is poured.   Our CLE from Carlisle rang us up on the same day to tell us that our site will be scraped in the next few days.  Our Site Supervisor remains to be appointed and we will know and meet him shortly before the slab-pouring.

On the weekend 14th January, we visited our site and lo and behold! the scraping has started.  We are ecstatic, couldn't believe that finally it is now happening.  A few other sites on the same and nearby blocks also started building - some had temporary fences, some don't - ours was placed on Tuesday 18th.  The drain pipes were also installed. Husband is so excited that he visits the site everyday since Monday of this week.  Here are some photos....

Rain rain go away so our site scraping can be completed

Builder's Porta Loo

Fenced!!!

Finally the SOLD sign is up!

The Park/Reserve In Front Of Our Site

First Home Owner Grant

For lack of anything to update on our build due to the delay of our land title and settlement, I decided to post some information regarding the First Home Owner Grant.

The tables below set out the different amounts that first home buyers in Victoria may be eligible for:

Contract Date (1 July 2010 - 30 June 2011)
Conditions	First Home Owner Grant (FHOG)	First Home Bonus	First Home Owner Regional Bonus	Total
Established homes only	$7,000#	$0.00	$0.00	$7,000
Newly constructed homes in Metropolitan Victoria only	$7,000#	$13,000*	$0.00	$20,000
Newly constructed homes in Regional Victoria only	$7,000#	$13,000*	$6,500*	$26,500
#For contracts entered into after 1 January 2010, to qualify for the Grant, the price of the property or construction of the home must not exceed $750,000. *For contracts entered into between 1 July 2009 to 30 June 2011, to qualify for the Bonus, the value of the property must not exceed $600,000.

Based from the table above, we qualify for a total of $20,000 which is quite a good sum to be deducted from our total mortgage.  All we needed to do is complete the application forms, attach the required documents and send it through our bank which is an approved agent of the State Revenue Office (SRO).

Colour Selection

Bricks:  Austral Cream with brick neutraliser
Roof Tiles:  Monier Tudor Barramundi
Gutters, fascia and downpipes: Colorbond Jasper
Garage:  Gliderol Tuscan Jasper
Front Door:  Double Madison PMAD104 with obscure glazing
Render Colours : Arava, Ducal and Puddle
Ceiling, Cornices and  Internal Doors:  Antique White
Walls: Hog Bristle 1/2 strength  ( we'll do our feature walls after hand over)
Staircase Balustrades:  Vertical stainless steel
Staircase Handrail, Newel Post, Treads & Risers:  Chestnut stain & varnish
Kitchen Benchtop:  Caesar Stone Osprey
Kitchen Cabinets:  Cherished Wood
Perspex Doors:  Lucite Pearlescent Pearl
Glass Splashback:  Clearfloat Nile Clay
Ensuite & Bathroom vanity benchtop:  Caesar Stone Ivory
Ensuite & Bathroom cabinets:  Tawny Linewood
Powder Room Benchtop: Tawny Linewood
Laundry Benchtop & Cabinet: Cherished Wood 
Carpet:  Belgian Chocolate
Floor Tiles (Ground Flr):  City beige gloss 400 x400
Floor Tiles (First Flr):  Still beige 400x400
Balcony Tiles: Vibe Latte
Shower Tiles:  Linea Sand

Bricks and Render Colours

Kitchen Cabinet & Benchtop

Ensuite, Bathroom & Powder Room Colours



Windows, Gutter, Fascia, Downpipes, Internal Paint Colours



Vanity Basin

The Floor Plans

We did not change much from the standard floor plans as we are quite happy with how the whole house is partitioned.  These are the only variations that we have asked to be provided :

* Aylesbury facade in face brickwork including double 2040mm Height x 820mm Wide entry doors, brickwork around and over garage opening, with feature render to porch & front facade.
* 1600mm long feature wall to lounge protruding 90mm into room.
* Colorbond S-flashing to top of brickwork, on the boundary wall of garage in lieu of standard fascia and gutter.
* Double pre-hung flush panel hinged door to rumpus/theatre.



External




Ground Floor




First Floor



The Display Home at Somerfield Estate

Here are some photos from the display home at Somerfield Estate, Keysborough. 



Facade




Stairs/Entry




Formal Lounge




Powder Room




Family Room




Kitchen




Dining




Theatre/Rumpus




Alfresco




Bathroom




Bed 2



Bed 3




Activity Room

 



Bed 4




Ensuite




Master Bedroom




Balcony




Master Bedroom



Study



The Prelude

We are a working class couple, married for 13 years and blessed with 2 adorable children who are both currently attending primary school.   We arrived (not by boat but by plane) in Melbourne in mid-2009 from New Zealand in search of greener pastures at a time when the world is experiencing economic turbulence or what they termed as Global Financial Crisis. 

In March 2010, we set out to visit a few display homes to get an idea of what is available out there and how much it would cost for us to build our own house.  We also sat down with a mortgage broker to find out how much we can actually afford and how to go about securing finance for our planned purchase.  We wanted to pay less stamp duty so decided we will get a modest size of land which will be enough to build a double storey house.  In April 2010, we paid our initial deposit to an untitled land at the Hunt Club in Cranbourne East.  

Next stop is to choose our house design and who to build it with.  We got sales quotations from Burbank, Porter Davis, Simonds, and Henley.  We thought we were gonna go with Burbank as we liked their display home at Cascades in Clyde but the house size was too big for our land.   We crossed out PD and Henley from our list because it will be very expensive to build with them.    Simonds offered us the lowest priced quotation but the house floor plan is a bit limited to our liking.  Then one weekend we stumbled on the Carlisle Homes which initially looks expensive with their base price but once we saw their standard inclusions, we came to realise that we will get more value for our money with them.  Carlisle Homes is a quality and award-winning builder and we heard of fantastic feedback from their satisfied customers.

http://www.carlislehomes.com.au/display.html

We've Joined the Club!

It did not take us too long to hunt for the right estate for us where our top requirements would be met.  Here is the link and it should speak for itself why we have joined the club - it is one of the finest developments amongst the South-eastern suburbs in Melbourne. 

http://www.huntclub.com.au/




Our lot is situated in what is called "Greenaway Precinct" - where directly in front of us is a spacious reserve.  We are also closely located to the new aqua centre and the Casey fields:

http://www.casey.vic.gov.au/caseyrace/

Casey RACE has everything you need to workout, get fit, rehabilitate, learn to swim, relax, unwind and socialise with family and friends. With first-class facilities, state-of-the art gym equipment, luxurious swimming and spa areas, cafe, classes of all types, family activities, crèche, sports shop, and social events – Casey RACE really does have the lot.

http://www.casey.vic.gov.au/caseyfields/
Casey Fields, a 70 hectare site in Cranbourne East, has been developed by the City of Casey as the premier sports facility in Melbourne's south east and features a broad range of active and passive recreation opportunities for the entire region.