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Is this bog site going to that many unassuming new home building families

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Mandy

Bloggers, why waste our time making comments on this type of blog!! GUYS WHO ARE WE? Mere homemakers, some first home builders and ignorant at building!! What good does it do to make less than favourable comments on a blog site like this – don’t bother!!! We need the government to sort these dishonest group building companies out. Yes whatever it is that your company does, no matter how you do it, you make a promise to each and every customer that darkens your virtual door. You enter into a contract, even if the terms aren’t explicitly stated. The consumer pays you something, and you promise to provide a product or a service. There are pledges of quality and quickness. Customer service involves living up to your word on these matters, but it really gets to shine when something goes wrong – correct? Here’s the thing. Mistakes are opportunities — golden ones. Here’s why. Studies show that a satisfied customer will tell 2-3 people about his experience with your company. A dissatisfied consumer will share their lament with 8-10 people and some will push that number to twenty and those twenty people will tell 100 people and so on. Is this bog site going to that many unassuming new home building families? But here’s the opportunity. An unhappy customer will become a loyal consumer if you fix his complaint and do it quickly. Eighty percent (80%) of these folks will come back to you if you’ve treated them fairly. That percentage rises to the upper 90s if you respond immediately. Every day you have the chance to transform your mistakes into returning customers — the kind who will tell other people good things about you. Imagine that. It is not so much the trades & suppliers who work for these group housing companies, (who, by the way are screwed down for the cheapest rate and then have to wait a month in Sundays to get paid), it is the actual group housing franchisees, who are making a killing in more ways than one, abusing us along the way. What is happening to the 1128 comments on this site, are the housing companies even bought to task about some of the horrendous dishonest behaviour and shoddy customer service when something goes wrong? We say get together and petition the government. We have taken this to our MP and lawyer, maybe you should do the same, and then maybe we can get some traction on this site. Otherwise post this site to your FB page and make an even bigger fuss.
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Mark

Hi Mandy Great comments and well done for taking it higher. There are a number of us working in this area, trying to educate consumers and hold building professionals and the Govt to task for poor work. Notables are the Home Owners and Buyers Association – http://www.hobanz.org.nz, and my own Building Guide – http://www.buildingguide.co.nz. It’s not easy, especially when there is resistance within the industry itself because they don’t WANT to be held accountable. This blog site is useful in that it can warn people about specific operations that are particularly poor, so it’s more than just an opportunity to whinge. Hopefully people who are building will also look to educate themselves by using the Building Guide and hopefully prevent many of these issues from cropping up in the first place. I’m always up for a chat, too. 09 360 8885 x2 or email me at mark @ aim-high.co.nz (gaps so the spammers can’t get me).
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Source detailsComment #69944Reply to #69943Thread #69943Source link

Chris

Hi Mandy, I’m responding to you because Mark seems to read most of these posts. I don’t disagree with what you’re saying, except perhaps to point out that this blog is of course one of the ways that those happy or unhappy customers can express their opinion, and if necessary warn others of problems. There is also another site where they can put up reviews on specific builders. These should reach a far wider audience than just telling your friends. Having said that, I remain amazed at how many people seem to come on this blog asking for an opinion on a particular builder, when a quick look through would tell them not to go near him. Seems once people have set their heart on using a builder they don’t want to hear negative opinions. But I guess that applies to lots of things. One other point, regarding the Government doing something. Based on some horrendous issues, like the ‘leaky homes’ problems, I don’t have a high opinion of the NZ government’s ability to resolve this kind of thing. But to be fair they did amend the Building Regulations in January to make building contracts much more favourable to home builders. Mark might help us all by outlining briefly what those changes were. Since I doubt that many (any?) actual building works have started under those new regulations it will be interesting to see what effect they have in keeping rogue builders under control.
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Source detailsComment #69947Reply to #69943Thread #69943Source link

Mandy

Thanks for your quick response Mark. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not discouraging the use of your blog, but it needs to go a great deal higher and URGENTLY!!! Totally agree with your comment re warning people and the industry not wanting to be made accountable, (that’s obvious), however your site just isn’t warning enough people, as the whole debacle continues to be a nightmare and the housing companies are getting away with it because of the need for cheap housing. Perhaps you need to broadcast it more widely somehow or advertise it on Fair Go or the likes. Just an idea.
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Source detailsComment #69945Reply to #69944Thread #69943Source link

Mandy

Thanks Chris – maybe Mark needs to make a heading of each building company and then add the comments which refer to that specific housing company under their name. Perhaps then not only the public can gauge how many opinions fit the right housing company and the company itself can gauge how they’re doing. However it is not only “rogue builders” themselves Chris, but the dishonest housing companies, like Landmark homes, Platinum etc. etc, who try to weedle out of any responsibility when things go wrong. They are, who we, the home builder, have the contract with in the first place, and who have an obligation to sort problems out AS THEY ARISE, not 2 – 3 years down the track and then only when you take legal action against them and they are directed to by the court. Why aren’t these legal events advertised, then people would get the idea to stay well clear of them, if they only knew what they must go through and how many, how often these builds go through legal action. This is why this blog alone, is not adequate enough in warning people of how unscrupulous these housing companies are. It needs to be plastered all over the media. My advise is just stick with your normal qualified Licensed Build Practitioner, run of the mill joe blow builder, who has his one man (maybe 2 – 3) operation’s reputation, who concentrates on your build alone (not 20 others, who has a livelihood to uphold. Stay away from these housing companies!!!!
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Source detailsComment #70327Reply to #69947Thread #69943Source link

Mark

No worries – always good to have someone to share frustration with. I am currently trying to engage with MBIE who administer the Licensed Building Practitioner scheme as some research I have recently done indicates poor consumer awareness of new regulations and appalling administration by LBPs around certain new mandatory requirements. Going to the Minister (Nick Smith) is the next step and then the media if necessary, but that’s unlikely to get real change going – it’s more likely to a brief sensation and then the problem will disappear again. If someone else was willing to do that, however… As I mentioned, feel free to call/email me to discuss. I will also forward your comments on to the senior person at MBIE I’m dealing with. cheers MG
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Source detailsComment #69946Reply to #69945Thread #69943Source link

Chris

Hi Mandy, A long time since my post that you were responding to. I totally agree that it would help everyone if problems (legal action etc) on individual builders were made more widely known. But I don’t think we can blame Mark, because if you search this whole blog somewhere you’ll find reference to another blog, where you can in fact put comments (good or bad) under the name of a specific builder. I’ve written before encouraging people to do that. Regarding your last bit, again as I’ve said before, of course if you can find an honest, reliable, competent small builder then you may well be better off than with a franchise. But remember that small builders, with very few jobs, can go out of business due to cash flow problems. Building is a risky business for everyone.
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Source detailsComment #70336Reply to #70327Thread #69943Source link

Paul Clarke

Good morning Mandy, My name is Paul Clarke and I am the Managing Director of Landmark Homes NZ Ltd. I regret that you have come to your view that Landmark Homes and other companies are “dishonest”. I would welcome a call from you to discuss this. My phone number is 0274 751311.
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Source detailsComment #113525Reply to #70327Thread #69943Source link

Mark

I can’t speak to any specific building company’s performance, but I would like to point out that Landmark Homes HO has consistently tried to engage with complaints on this site to try to sort out any issues. There seems to be a genuine attempt to run a good, customer-focused business, notwithstanding comments on the site about the Counties Landmark Franchise. In terms of new consumer protection legislation, here’s a link to the appropriate page on our site, with links to the Building.govt.nz pages… http://www.buildingguide.co.nz/resources-regulations/consumer-protection/ (sorry for the delay in posting – just saw this!)
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Source detailsComment #113532Reply to #113525Thread #69943Source link