I'm not sure about saving money on a development. But if you're sourcing your own building materials graysonline.com is pretty awesome. In the last week I've spent $8000 on building material for my PPOR at auction (weatherboard, mouldings, etc...), but the total cost if I bought it at Masters would be $28 000.
Tips to reduce construction costs on a development.
- Thread starter albanga
- Start date
Fantastic savings Tim!
There are some great cost saving ideas in this thread. Depending on your desired outcome and the state you live in will determine if any of them suit your needs.
Reducing what you have to pay the builder is the most direct way of saving money on a project. However you still want to be able to rely on the builders home warranty insurance for your project. You could approach it as an owner builder but you can only do 1 of these every 3 years (in Victoria) so if your doing multiples then this won't help or be profitable.
The following can have the biggest impact on overall costs to a project;
1 Overall building design
2 Construction material used
3 Construction method
With total respect given to architects and drafts people i have seen some of the most impractical designs come across my desk over the last 30 years, fortunately i haven't had to build many of them.
I definitely recommend where possible engage a designer that has had hands on construction experience. I mean someone that has done the onsite aspect of building a house, especially someone involved in the structural phases of a project. That way you won't end up with engineers designs that cost a fortune and a design that is a nightmare at every stage to build.
Look at alternative building materials and building methods. Either of these 2 could shave thousands off of a construction project.
If you have the time to do the project management, look for a service similar to what we offer where you can build under our license. This can save you tens of thousands of dollars and still provide the home warranty requirements.
The block you are building on also has a lot to do with the end costs of your project. For example building on a nice flat block versus building on a block that has a 30 degree slope is going to make a big difference to your overall costs. Is the block subject to low water tables, is there an excessive amount of excavation needed, do you need to engage a traffic planner to look at providing slip lanes to enter your development and so on.
Probably though, the biggest mistake i see that costs developers the most is when developers don't make correct use of the land they intend to build on. They either compromise on quality for quantity or vise versus and end up building highly impracticable dwellings. A clever designer that can think at all levels of a design is your best bet to keeping your project costs to a minimum.
Best of luck.
Reducing what you have to pay the builder is the most direct way of saving money on a project. However you still want to be able to rely on the builders home warranty insurance for your project. You could approach it as an owner builder but you can only do 1 of these every 3 years (in Victoria) so if your doing multiples then this won't help or be profitable.
The following can have the biggest impact on overall costs to a project;
1 Overall building design
2 Construction material used
3 Construction method
With total respect given to architects and drafts people i have seen some of the most impractical designs come across my desk over the last 30 years, fortunately i haven't had to build many of them.
I definitely recommend where possible engage a designer that has had hands on construction experience. I mean someone that has done the onsite aspect of building a house, especially someone involved in the structural phases of a project. That way you won't end up with engineers designs that cost a fortune and a design that is a nightmare at every stage to build.
Look at alternative building materials and building methods. Either of these 2 could shave thousands off of a construction project.
If you have the time to do the project management, look for a service similar to what we offer where you can build under our license. This can save you tens of thousands of dollars and still provide the home warranty requirements.
The block you are building on also has a lot to do with the end costs of your project. For example building on a nice flat block versus building on a block that has a 30 degree slope is going to make a big difference to your overall costs. Is the block subject to low water tables, is there an excessive amount of excavation needed, do you need to engage a traffic planner to look at providing slip lanes to enter your development and so on.
Probably though, the biggest mistake i see that costs developers the most is when developers don't make correct use of the land they intend to build on. They either compromise on quality for quantity or vise versus and end up building highly impracticable dwellings. A clever designer that can think at all levels of a design is your best bet to keeping your project costs to a minimum.
Best of luck.
