Builder discussion about communication

Platinum Homes – Hawke’s Bay We are considering building with Platinum Homes in Hawke’s Bay. Does anyone have any experience building with them or another franchise across the country? Henry has been great to deal with to date. I am especially interested in: – Quality of the final product – Adherence to budget and timelines – Communication throughout the project Thanks.

Hello everyone: I am back after a while. I used to read comments here and also got some advice on various matters particularly when I was concerned about my build cost – on PC sums, etc – and kept heart with answers from and reading exchanges here. We went through supply disruptions, etc, and delays on various other counts. But I am here to say that our two exec townhouses build in Auckland were completed and made liveable/rentable in 2023 and I hope those posting at the time have also completed their build. We finally got out subdivided titles early this year. Our builders Indelible Homes were good. They are independent builders, Claude the owner… started small and worked hard to keep his word. We saw his builds before hiring him. Of course there were issues with the small team and some times I thought he was overstretched but Claude’s leadership got us through all of the issues. He is growing well too and doing bigger projects than single houses. He still responds for anything we need. I would recommend Claude and Indelible for a house build.

Building in Rosemerryn, two-storey (TC 1). We have engaged a couple of big names to design and provide price (i.e. G.J. Gardner, Golden Homes, etc), but I’d like to mainly know about below two builders in particular: – Trident Homes – So far, prompt responses, multiple design variations, and the price seems reasonable too ($600K). However, there are many PC Sums (i.e. digging, kitchen (25K allowance), balcony (~15 sqm balcony with Butynol roofing + wooden planks + glass balustrades over garage with $25K allowance)) for a 3.5 bedroom ~210 sqm house – Stroud Homes – We haven’t engaged them yet, but it seems they are the only builder with 38 two-storey house designs on their website. So, they seem to have more experience in building a two-storey house than any other builder. I’d like to know and have reviews for them if anyone has built with them. – Orange Homes – Meeting them soon, so any feedback is welcome. So, any feedback, input is really appreciated about these builders or any recommendations, especially for a two-storey house?

Looking for anyone that has had recent experience with Sentinel homes Auckland North & West Franchise. Maree and Leon Van de Water currently have the Franchise and we are looking at entering into a contract to have them build a family home. Communication has been good so far but we haven’t yet handed over any money. Not to much on them in the comments section and it’s always such a gamble when spending that much money so keen to hear of people’s experiences.

BIG SHOUT OUT to say thanks a million to the Green Homes Auckland team, you are a cohesive team that works in unison and has communicated extremely well with me every step of the way. I can’t wait to move into my beautiful new home in Milldale, a month ahead of schedule too, love your work! 100% recommended.

Another negative review for Eco-Smart Homes and Ritesh Mani. If you come across these names, run for the hills. There are 2x developments in Helensville that have not been fully completed through to CCC final stage. Blatent lies and hollow promises, no communication from Eco-Smart or their lawyers, Neilsons, either. Their project manager Spiro Kovac resigned end of 2023 and there are still empty homes without final inspection or any progress. Every home has issues, from major things like no water meters installed, water pumps failing, no master builder guarantee as per contract (Google Eco-Smart vs Jenhash), to less major things like no fences or landscaping, painting incomplete, no physical keys provided for door locks, no house alarm or security lights, shoddy workmanship and plenty of poor finishing. Plenty of unpaid bills and contractual breaches. CCC applications missing tens of producer statements, some being held hostage for lack of payment which is technically illegal – but it isn’t hard to empathise with the unpaid contractor in their scenario. We’re unfortunately all in the same sinking ship when it comes to Eco-Smart. Somehow, despite the challenges completing their paying customers homes, Eco-Smart have managed to fully finish their own lot builds which are now tenanted rentals. It’s not personal, just business – funny that. Take a walk down Kawariki Rd, Taupata Lane or Rongomai St in Helensville. You’ll meet a fantastic community of neighbours who are frustrated at brunting the cost of Eco-Smart’s slimy operations. You might even bump into an owner checking up on the lack of progress before they can move in or tenant their incomplete home. They are friendly, kind and trusting people – taken advantage of and left in the dark with unconsented and incomplete homes. Beware of Eco-Smart. Beware of Ritesh Mani.

Keith Hay Homes We built with KHH and have had problem after problem. Their communication is non existent. I’m happy to talk and prove my bad review of this company to anyone who is considering using them. We are in the Franklin area and more than happy to show anyone the problems and their rude email responses. I’m also looking for others who have have a bad experience with any Keith hay branch ,as I’m going to try and have stories told in the local paper . I don’t want others to go through what we have

Hi, has anyone had any recent experience with FirstBuild from Auckland? They claim to make modular homes. I am down by 100K and about to take legal action to get it back. Same old story as I have read in the comments above where the ‘builder’ promises the earth and then when things dont go as planned they just stop answering emails and taking calls. Does anyone have any info as to whether these guys are going under or have had similar experience where they do a runner with a large deposit?

Any comments in regard to Presidential Homes in Palmerston North? Variation Costs, Lack of Correspondence, Evolving changed delivery dates etc

Anyone else here own a Russell Properties Home (Churton Park – Grenada) and find the after sales service sub-par? The pre-build service is really great but it seems once you’ve brought and moved in, they just don’t have the same interest. Occasionally minor things need attention or repair but replies to emails can take weeks, you send another email & that is never replied to and they just don’t seem to have any urgency to reply or repair. Interested to hear if your experience is similar and what, if anything you have done to get quicker responses.

Hi, Anyone have any experience working with 3C Construction, Auckland recently. We are planning to build with them. So far their communication and pricing are excellent compared to other builders. Thanks Sujatha

Being in construction all my life I having sold multiple products in the industry and dealt with many building companies throughout. I am disgusted with the amount of shoddy building work that is being performed in our industry and the attitudes towards customers. It is crippling our industry and reflecting badly on the good ones striving for best business practice. It is a minefield of stress and worry for most people building and/or renovating and getting the right fit as a provider is paramount plus its nearly always the biggest amount of monetary investment made in most peoples lives. The public need to do their due diligence and I mean do their due diligence. Point 1 – we have just completed a build addition and renovation and the two other providers were nearly $400K above us (yes, $400K) and we didn’t cut corners and have made good coin and thats because we have good process, a great team and we pick the right sustainable jobs to build our business. Building does have a right price point but cheap is not always the way to go. Cheap comes with a low quality finish. You need to tick off all the boxes for supply, communication, follow through, personalities and robust business ethics. Contract contract contract limiting the likes of variations or where there are to be variations a set margin added. Point 2 – People think they can manage a build. Some might but some are just plain kidding themselves, want to supply items but don’t realise the ramifications on delays, wrong product and then expect builders to sit and wait whilst not charging for time. This is unethical and not good business practice and any builder who is prepared to do this will not be in business in future and as such you have no warranty comeback. Point 3 – selecting an lbp does not get you the right supply partner. An lbp can be anyone that is a builder but hasn’t done roofing, hasn’t installed windows, hasn’t laid flooring, hasn’t done foundations, has never built a complete residential dwelling from ground up. And people are selecting a builder just because they are an lbp not knowing this. Did you know that most group home builders use contract builders in their businesses and those same contract builders hold the lbp licence for future issues, not the group home builder. Most of these group home builders pay low rates to their contractors and that is why we have so many shonky workmanship comments on this site. Point 4 – there are companies out there marketing renovation franchises specifically detailing they don’t want builders in the business. This is a major issue for NZ going forward and the overheads for any franchise company are huge with franchise fees you pay for a build starting around the 5% mark upwards and all that goes into head office coffers. All I can say is that our industry is amok with disreputable and greedy companies who are not there for a win/win but just to take your hard earned cash and ce la vie so this brings me to my final comment. Do your due diligence, ask them what builds they are currently doing (minimum of 5) ask for referrals you can physically visit and demand to go to the ones of your choosing. Do not take their offered selections. Go to some of their suppliers and ask them what the business is like to deal with and if they are current in trading terms. This will give you a good indication of who you are signing up with and give you some perspective on what they are like. Sales people from most build companies don’t know anything but basics in building and will promise you the earth to get you to sign up and make that deposit. Then you are a captured customer and on the path of no return when the build cost climbs and the variations kick in. Diligence is paramount people PARAMOUNT !!!

Having our first home built by Newson Construction (in the Bay of Islands), we felt it necessary to provide some feedback. Dealing with the Newsons was often a very difficult, stressful and tiring process. The effective communication between the project manager and their accounts department was lacking and this caused multiple double ups on bills and errors on the accounts. When questioning these double ups, we felt our questioning was disregarded before they then admitted any error. Often we had to chase for the answers to our questions from the project manager who we felt would bury his head in the sand, he rarely met the deadlines he set and we lost our trust in his abilities. We would not recommend Newson Construction if you are building your first or dream home for that matter.

We are the victims of a cowboy builder in Wellington. $50K of defects and associated costs so far. Our situation aside, was disgusted that he was already the subject of a LBP Board investigation for negligence while he was busy constructing our extension not to plans, consent or building code. Further inquiry reveals that to be an LBP you only need a carpentry qualification, two referees and a telephone interview. No character referees, drug tests, or even a police check. Investigations take months and months, with no restrictions or supervision of the builder (unlike other professions where they are either stood down or work under supervision). No wonder we still have leaky buildings. Of course if it goes wrong, the LBP can quickly shut down their company to avoid all claims. Good to see the government has announced a review of the construction industry: https://www.mbie.govt.nz/have-your-say/building-system-legislative-reform-programme-public-consultation?fbclid=IwAR0R3iEJk1jX86m5bJMjyxmnvvws1sGrV3M1uY2dhUOz3kwpqa4zfwrnC0U Hope other affected homeowners submit their experiences! If you are entering a construction contract, I suggest you add a clause for drug testing and police checks seeing as the licensing board doesn’t bother. Odd that a hammer hand or forklift operator may have to pass these basic requirements, but an LBP director can do what they like.

Spoiler Alert: If you believe a Master Builder is actually giving you a “fixed price contract”, you are probably wrong. We have spent the last 2 months “dating” A1 Homes. We found a plan that could work, with a few revisions, and agreed specs down to the taps and window latches. We have built before, so know exactly what we want, and they provided a fixed price estimate (crucially, not a quote) to our specs. It seemed like a fair price so we were keen to continue. They then said we would need to spend $3,000 on drawings and colour consultants before they could give us an actual fixed price quote. That is a lot of money – we have previously had quotes done on concept drawings that cost us $1,500 and $1,955 respectively. Eventually we came round to the idea, but we asked to see the contract they intended to use before we forked over $3,000. That’s when it got hairy. A1 presented us with a “standard” Registered Master Builders Association contract. The problem is that Clause 46 of the contract (2018 edition) specifically allows the builder to charge us more if ANY aspect of the build turns out to be pricier than the fixed price quote. i.e. it directly contradicts the claim of a fixed price quote. Further, Clause 101 of the contract (which has grown by about 60 clauses since we last built, practically all of them skewed toward the builder), specifically allows for a situation where A1 is building for Mrs Smith down the road and if that gets delayed, they can delay your start and end date. And with Clause 46 locking in their ability to on-charge any costs that might arise because prices rose since they gave you a not-fixed fixed price quote, they’ve ensured whatever their project management skills, you will pick up the tab. Oh and by the way, they have your deposit of 5% while they retain the right to delay indefinitely while they finish Mrs Smith’s project. We queried these 2 clauses and a couple of others. A1’s response was simply that they don’t ever change clauses. They had no answer for my question of how they could claim they offered a fixed price contract when it wasn’t. They said they hadn’t charged more than the fixed price on the 2 years they had used the contract, which frankly didn’t give me enough peace of mind to hand them $500K on the back of a contract that still says they can crank up the price at any time. I spoke to a Director of Master Build Services who confirmed there was nothing stopping them deleting irrelevant clauses in the contract; A1 was simply choosing not to. In the end, we were not willing to risk our money on a “no surprises guarantee” that isn’t any guarantee at all and could potentially hold a very nasty surprise. We suggest you give this a lot of thought and question whoever you build with if they have the same wide-open clauses in the contract.

Hi all, would very much appreciate any response from those who have purchased a Keith Hay home with ‘shadowclad’ cladding. We are looking at purchasing a property that has the Keith Hay ‘Raglan’ showhome model on the site, finished in shadowclad board and batten. The home is just under 2 years old. I was concerned to hear that Carter Holt Harvey is the subject of a class action over the shadowclad product. Should I be worried – is there really a bigger issue with the cladding, or is it just limited to isolated cases? The cladding looks to be in conditiona tthis point, with no visible warping. Thanks heaps.

Is there a possibility this site could have a search box to search the companies already posted? There are so many responses to troll thru and takes forever

Hi, feel free to leave your email address and or phone number and I will contact you. Cheers

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.

So…building with Stonewood Tauranga. I am a builder and project manager with no time to build my own home. Do i regret that decision now! 6 months before getting on site. A shift 3 times of end dates and still missing time frames. Very very poor quality build. Frames that werent aligned correctly and pinned down. Im talking anywhere from 9mm to 45mm due to not string lining bottom plates. I still have walls out 20mm and a bulkhead out 40mm. Holes in the roofing underlay. Frames not nailed off. Cladding not on but batts installed. Missing blocking for valley boards. They missed pre piping the gas! Ive had half the gutter on for a month with no sign of the rest. Changing plans without notice or confirmation or acceptance. No communication (until invoicing time then we get calls once a day). Poor poor poor company to deal with. A very unhappy process for my poor wife to have her dream home treated in such a way. We are still in the process and it will almost be 12 months by the time they finish. Ive taken some trades off them and managed them myself with no problems so they havent even had to manage the entire build and still cannot get it right. Kevin Norris….you run a very bad company trading in shoddy workmanship and i have had enough.Time to speak out and warn others off your company.

We are about to go to contract with G J Gardner Rodney (West Auckland) Franchise. we have been seriously impressed with the support and professional advice so far. Very responsive to our communications, fully listen to our requirements, looking forward to the build.