Contracts Signed

On Wednesday 16th September, we met our solicitor to go over the building contracts and extension of loan documents. Notable points from this meeting were:

Regarding the builder

i) A 10% of contract penalty imposed by the builder if a progressive payment is not made within the agreed 5 working days from invoice receipt.

ii) A standard caveat exists as part of this HIA where if you reach two-thirds of the building process, you then change your mind about this builder, a lodgement can be filed by the builder where unless you can dispute otherwise, they will be deemed to be the possessor of this building

iii) Public Indemnity Insurance is recommended to be filed in addition to receiving the HIA Owners Warranty to safeguard against any unlawful entries onto the secured block of injury.

I asked our builder whether they had this particular insurance cover in their contract. They said, yes.

iv) Arrange with the builder during the build process to inspect the progress. This ensures any problems can be addressed quickly

v) We also have up to 6 months (standard contracts are normally 3 months) after we have moved in to notify the builder of any problem areas that need to be fixed at no cost. Our solicitor advised us to list EVERYTHING, however small in the 5th month and then hand it to the builder.

Regarding the extension of the loan agreement,

i) Further clarification was needed from the lender that a construction loan repayment increases incrementally when each of the 5xprogressive payments are drawn down. The wording is not clear in the contracts. This was cleared up during a phone call later in the day.

ii) Settlement date for a construction loan is at the time of the First Progressive Payment drawdown after the building slab is completed

The First Home Owners Grant will also be released into the loan after the First Progressive Payment is made and available to us as a redraw.


The loan extension agreements were signed and posted back to the settlement office the following day.


Unfortunately, the building contracts while signed at our solicitors office on Wednesday 23rd September and delivered in person to their office located in Homebush, were handed back to us at reception because we had 'failed' to initial every page of the 80 page documents as instructed in their cover letter.

Yes, we had read this instruction but as our solicitor thought this would not be necessary, we didn't do it. He was wrong and we were not....amused.


So, on Thursday 24th September 2009, we delivered once again in person the following signed and initialed contracts

- NSW Residential Building Contract for New Dwellings
- Site Plan
- HIA General Housing Specifications
- Tender Quotation


These were countersigned and couriered back to us on Friday 25th September.

To fulfil the requirements of the First Home Owners Application, our lender has to send a certified copy of the above documents along with the application.

After photocopying all four booklets and scanning a softcopy for ourselves, we took the photocopies and originals to our local library on Saturday so the local JP could certify them. He remarked that he had never certified so many pages (80 pages) from one person. It was painstaking to watch at first, he's a retired elderly gentleman, but after he agreed to my suggestion of helping him stamp all of the pages, he signed and dated each page.

Yesterday, Monday 28th September 2009, our lender picked up the certified copies of the building documents. He also left us with an Addendum Application for the NSW State Government Boost of $3,000 to sign and return today. We did.


So, after many weeks of visits to open homes of established properties when we first thought of buying an existing home, countless trips to HomeWorld, long drives to various display centres, to building centres, meetings with different lenders, different builders, the solicitor, and lots and lots of online researching, the contracts to build have been completed and delivered.


Our kids have been great during this process. They have put up with a lot...so far. In fact, they refuse to visit any more houses and get a little tense when we drive slowly along a street to look at what they think are more houses. ..We're actually looking at driveways, fences and gardens :)


So, what's next?

a) we will confirm with Austral and our builder the exact exterior colours the bricks will be colour treated.

b) discuss with the builders any final variations to the working drawings (nothing major here, only the positioning of an internal door and the size of the upstairs bedroom window), and then

b) meet with the internal colour consultant


Happy Days!

Happening Now

Our solicitor has been given the mortgage documents for the construction loan extension.

We are now just waiting on the contract from the builder after providing the variations to them earlier this week. They called today to say we should expect it either tomorrow or this Monday.

Once we receive the building contract, we will hand this also to our solicitor. He will advise us on the terms of both documents prior to signing our agreement and then return the appropriate paperwork back to the lender and builder.

After the contract is counter-signed by the builder and the 5% deposit (minus the initial $3,000 commencement fee) is paid, we will provide a copy of this contract(showing a date prior to 30th September 2009) to our lender to submit with the First Home Owners Grant application they already received from us and stored on file.

We will then arrange a meeting with the builder to go through the working drawings and make any final variations to be signed off prior to submitting these to The Ponds Design Panel and Blacktown Council for DA approval. The expected timeframe on completion of this process and a DA approval provided is at the end of November.

We are not expecting the build to happen before this Christmas. I think the builders take the Christmas period off, so it will probably be mid-January 2010 we will see any activity. The estimated timeframe for entire completion (weather permitting) is around September/October 2010.

So, heads up everybody, we will be holding a Christmas 2010 House Warming at our place.

Deciding on the Exterior Colours

The following exterior colours will be confirmed.

Examples available when clicking on the slideshow below:

Bricks - Austral colourbrick

Brick colour - Colorbond Surfmist

Roof tiles - Bristle 'Classic' flat tiles - Luna Eclipse black

Gutters - Colorbond Monument black

Fascia - Colorbond Monument black

Eaves - Colorbond Surfmist.

Ceiling of Balcony and Portico a TAS Oak timber stain.

Downpipes - Colorbond Surfmist

Windows - Colorbond Monument black

Portico/Entrance - Boral Escuro Victorian Blue Brick with off-white flushed mortar

Verandah - Colorbond Dune (a darker grey to the light Surfmist).

Patio Balustrade - stainless steel rails

Entrance Door - Wattyl Red Stain Timber

Garage Doors - Caoboa Dawn

Our wishlist of House Additions

Consider this a fun posting of what we would like to install either during the build because it is easier and less costly or soon after because the budget has been blown...again :)

They range from the small upgrades, for example a larger shower head to the layout of a second patio to be located on the long side of the house facing Stream Place.

Many of the ideas and images are taken from the Home Renovation & Building site and various display home villages.

Enjoy the slideshow.

House Additions

Our decision on which Builder is now made...

and what a relief.

Still, we have a very long way to go, the least of which is addressing what we consider some minor alterations on the appearance and then making sure we stay involved throughout each phase as we head towards signing a contract prior to 30th September.

Until this is finalised, we will leave our decision, for now.....to ourselves :)

When will we decide?

Bellmarch mentioned to us yesterday that they will complete the draft of the design in approximately 7 days.

They will also try and provide the price given that this is a new design. At the end of 7 days we will discuss where things stand. They are aware of our urgency to meet the deadline for the First Home Owners Boost and have not promised anything.

Metricon have 2 more weeks before they complete a full tender and then require 2 weeks after to write the amended contract.

Pricing will vary slightly because we chose the 38sq instead of the 42sq Liberty and the low valuation.

However, we may know the outcome for the Metricon in a shorter amount of time, Once they find when drawing the site plan that the 38sq does not fit or comply with the RTA corner restrictions given the ill-placed road side tree bays, we will have no choice.

And, Jandson? Well, they are simply waiting for us to respond back to them. We have a tender and the colour pack.

So, we will build the Jandson home only if Metricon and Bellmarch are no longer in play.

So, how will we decide?

There are four possible scenarios.

(A) If Metricon is unable to fit the Liberty home on our land after conducting the site plan and Bellmarch cannot complete their documentation for us to sign before 30th September, we will build the Jandson Odyssey. This is because the Design Panel said it looked 'doable' in terms of receiving DA approval and really then is the only house we can build.

(B) If Bellmarch complete their documentation and we are satisfied, then we will build the Bellmarch house off-the plan. While risky, apparently 50% of people build houses like this and many more make changes to their choice of display homes.

(C) If the Metricon Liberty fits on our land but Bellmarch is able to complete the documentation, we will build the Bellmarch house because of the many reasons stated earlier.

We will forfeit our $1K deposit to Metricon for a tender but because the overall pricing for the Metricon is significantly higher than the Bellmarch home, even more-so when the valuation came in so low, we will still make significant savings.

(D) However, if Metricon fits on our land and Bellmarch is unable to complete the documentation, and the decision is between the Metricon and Jandson, we will build the Metricon.

The primary reason being that the Metricon design complements our land better than the Jandson design.


We will simply practice delayed gratfication and over time, build in all that we wanted initially to the Metricon Liberty.

We find ourselves in an unbelievable situation

The kind of home we are going to build will be determined by the following

1. Can Bellmarch (remember them? they were the first builder we looked at) pull one out of the hat and we buy the corner designed house we saw yesterday, off-the-plan?
2. Can Metricon fit the Liberty house on our land?
3. While the Jandson home is still an impressive house and likely to pass the DA process because the Design Panel okayed it, it does not complement the size of our land as well as the Bellmarch design or Metricon Liberty offering good outdoor/indoor flow.


What is our deciding criteria?

It is up to whether Bellmarch can draft and price up their new 42sq corner house so we can sign a contract BEFORE 30th September?


Why did we revisit Bellmarch?

Way back in June, the representative we spoke to at Bellmarch mentioned he was also buying a corner lot at The Ponds. His lot was a standard rectangle size. However, at the time he was only just starting to design a house that would comply with the Design Guidelines and Bellmarch could use as a display home.

It was only when I called him yesterday about whether it was possible to modify the Manhattan plan we saw earlier, that he mentioned he had now finished his design and had given it to his drawers to draft. I drove in yesterday and saw these plans, and liked it.

As a builder/designer he shared our frustrations in trying to find a display home that would both fit and comply with the restrictions when building on the corner at The Ponds.

Some big pluses about his Bellmarch design:

1. Their standard base price is $70K less than Metricon. Of course, still to be confirmed.

This is significant given that our valuation based on a Estimate of the Metricon tender given to our lender came in very low. This meant we would have to fund many of the features ourselves. Bellmarch seems to be offering the opportunity to install a number of upgrades and enhancements while managing our cashflow.

2. This house design was drawn from a builder who would also be a resident of one of the corner lots at The Ponds. He already had direct discussions with the Design Panel and his design was ready to proceed for DA approval.

NOTE: If you drive around The Ponds, there is only one double-storey home currently being built on a corner lot. The corner houses in the Newbury area look okay but they also look very pricey and similar in design. They seemed to be designed for standard lots and simply have a corner facade tacked on so it looks 'interesting' on both sides. The Bellmarch house design has corner balconies, patios and living areas to go round the land.

While the Bellmarch designer had the option to build a single or double-storey home, he believes a double-storey house will add greater resale value down the track.

We do not have that choice according to our land contract. Our lot is also not a standard rectangle shape. The road tree bays on both corners of our lot forces the issue that any design would have to have the garage built for access near the boundary of Stream Place. This is my concern with the Metricon Liberty. They said they could only confirm this after a contour site plan. This was only possible if we paid $1K for the tender process. So we did.

Trying to find a display home or completed house design that could be built within these limitations has been exhausting and stressful.

Another plus with the Bellmarch, is that it is a unique design. If all goes well, only this house will be built first on the designers lot and then our own. No doubt as more land is released and more corner lots registered, people will go through the same process as ourselves as to what to build on their corner.

I will add a floor plan of this Bellmarch design as well as a site plan as soon as I'm able to scan these in.

Here are a few more exciting Bellmarch features

a. The Master Bedroom while similar to Metricon in facing Levy Crescent, has a long corner balcony extending from Levy to Stream. This will suit our corner because we have nature corridors on both sides.

b. Below this balcony is a corner shaped verandah patio which can be accessed from sliding doors of the downstairs Lounge area.

b. The ensuite of the Master Bedroom is superior to Metricon. Yes, there is a Presidential Spa in it also.

c. Bedrooms 2, 3 and 4 are larger than the Metricon

d. The main bathroom in the Bellmarch is larger and more superior than the Metricon.

e. Bedroom 4 (facing Stream Place) shares another separate balcony on Level 1 with the upstairs sitting room.

f. The garage is on the far right of Stream Place so no more tree bay hassles. The Jandson design had this also, and

g. we still have a large outdoor living area for a paved alfresco look extending from the Dining Room on the back left of the Ground Floor to the Family Room in the middle and the Study on the far right. Yes, with the house located closer to the setback on Stream Place we will get our backyard again.


The main thing in all of this is that we have secured an unconditional extension loan for a certain amount to cover the build.

All 3 houses when built will exceed this extension amount but the Bellmarch one is the only one offering true value for money.

Our Third Builder

A lot has happened since settling our land. While we await a second valuation based on an initial 'ridiculous' valuation, we are looking at building the Liberty 38 from Metricon.

Click on picture to open slideshow.
















The difference to how our house will look to the picture above is that instead of the garage door entry seen here, the garage entrance is to the side. That is, from Stream Place.

A window similar to the window on the left (the Guest Bedroom/Bedroom 5) will be installed to ensure this side is still 'interesting' according to the Design Guidelines when building at The Ponds.

The problem we have is whether we can comply with the RTA requirements of building a driveway within the required distance (at least 6m) from the corner when there is both a street tree and road tree bay in the way.

Hopefully, we will know in a week when the contour plans are drawn during the tender process. If we don't overcome this hurdle, we will build the Jandson Home mentioned earlier in this blog.

The MAIN attraction of the Metricon home is that it complements our land very well. It makes great use of the shape of our land for the outdoor/indoor flow enabling us to have a sizeable front yard acting as our backyard enclosed in the privacy of the surrounding 1.8m high fence.

Enjoy the slideshow and feel free to comment.

Land Settlement Today

The scheduled settlement time is 3pm.

I'm writing this after 3pm, I guess we are officially land-owners now. My mobile rings, its our solicitor -

Ok, you're all settled now, he says. You are now in the game!

Terrific! We are now the proud owners of an area of dirt we will be spending the rest of our lives paying off :) Isn't ownership a wonderful thing?

He will be sending us a report letter later this week confirming the settlment details.

Our first mortage payment, a partial payment is due next week. I hope the Reserve Bank is kind to us for the next 30 years. As long-term renters, we paid little attention to what happened with interest rates, how things change when you have a stake in something.

So, Phase 1 is complete.

I called my lender a few minutes ago. He said he will send our application to extend along with the tender for valuation tomorrow morning. Hopefully by the end of this week, at the latest, we should hear whether we have an unconditional approval for this phase. Once we receive the documentation confirming an unconditional approval, we will arrange a meeting with our builder.

I hope Phase 2 runs a little smoother than the first phase. Wishful thinking?