We've done enough postholes with a shovel on hard clay we just don't want to do anymore. The trick is to dig a shallow hole with a mattock, put in water, wait a day or two for it to soak right in, dig another few inches of hole, repeat process until you're down a foot, give up and make the post shorter. The soil is better at the new house (just planted a bunch of trees) but I'm scarred for lifeIf it is fairly hard clay, a mechanical auger would do the trick. Post holes would be around 600mm deep. Mechanical hand driven augers are a great bit of kit. Just make sure you are using it properly, as if the auger hits a tree root or obstruction, it could give you a bit of a kick.
The good thing about subdividing is in theory you know exactly where all the services are and can avoid them with heavy machinery. I've had this place replumbed completely (partly to move several taps and the septic tank from the other half of the block) so I know *exactly* where all the pipes are.
Our new block is about 640sqm, needs fencing on two sides (short side exists, shared with a rear neighbour, but is falling down) and fortunately we don't need to landscape it at all in this council. I've spent about $300 on landscaping on the old house (610sqm) - gravel (for paths), mulch and plants. Need to spend another $700 or so on a garden shed though. Garden edges are all recycled Stuff and I've grown a lot of plants myself from seed or cuttings. It actually looks pretty good
New house is going to cost $104,000 plus whatever extras we choose and judging by recent sales here, will be worth about $300k when it is landscaped and generally finished off.
