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nzstato

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3 minutes ago, Bling said:

If you have storage elsewhere, I wouldn't leave appliances on site. Shit used to go missing up here all the time from sites.

Yea, I hear the neighbour is quite dodgy too....

They are pretty good at keeping the place locked up so far.  Since that shed got demo I dont really have any space left....

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I'm heading to some of your delays. Siteworks have come to a halt, site is too wet. Needs to dry out... rain is forecast for the next two weeks straight.

Got an email yesterday saying architect has underestimated the cut and fill requirements.

So at this rate will probably hit all the same ones.

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On 21/06/2021 at 14:20, nzstato said:

I'm going to do all of the $$ at the end when I know thats what it is but comes into the below buckets.

Extra excavations

Basing up ground level

Taller foundations (bloody council)

Retention tank + SW plan

Fence, not originally quoted (but the other one was)

New Kerb + channel, not originally quoted

 

I hate this stuff. Residential builders working directly for the homeowner are held to a really low standard with regards to transparency. If I were a landowner engaging a builder to build my house, I would expect them to quote everything that was required. If you can't get CCC on a house without a retention tank, then it should be included. It's really not good enough to say "but it's not on the list of inclusions!", the client is not a construction professional who can work through the list and know what's missing. A surgeon wouldn't quote an operation without anesthesia then withhold it because it's an extra. 

The company I worked for usually worked with a fixed price. We'd often lose jobs to companies who quoted a provisional sum, and several times those people came back and told us that their final cost was (a lot) more than our fixed price. The builders on a provisional sum really don't have the same incentive to be thorough when they're pricing in the first place, and they don't have the same incentive to work to the budget. The numbers are always bigger up front, and you're usually paying for a few more overheads (QS, Admin staff etc), but it's good insurance.

 

On the other hand, some of these items look like either the scope genuinely changed, or the architect didn't provide an adequate design. You can still get cost overruns on a fixed price of course, but there has to be a better reason that "oh, I missed that".

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17 minutes ago, Sambo said:

 

I hate this stuff. Residential builders working directly for the homeowner are held to a really low standard with regards to transparency. If I were a landowner engaging a builder to build my house, I would expect them to quote everything that was required. If you can't get CCC on a house without a retention tank, then it should be included. It's really not good enough to say "but it's not on the list of inclusions!", the client is not a construction professional who can work through the list and know what's missing. A surgeon wouldn't quote an operation without anesthesia then withhold it because it's an extra. 

The company I worked for usually worked with a fixed price. We'd often lose jobs to companies who quoted a provisional sum, and several times those people came back and told us that their final cost was (a lot) more than our fixed price. The builders on a provisional sum really don't have the same incentive to be thorough when they're pricing in the first place, and they don't have the same incentive to work to the budget. The numbers are always bigger up front, and you're usually paying for a few more overheads (QS, Admin staff etc), but it's good insurance.

 

On the other hand, some of these items look like either the scope genuinely changed, or the architect didn't provide an adequate design. 

This is everything I'm experiencing, no other area of business could operate this way and still have customers. Needless to say I deal with contracts day-in day-out so I can make life difficult. 

Also, I now understand the relevant legislation of all of the professional boards as well as the commerce comission and may look to make complaints. 

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One of the biggest issues in the industry is that building companies are run by builders.

 

Some of them do it really, really well, but I think they're the minority. Guys start businesses because they're good tradies, but they don't know anything about QSing etc. I don't mean to throw shade at tradies, but many of them have pretty minimal education, and now they're trying to create and administer contracts without knowing/understanding the rules. They're mostly learning the professional side of construction through trial and error - at your expense.

 

Edit: Many don't even realise that they're working to a contract if it's a verbal agreement to build a fence etc.

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  • 3 weeks later...

@nzstato might be a /ling but always puzzles me why driveway and landscaping aren’t part of CCC. Did your contract with the builders include lawn and a drive or did you agree to exclude these and do yourself?

When we value shit off the plans it’s always tricky when we do completion reports to release all the funds and they have no lawn or pathways, and are still using a pallet as a front doorstep … house isn’t exactly “complete” 

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I had temporary steps / pallets at my place as I think by rights, smooth side up decking doesn't meet "slip factor" for code.

Could be wrong mind, but wasn't an issue I was willing to deal with. Pretty sure up here the driveway just needs to be formed.

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This is the specific wording in my subdivision consent

 

"The new vehicle crossing must be formed to a minimum 3.0m width, be hard surfaced from the edge of the carriageway for a minimum 5.0m towards the property boundary, and be adequately drained."

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Yeah as above I was also about to say.  The grooves were originally used down so the timber could breathe and didn't rot between the connections. Somewhere along the line some suit decided it was good for grip and is now policy to have it up. From my experience it can be fucken dangerous when wet with less surface area for your shoe to grip, especially when in a shaded spot. Hardwood is even worse and on some jobs we've had to put put sand down to make it safe (while we're there anyway). We used antislip tape along the front edge of any steps when we built our deck, mainly for oldies. 

 

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