Contract with big builders (i.e Porter David) or small builders

[evisional]

Hi

A friend of mine told me that I should go with standard houses from big builders such as Porter David, Henley or Metricon as their cost is lower. They buy mass of materials at the wholesale price while small builders cannot do that. Is that right?

I am building a rear unit with Council town planning permit. So, can builders such as Porter David give lower cost?

I am in SE Melbourne suburb. Can someone recommend a good builder?

 

[Minx]

Yes that is right, they not only source their materials cheap but most concerning is that they source their labour cheap. Pay peanuts, get monkeys as they say.

My cousin built with a project builder and my partner was disgusted with the workmanship.

They looked into getting my partner to do the lock up and fix however when my partner was made aware of what they would pay as opposed to what he would charge for such a job, he politely declined. There was a significant price difference, like they would pay a third of what he would normally charge.

It's common knowledge within the building industry that the trades are happy slappy cowboys when working for project builders. There is no way a spec or custom builder would accept that quality of work and pay them top dollar to do it.

In saying that, project builders are the most cost effective approach when building. There was no way that my partner could of built my cousins house for what he paid. It would have at least 100k more to do so.

I suppose it comes down to $$ and location. You generally don't find project built homes in areas such as Balwyn, Camberwell, Kew etc. You do find project built homes in new estates etc.

Hope this has provided you with some insight on the building industry.

 

[akiwinut]

They buy mass of materials at the wholesale price while small builders cannot do that. Is that right?

Yes, but the cost savings goes into their pockets, not yours.