Here we are again - we are at lockup, we have had a few run throughs - gyprock is up, screed is done, I imagine, as I sit here updating this, that our wet area tiles are done as well.  We have met our Super Home guys on site for a review of plans, we have met a couple of landscapers on site to discuss requirements.  

Expenses we could do without - but the life of a build I guess!  We are happy with progress and the finish line is rushing toward us at a rate of knots!  

We have received notification our Site Supervisor is leaving MJH - this is disappointing news to get when we are so near the end - he has been so fabulous and easy-going - great guy getting teams organised and straight up with us.  We will miss him, he is leaving big boots to fill, we hope MJH can find someone as good as Ryan has been......  we wish him well in his future endeavours - no doubt he will succeed.

Roof is up, gryprock installed - and getting so much closer! More details on the build tab

Much progress has been made

see the build tab for more details!

24/10/2015 - and then the drains were capped....... see pics on the Build tab 

Check out the Build tab....

We will be updating the Build page with all the photos as we trundle along - perhaps that should be WHIZZZZZZZZ!!!  

We have a fence, we had a digger/big machine on site inserting the screw piers - apparently due to the sandy soil... that digger also dug out the footings for the alfreso.  Our slab supervisor is very nice and informative as well!  

We had people spray painting the dirt.... and sorting out where conduit goes - lucky we were there as the "slab plan" (who knew the blankish page with outlines was for the slab-folks??) - had our meter box located on the outside of the garage - but we had moved it to the left front of house... The busy page on the construction plan had this in the right place.. so we sorted it out there and then :)

Onwards and upwards... more pics to come today.. plumbing are on site today for drainage ....

Blue Paint - to mark for cut and fill on our block!!!!

1/2 way through the 20 days to start construction and we've noticed more pegs and marks for cutting our block. The pegs with red paint on the top appear to be the boundary markers for where the slab preparation will take place.

Naked block with new red topped corner pegs

And we also noticed blue paint marking a diagonal line across the block - which appears to be approximately where the cut and fill line is planned.

Mid-block semi-diagonal NE facing SW

It's getting closer now!!

We have a slab supervisor!

It is moving faster now! Changes are happening more quickly!!

Before we get too far into the process... here is the land before any construction starts.

Naked Land - 11 October 2015

Let the COUNTDOWNs begin!!!

Today. 02 October 2015. A mere 18 months after we put money down on land and also on the house.... 

McDonald Jones Homes has 20 working days to start construction!!!!

That means they have to start work no later than 30 October 2015!

And then... then they have 6 months (+weather days) to finish the build. 

We are counting!

So much and so little change in just 3 months

Since our last post 3 months ago there has been movement in the house progression and in our lives....

• Anita started a new and permanent job.
• The land came out of LPI, and the developer wasn't ready to settle - and our pre-approval expired, so we had to be re-pre-approved - with Anita's new job only 2 weeks in. Stressful!
• We moved from one rental house to another, closer to where we are building.
• We settled on the land and watched the drastic change in our bank balances happen... quite shocking that!
• MJH notified us that they were changing the gas hot water supplier from Dux to Rheem, and we saw that there were 2 models available. We've arranged for an upgrade in the Rheem model.
• MJH notified us that we are getting an upgraded SMEG oven. We go from 5 functions and 80 litre capacity to 10 functions and 90 litre capacity.
• We signed the loan paperwork for the build portion of the loan.
• We rode herd on MJH to get the Sydney Water approval stamp and finally got our build plans lodged with CDC.
• Jayne's 50th birthday came and went - and we greatly enjoyed the influx of rellies from Kiwi-land and friends local and far.

And now we are waiting. The bank is ready to provide the Authorisation to Commence Construction notice.. all they need is council/CDC approved build plans.

The waiting game.. So Near...... tick tock tick tock

06 June 2015 - Fun times.... so very close now... Our land is in LPI and stages 40-43 have all registered as at 5th June.... our stage 44 is still sitting in "under examination" - so any day now we will move into "Registered - Folios being created"... then about 2 weeks (so we're told) until we hand over the $$ and we are officially landowners!  

Updates will be flowing again as action stations being... We will be notifying MJH as soon as registration is confirmed so they can line their little ducks up...

One thing we have noticed and have advised the developer... the block we have purchases is 510m2.. 17m frontage and 30m deep.. however so far our scraped block measures the 17m frontage... and about 16m deep.... seems there's a problem/issue with a tree that will come down when they make our block as big as it needs to be... we will see what happens in the next few days... we advised the developer about 3 weeks ago and very little has changed.... w a t c h   t h i s    s p a c e . . .

Update.... land is on the move.....

Oh dear - we have been slack in the updates department....... seems to be fairly typical.... hahahaa!

We have had our electricals appointment in December.... wow!  So many choices to make and how many light fittings.. and is MJH going to do our downlights (that's a big fat NO)....

Check out the electricals section for our choices.... pictures for updates on lights... other stuff we have found... this is fun!!!!

Some little extras.....

So.. after some to-ing and fro-ing... we have achieved...

800mm x 305mm shampoo recess in the ensuite shower - yippeeeee!!!  MJH now have 3 different sizes available.  We initially wanted 1000mm, but the new choices are 450mm, 800mm or 1500mm.  We figure that 1500mm in a 1710mm shower is just a bit OTT :)

The circuit breaker board located inside the garage with the meter box located LHS of house

Landscaping? YES LANDSCAPING.......

We have contacted a landscaping crew we saw at the pool expo.... contracted them for a design and plans.... we await the (dreaded????) costing now.... but I gotta say... the initial plans look fantabulous... I'm sure the $$$$ will look impressive too (not necessarily in a good way :)

Keep watching this space..... (or the landscaping space... really :)

Initial Colours Selection Meeting

The initial colours selection meeting was this afternoon. And we think we might be on information overload. 13 days to make decisions on the look and colours for:

roof
gutters
fascia
downspouts
bricks
mortar
external texture colour
external doors 
garage door
window finishes
internal doors
door handles/locks
wall colour(s)
everything kitchen - everything - everything!
tiles for laundry, ensuite, bathroom and toilet
the toilet
the bathtub
the sink
showerhead(s)
floor drains
carpet?
all to go with the floor tile we've picked

And did we mention the kitchen?
benchtop
sink
faucet
cabinet layout
door colours
glass splashback

We are planning to visit the bricks display this weekend... 
Stay tuned

Flooring style...

Today we went and looked at actual flooring tiles. We've compromised on a timber look tile that has both darks and lights, browns and greys, and has smooth transitions between the various shades. I think we did really well compromising what we both liked most to meet in the middle with something we both actually like. Once we were done with looking at tile, we stopped over at the subdivision. They have a truck track laid that wasn't there the last time we were there - so things have started moving. Council had given the approval to go forward with the laying of utilities, and building roads... and it looks like they are starting to do some of that work!! Excitement!!!

Signed....

Ok... so we signed.... paid some $$.....

Paid the deposit on our land

Paid the deposit for the house and got this great box to keep all of our house stuff in!

OH MY!

The Project Manager - Jax

Just so we are clear - the Project Manager for our home build really is Jax. She's jumped in with both feet and scoured the web for information, other's experiences and things that we needed to consider to protect ourselves as best we can.

It is definitely a huge learning experience and I often feel like a kid in a candy store - with an adult's view to responsible spending. Such a challenge. Jax has done the research for so much and so many things so far, and I'm ever grateful, as I seem to be mentally exhausted much of the time right now.

This weekend we will complete bank transfers to get the ball rolling for both the land and the build.

More later.
akay

Another Step....

Eureka!  We have found a block of land.. South West Sydney in the Camden area.  510m2 ... not too shabby..

The aspect is great with the long sides N and S with the back facing W (that leaves the front facing E :)  Our living areas will all be situated on the North, all bedrooms on the South.  The Master is at the rear (our preference) and by moving the existing stacker doors from the rear to being off the alfresco and putting in a high long window on the west wall (above the headboard so to speak) - will minimise the heat from the west but allowing airflow.  As there's only the 2 of us - we really wanted to have the Master opening onto the alfresco... giving us a sense of connection.

17m frontage and 30m long... gave us plenty to play with.... the sunset date on our block is November 2015... seems such a long long way away.... the developer says we should register in the first quarter of 2015 - we aren't holding our breaths... we'll aim for November 2015 and anything earlier is a bonus!

So.. having found our block, paid a holding deposit... we reviewed (again) our choice of house layouts...

We had already decided to use a project builder... and narrowed it down relatively quickly to a toss-up between the Masterton Cello and the McDonald Jones Homes Santorini - The Santorini has won out... giving us the layout we really liked in combination with our block requirements and potential landscaping....

Having been quoted now by MJH we are on our way to signing up!  Our Sales Consultant has been brilliant.. giving us some fantastic advice.

Our land conveyancer has been equally as helpful - her biggest advice.... Your eyes should be fixed on the sunset date as being registration date... anything earlier is a bonus... but that is when the developer has to "put up or shut up" (my words not hers!)

We have also had a preliminary meet with a landscape design company to ensure our layout is compatible with our proposed living arrangements / lifestyle - where shall we put the pool?  What should we put down the "dead" side of the house - where should the water tank be situated?  How about extending the alfresco?  Some things we need to consider prior to signing on the dotted line with MJH is the extension (or not) of any of the house "parts" ie garage, alfresco roof etc.

I have so much going on in my head - trying to picture what our house will look like - We're not thinking "let's do it all in white like the show-home" - so envisaging the final outcome is a tricky one for me - I'm hoping the magic "Colour Consultants" will show us the way in this regard.

Next up is to sign on the dotted line for our "preliminary agreement" based on our estimate.. then the ball will be well and truly rolling.  That and paying the deposit on the land .... and we're off!!

In the beginning.....

Once upon a time (not that long ago.. but it seems like we have walked many miles since then) we decided it would be a great idea to
1 - buy some land - somewhere.... over the rainbow? 
2 - build a house
3 - review and install home automation - you know the type... control lights from  your phone, set scenes, water the garden (but only if it hasn't rained)... the possibilities are endless....
4 - build a pool (not us, actually, with dirt and spades and diggers and stuff... )
5 - install a spa....
where to begin?... Let's share......

We thought this would be a great opportunity to keep a kind of log... of all the activities we undergo .. through this whole process....

Finding out information... is like.... building a house!

Start by driving driving driving... searching the web... looking for land... looking at house plans, which builder?  Which area?  How much can we borrow?  Who do we borrow through?  What do we want from the house (other than a roof to protect us from the elements!)?  

The Questions are endless and the search for answers is like ... like... wading through a quagmire (I really just like that word.... ;)

So before we drive, we talk.  As we drive, we talk... 
1.  Master bedroom at the rear - preferably onto the alfresco
2.  Alfresco!
3.  Toilet in ensuite to have separate door
4.  Pool
5.  Hide the clothes line from most window views... and the pool??
6.  A really cool kitchen with 900mm appliances
7.  Somewhere to store our "stuff"
8.  A guest bedroom
9.  Spa.. somewhere... 
10. What should the landscape design be like... where should the pool electrics go?  where should the spa electrics be wired to?  

11. What colour should the floor be?  What should the floor be - tiles? carpet? polished concrete? laminate?  hardwood?

12. how many power points?  Where should they be located?

13. Do we get all the electrical wiring done by the builder?  Or put in the standard and then get a sparky in afterwards?

14. What will the switches and plates look like?

15. Do we need extra double power points?  Where???????

The list is never-ending.... ad infinitum.... no.. I'm not complaining.. this is also serving as a "don't forget" sort of list ;)

If you're a visitor to our blog and/or a follower... feel free to post... comment.. followup... ask questions... :D