Hello! We are building this year in Christchurch, have spent a good amount of...

Hi Stevo, I can personally recommend Peter Ray Homes. They are extremely good quality and very transparent when it comes to costs. We have built two houses with them and have been very pleased. Mike Greer are pretty good, the team there are great but they are one of the more expensive I think per square metre – if you do go with them I’d recommend going fo the traditional build rather than one of the Concision houses (have heard some people with problems). Two companies that I would also recommend (not sure if you have looked at these or not) are Paul McStay and Greenland Homes (Sean Zhao). Have personally built several properties through Sean at Greenland and he gives excellent value for money and is very trustworthy. He has won Golds recently at the Master Build Awards. Good luck with your build 🙂

What ever your choice, stay as far away from Platinum Homes as possible.

Compare the addendum of each for a real comparison. It’s likely David Reid appears more expensive as the allowances for kitchens, tiling, flooring etc. are higher. This means you get to select a better quality and more expensive product. I’ve heard terrible stories of the cheaper building companies leaving things out of the contract all together (like carpet) just to get the cost down to win the job. It then gets added as an extra cost later. Basically all of these franchise building companies can build the same thing for the same price, as their supplier material and labour costs are generally pretty similar. But look at the details and what you get for that price. Tiled floors cost more than Lino – for example. You really do get what you pay for. Good Luck.

Thanks Sarah! that’s very useful. It’s interesting you mention Greenland Homes and Sean as I have worked on a project professionally with Sean recently but hadn’t actually considered him! Cheers

I agree with everything Nixon says here. I’d just like to add that although the up front costs for builders may be similar (or even look very attractive) when they’re trying to get you to sign on the dotted line, the crunch time comes when you realise that things have either been totally omitted from the spec, the standard is way below what you actually want, or the sums of money allowed are just not enough to get you what you want. At that stage you’re already well on the hook, as the house is half finished. So you have to either pay what the builder asks, or go without. (In connection with that, keep in mind that even with a ‘fixed price’ contract, it’s likely that the price for stuff that just has a money allowance in the contract will be the cost at the time you need it in the house, not when you sign the contract. So allow for 12 months inflation.) The solution is very hard and tedious, but necessary. You must examine the spec in detail, decide as far as possible exactly what you want, and make sure it’s covered in the spec, or include real prices for what you want. If the builder is not willing to help you through that process then find one that is. You will almost always get a better deal if it’s hammered out before you sign the contract.

Hi Sarah Are you able to elaborate on the problems people are having with Concision homes?