Your Build Guide

Building a new home can be a complex process, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. We’ve created this guide to help you understand what’s involved in each key building stage and plan for what’s ahead.

Our dedicated team of specialists – experts in finance, sales, pre-construction, interior design, construction and warranties –will help make the process as seamless as possible.

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Your New Homes Consultant will spend time with you to understand your needs. They’ll also guide you through our range of floorplans, design options and facades to help you discover your perfect home. They can also help you find land and prepare your ideal home and land package.

Your Home Loan Specialist will analyse a wide range of lenders through our in-house experts, Resolve Finance, to identify the home loan that suits you best.

Your Conveyancer will manage the settlement of your property using our in-house service, Resolve Legal.

Construction

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Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-construction) will guide you through the signing of your New Home Contract. They’re also your key point of contact throughout the planning and approvals stage, until your home is ready to start construction.

Your Interior Designer will work with you to understand and create your unique style and vision for your home. They will also assist you through our showroom and guide you through making your internal and external colour and material selections.

Your Joinery Designer will help you elevate and personalise the functional spaces within your new home. Joinery Design is an optional appointment, please speak to your New Homes Consultant for further information.

Your Lifestyle Designer will help you identify the technology required to support how you will live in your home; covering electrical, lighting, heating and cooling and solar requirements.

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Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will support you during the construction of your new home and will hand over your keys once your new home is complete. Please remember to call only during their working hours: Monday to Friday, 7am to 4pm.

Your Site Manager will be your boots on the ground, supervising the on-site contractors and suppliers. They’ll be happy to give you their mobile numbers, but please remember to call only during their working hours: Monday to Friday, 7am to 4pm. They need their downtime to stay fresh and focused for you.

Your Regional Construction Manager will oversee quality and safety throughout the build.

Warranties

Your Warranty Site Manager will inspect your home at your 12-Month Maintenance Warranty period, if required.

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Your Warranty Coordinator will be your main contact in our office. They will manage communication and answer any questions you may have during your warranty period.

A lot happens during your build journey, but rest assured you’ll have plenty of support along the way.

Sales

1. Set your budget

A Resolve Finance mortgage broker can help you determine your borrowing capacity and obtain the ideal loan from a wide range of banks and lenders.

Even if you already have a favoured lender, it’s a good idea to get an obligation-free finance health check through our in-house team at Resolve Finance. They have access to all the big banks and an exclusive lender with specialist products, so they may be able to find you a better deal.

2. Locate your land

Your New Homes Consultant can work with you to select the perfect block of land in your area of choice. Or you can just show us the land you’ve already purchased.

We also have great relationships with Victoria’s leading land developers, so it’s no trouble at all for your Consultant to prepare a complete home and land package. We’ll need a copy of your land contract to check the developer guidelines and take note of any covenants.

3. Appoint your conveyancer

When you’re building your new home, you’ll need an experienced conveyancer to handle the land settlement. Our in-house experts, Resolve Finance, can take care of it all for you.

4. Choose your home

We’ll help you personalise your chosen home using our selection of floorplan and facade options. We will then present you with an upfront, fixed price for your new home. You’ll sign a Preliminary Works Contract (PWC) and pay an initial deposit.

In line with our commitment to providing you with an upfront, fixed price before you pay a deposit, we don’t permit any changes to facades or floorplans after you sign your PWC. This includes structural floorplan changes, so make sure you’re completely happy with your chosen facade and floorplan before signing your PWC.

Our New Homes Consultants have implemented seamless processes to guide you throughout the initial stages of your journey.

Luckily, your New Homes Consultant is here to help you make them. This handy checklist offers a few key points to work through with your New Homes Consultant during the Sales stage.

Select floorplan

The first step: choose the perfect home to suit your block. Select a floorplan and facade from our range and personalise the floorplan with our range of design options.

Display walkthrough

Join your New Homes Consultant at one of our display homes for a personal tour explaining how you can personalise your selected floorplan. Your Consultant will ensure you know exactly what is provided as a standard inclusion and the additional options available to you. At the end of the walkthrough, you will have an understanding of costs associated with building your new home.

Structural changes

Now is your chance to make any structural changes to your home, including window alterations, ceiling heights and additional doors. Once you’ve signed your PWC no further changes will be permitted to floorplans and facades, so be sure to discuss all of your ideas and requests with your New Homes Consultant.

Design guidelines

If you’re building in an estate, check its design guidelines to ensure your PWC covers all the developer’s requirements. These might include lowprofile roof tiles, preferred colour palettes, and corner treatments if your block is located on a corner.

Preliminary Works Contract

Your New Homes Consultant will arrange a time to go over your fixed-price PWC, which will include any additional extras such as cooling and general upgrades you have decided on.

Deposit

Once your PWC has been finalised, your initial deposit of $2,500 is due so we can get to work on your contract and plans. At this stage, you will also need to provide pre-approval from your lender of choice, or have a consultation with our in-house finance team, Resolve Finance.

Please note: $5,000 deposit for Knockdown Rebuild customers.

Feedback

How was our sales process for you? Now is your opportunity to share your feedback on our staff and process, based on your sales experience. We’re always striving to be better, and your feedback helps us keep improving our product and customer service. You will receive an email with a link to complete a 1 question survey, we love to hear all about your experience so please remember to leave some comments.

Building a new home involves some big decisions.

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Dark furniture pieces evoke a luxurious and elegant presence to your home, contrasted with bold colours creates a modern and sophisticated aesthetic.

Pre-construction

1. Appointment booking

You will receive a call from our Administration Team to book in your appointments. These can include but are not limited to:

• HIA Contract

• Concept Consultation

• Joinery Design Appointment (if applicable)

• Lifestyle Design Appointment (electrical)

For timing of your appointments please refer to your signed What to Expect document.

Please note: If you are waiting on your land to title, we will arrange your Interior Design Appointment within 3-4 months of the title release date to ensure your lender has enough time to arrange your finance approval.

2. My Building Hub

My Building Hub is an online platform created to help you stay across everything happening with your build. All documentation such as your plans, contracts and specifications can be easily sourced and downloaded via My Building Hub, along with contact details for each person responsible for the construction of your home.

Once you receive your registration email make sure to sign up to access your account.

3. Preparing for your new home contract

Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) will be in contact with you prior to your contract appointment. Once your contract has been prepared, we’ll send you copies of your contract and plans approximately 1 week before your appointment. This will allow you time to review the documentation ahead of signing your HIA contract.

HIA Contract Signing

Your HIA contract signing appointment will be conducted virtually by your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction). The contract signing will take approximately 1.5 hours to complete.

All parties of the contract will need to be present at the meeting to sign the HIA contract. The Balance of Deposit will be payable within 7 days.

4. Preparing for your Curate with Abode appointments

As part of your new build, you will be assigned your own personal and qualified Interior Designer to guide you in creating the vision for your new home. Whether you have an appointment in the Abode Inspiration Studio in person or via an online consultation, your Interior Designer will work closely with you to find your perfect style.

Your Interior Designer will arrange a virtual Concept Consultation where they will:

Take your initial brief

• Ensure you have access to Abode online. This online portal enables you to preview colours, materials and finishes for your new home so you are familiar with the options available ahead of your Interior Design Consultation.

5. Interior Design Appointment

During your Interior Design Consultation, either in our Abode Inspiration Studio or virtually, your Interior Designer will help you finalise your colour schemes and fixtures. Once you’ve chosen your selections, your Interior Designer will prepare your paperwork for you to sign.

6. Lifestyle Design Appointment

At this appointment you’ll meet with your Lifestyle Designer at our Abode Inspiration Studio or virtually. The team will work with you to plan the technology in each room, from lighting design, home security and automation, to heating & cooling solutions and more.

One week prior to your appointment your Lifestyle Designer will be in contact to introduce themselves, discuss your options and provide supporting documents on how best to be prepared for your appointment.

Now it’s time to meet your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-construction) and Curate with Abode experts who will guide you through the pre-construction.

7. Obtaining approvals

Untitled Land

Please note that if your land is not yet Titled after completing your HIA contract appointment, you will be introduced to your Customer Experience Coordinator who will be your main point of contact until your land titles.

Your Customer Experience Coordinator will be in monthly contact to prepare you for when your land titles. They will also be available to you should you have any queries during this time.

Titled Land

Once your land title has been issued, our team are able to begin applying for and obtaining the relevant approvals outlined below.

• Order Property Service Information

• Order Soil and Survey Reports

• Notify you if a Community Infrastructure Levy is required

• Developers Approval

• Council approved plans/town planning (if required)

8. Developer approval

Upon land titling and the completion of all appointments our Drafting team will update your plans in order to submit to your Developer along with your chosen colour selections for approval. Remember, Developers decide on the outcome of your application and rejections can occur. If this does happen, we will do our best to find a resolution in a timely fashion that you are happy with and meets the Developer requirements.

9. 6-Star energy and engineering slab design

We ensure that a 6-star energy rating is achieved for your home.

10. Review final plans

Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) will send you your final plans for review and signing after checking thoroughly that they reflect your HIA contract and colour schedule. This is the final review before construction commences, so it is important you take the time to ensure your plans are correct.

Please note: This is not an opportunity to make further changes but rather review all documentation prior to site start.

11. Building permit application submitted

We will complete your final Quality Assurance Check where our Building Estimating and Drafting team will complete a final review of your job to ensure all documentation is correct prior to submitting for your Building Permit.

12. Scheduling of labour and materials for your build

Our Building Estimating team order all of your materials ready for construction.

13. Handover to the construction team

Now that all of your pre-construction steps are complete the exciting time has come where you are handed over to our construction team to begin the exciting stage of seeing your home come to life.

These steps will prepare you – and us – for the start of construction on your new home. They also act as a useful reference, so you always know which stage you’re up to in pre-construction.

Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) will be with you every step of the way to make your pre-construction journey as smooth as possible.

Finalise appointment bookings

Our Administration team will be in contact to arrange appointments for:

• HIA Contract signing

• Concept Consultation

Interior Design Appointment

• Lifestyle Design Appointment

Research colour inspiration

Now your appointments have been confirmed, it’s time to visit our display homes and scroll through our Instagram to find some inspiration for your new home. It’s also a great idea to start using Abode Online to make selections for your internal and external colours for your home prior to your appointment. Your Interior Designer will be available to provide guidance on your selections at your appointment.

Complete Concept Consultation

To help you prepare for your selections, your Interior Designer will arrange a Concept Consultation ahead of your Interior Design Appointment. This allows you and your Interior Designer to talk through the vision for your new home in preparation for your Interior Design Consultation.

Review sample HIA Contract

Your New Homes Consultant would have provided you with a sample HIA Contract at your PWC signing. We will also email you a copy of your HIA Contract one week prior to your appointment for you to review. It is important to read through this document before your contract signing appointment to ensure you understand what you will be signing.

If you wish to obtain any legal advice, you can use the sample contract to give you ample time prior to your contract signing appointment.

Sign HIA Contract

You will spend up to 1.5 hours with your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) in your contract signing appointment. During this time, you will go through the contract checklist, contract particulars and working drawings of your home before signing.

During your HIA appointment your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) will take you through the HIA Contract checklist prior to signing.

Pay 5% deposit

You will be required to pay your balance of 5% deposit within 7 days of your contract signing appointment. (A 2.5% deposit is required for Resolve Finance customers).

Below are a few of the key actions you will need to carry out before we can hand you over to the building team.

Complete Interior Design Appointment

This appointment will take place in Abode Inspiration Studio in either Docklands or Geelong with your designated Interior Designer. Once you’ve chosen your colours, you’ll sign off on your colour selection paperwork as well as any additional items requested on a post-contract variation. You also have the option to have this appointment virtually should that be more convenient.

Remember, this is your last chance to personalise your home – we can’t make any further changes after this point.

Complete Lifestyle Design Appointment

Please make sure you’ve considered your Lifestyle Design requirements before your Lifestyle Design Appointment.

Your Lifestyle Designer will also send through an electrical plan for you to mark up ahead of the appointment.

Complete Joinery Design Appointment (if applicable)

Held at the Abode Inspiration Studio in Melbourne or Geelong, your Joinery Designer will work with you to elevate the spaces within your home.

Obtain formal finance

Now is the time to provide a copy of your signed HIA contract, post-contract variations and any deposit receipts to your broker and/or lender. This will allow them to start the process for your formal approval application.

Pay Community Infrastructure Levy

Your local council may require you to pay a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). If so, you must pay this directly to the council and provide your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) with a receipt, before we can obtain your building permit.

Review pre-final plans

Once your land is titled and we have received all relevant property information and approvals, our Drafting team will get to work updating the plans to reflect all the inclusions you’ve chosen.

Once these have been obtained your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) will send you the completed plans to review.

Please note, this is not an opportunity to make further changes but rather review all documentation prior to site start.

Check boundary pegs

Before your land settlement date, we advise that you visit your block to make sure all boundary pegs are visible and in the correct locations. This ensures we are building in the right spot. If the boundary pegs are missing or not visible, we may be required to obtain a Re-establishment Survey before construction begins.

Confirm land settlement

We require written confirmation that the settlement of land has taken place as our record that you officially own the land. Your solicitor or conveyancer can provide this for you.

Confirm formal finance

We require a copy of your signed mortgage documents before we can commence construction. We need to see that your lender has unconditionally approved your mortgage. If you’re self-funding your construction, you can provide a recent bank statement to confirm the required funds are available to you. Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) may also request confirmation of evidence of funds for any client contributions.

Sign final plans

Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Pre-Construction) will send you a copy of your final plans for review. Before you sign, it’s a good idea to spend some time cross checking these plans with your contract and post-contract variations to make sure the plans reflect your choices. These final plans will be our reference for the construction of your home, which means we cannot make any further changes.

Please note, this is not an opportunity to make further changes but rather review all documentation prior to site start.

Clear block

Avoid delays in the construction of your new home by preparing your block. Make sure your block is:

• Clear of any rubbish or building debris

• Grass is cut back

• Remove fencing if house is sited on boundary

Provide feedback on your pre-construction experience

Once your job has been handed over to our trusty construction team it is your opportunity to share your feedback in a satisfaction survey on your pre-construction process. We’re always striving to be better, and your feedback helps us keep improving our product and customer service.

Construction process

1. Site start

Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will call with the exciting news that you are ready to get started onsite! They will update you on your start dates and let you know who your Site Manager will be throughout the build.

Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) and Site Manager will work closely together during your build to keep you regularly informed of your progress.

Your Site Manager will oversee the build and will manage everything that happens onsite, including the coordination and supervision of trades and suppliers.

2. Progress meetings

The build has four key stages:

1 Frame

2 Lock-up

3 Fixing

4 Completion

At each of these stages, you’ll have the opportunity to meet with your Site Manager onsite and view the progress of your new home. You can contact your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) or Site Manager to arrange these meetings.

You can visit your site accompanied with your site manager during business hours (7am - 4pm) at stages throughout your build, you must make an appointment through your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) or Site Manager. Due to safety reasons, it is required that your Site Manager must accompany you onsite. Meetings betweehn these key stages can also be booked with your Site Manager.

Throughout construction, you may use an independent inspector, however this must be noted to your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) and mention at what stage you will be using your independent inspector. You must provide 48 hour notice for when your independent inspector will be visiting so our Site Manager can arrange a site meeting.

It’s important to note that weather can potentially cause construction delays. We all know Melbourne is famous for its four seasons in one day, all year round! However, we work continuously with our trades to

minimise and make up for any delays. We attempt to foresee and plan for any delays, we will be in contact during this time to ensure you are updated.

3. Completion

Once your home is complete, your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will contact you to arrange a time to meet with your Site Manager onsite. At this meeting, your Site Manager will present your new home!

Your New Home Presentation is an opportunity to review any concerns with your Site Manager before key handover.

4. Handover

It’s the moment you’ve been eagerly anticipating — time to collect your keys! Dependant on availability, the handover of your keys can take place either at your home or in our Docklands office. Times can be organised with your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction), Monday to Friday between 7am - 3pm.

An important note: your lender may wish to inspect your completed home before releasing the final payment to us. We are only able to raise your final invoice after receiving your Occupancy Permit. In some cases, final payment can take up to 10 working days to clear.

The final inspection may take a few days to arrange, so please keep this in mind when organising your moving date. Please do not organise any furniture deliveries prior to confirmation from your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) and Site Manager.

Referral program

Now your home is complete, you’re eligible for rewards through our Refer a Friend program. If any of your friends and family you refer choose to build a Boutique home, we’ll offer you a reward. Visit

Now all the planning comes together, and it’s time to start building your new home.

Below are a few key moments in the construction process –please take note of what you’ll need to do through the next exciting stage of your journey.

Site start

Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will call you to confirm the date when construction will begin. Your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will be your main point of contact during construction and will provide you with a weekly update on the progress of your new home.

Quality control inspections

During the construction of your new home, an independent Building Surveyor and our own quality control specialists will inspect your home to ensure it meets our standards.

Stage 1 Site Manager

Because we pride ourselves on quality workmanship, we have Site Managers who specifically oversee the first vital stage of construction. Your Stage 1 Site Manager will coordinate all contractors up until your slab has been completed and approved by your building surveyor.

Site Manager

Once your slab has been completed, you’ll then have the pleasure of meeting your Stage 2 Site Manager who will be with you for the remainder of the construction of your home.

Progress payments

At the end of each major milestone throughout construction you will receive an invoice for each progress claim, as outlined in your HIA Contract. It’s important to send these promptly to your lender, so they can arrange the payment immediately.

New home presentation

Once your home is complete, we will contact you to arrange a time to meet with your Site Manager onsite so we can present your new home to you. This is your chance to ensure you’re completely happy with your new home before providing a formal sign-off.

Key handover

When it’s time to collect your keys, your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will contact you to arrange a convenient time to meet either at your home or at our Docklands office, dependent on staff availability. In this meeting your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will also take you through the warranties, provide a copy of all compliance certificates and offer handy tips for looking after your new home.

Feedback

This is your opportunity to share your feedback on our staff and process, based on your construction experience. We’re always striving to be better, and your feedback helps us keep improving our product and customer service.

You will receive an email with a link to a quick survey. We love to hear all about your experience so please remember to leave some comments too!

Now is the moment you’ve been eagerly awaiting – you get to watch your new home come to life.

+ TOP TIPS

Grey tones paired with soft pastel tones creates a peaceful and relaxing space.

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Add a splash of on-trend colours to a section of your home or slight touches throughout each room to bring your home to life.

Warranties

12 Month Assist 25 Year Guarantee

1. Commencement of your Warranty Period

Your 12 Month Maintenance Warranty period begins at the official handover of your keys in the Boutique head office. By the time that you have reached handover, you would have completed your ‘New Home Presentation’ with your Site Manager.

The New Home Presentation allows you an opportunity to review your completed home before sign off and formal acceptance. By this stage, your home would have been through a range of quality checks.

The New Home Presentation provides a final opportunity to ask any questions, we recommend you write down any questions prior to your meeting to ensure nothing is missed.

By signing your New Home Presentation, you are confirming that you are happy with your new home.

2. Your Home Care Guide

When you receive the keys to your new home we will also provide you with a Welcome Home pack. This includes a Home Care Guide outlining your warranties and information about caring for your new home.

There are various warranty periods for particular features of your home. We encourage you to carefully read this Guide so you are aware of these details.

Our Warranties department is primed for dealing with the unexpected; but we do not want YOU to have to deal with the unexpected as well.

After handover, any concerns or questions that you may have can be answered by emailing: warranty@abngroup.com.au and our Warranties team will assist you from there.

3. Moving into your new home

Once you have collected your keys, we know the first thing you want to do is move in, do some landscaping, set up your furniture, clean and start to make your new house a ‘home’!

It’s important to note that there are some items that are not covered under your warranties. These are items that could be considered to be general wear and tear, or damage that may have been caused after handover.

So please be careful when moving furniture, as any chips, scratches, bumps and bruises caused are not covered during this period.

4. Your 12 Month Maintenance Warranty Guarantee

Throughout the construction of your home, you can be assured with the industry standards that we adhere to, such as frequent inspections and building practices to ensure that we meet all relevant building codes and regulations — all of which help provide you with a quality new home.

During your warranty period, we also follow these same regulations and guidelines set out by the governing bodies and commissions.

What does this mean for you? Well it simply means that you have peace of mind, knowing that any decisions that are made regarding your home will not be our ‘opinion’ as a builder, rather they will be backed by, and fairly assessed in each and every case based on the documents produced by relevant industry bodies.

Our guarantee and commitment to you is that if any item is seen as a builders defect as deemed by our industry guidelines, or if any item of your house is not performing as intended within the warranty period, then we will fix this for you at our cost, no questions asked!

5. Your 12 Month Inspection

All new homes have a ‘settling in’ period where small issues may emerge that require attention. Our 12 Month Maintenance Warranty Service is a routine checkup, specifically designed to service your new home.

This involves meeting with one of our Warranty Site Managers at your home, who will thoroughly review your home with you to identify any areas that may need attention.

Simply contact your Warranty Coordinator leading up to the 12 Month anniversary of being in your new home to arrange for a comprehensive inspection by one of our Warranty Site Managers.

With an experienced department dedicated to providing service and advice, we are here for you regarding any warranty-related questions or concerns that you may have.

Thoroughly read your Home Care Guide so you’re aware of the warranties provided with your new home.

Your Home Care Guide also includes information on how to maintain your home, please familiarise yourself with these tips on how to keep your home well maintained.

Please be careful when moving furniture into your new home, as general wear and tear items (such as chips, scratches or marks) are not covered within your warranty.

Upon the 12 Month anniversary of collecting the keys to your new home, contact your Warranty Coordinator if you wish to arrange a comprehensive inspection of your new home by your Warranty Site Manager.

All warranty requests need to be sent to your Warranties team and warranty related repair work needs to be completed by ABN Group Victoria approved trades.

If you have questions or concerns about your home after handover, contact the Warranties team at: warranty@abngroup.com.au or on 9674 4554.

Now that you have been in your home for 12 months and completed the inspection process we invite you to provide feedback on our staff and process. You will receive an email with a link to a quick survey to complete. We love to hear all about your experience, so please remember to leave some comments too!

Important note

Only ABN Group Victoria approved trades and suppliers are authorised to assess and carry out warranty related repair works. Any external professional trade, supplier or manufacturer assessments or repairs on any part of the property, fixtures or fittings may void warranty claims. Any related charges will not be paid by ABN Group Victoria.

+ TOP TIPS

Earthy, soft tones encapsulating the Australian landscape are ways to bring a natural, light and relaxed feel to your home.

Glossary of terms

Building permit

This is the approval to build your new home. It means a registered Building Surveyor has reviewed and approved your construction drawings, specification and engineering. This also means your home complies with relevant building codes and regulations.

Developer guidelines

These are rules the developer places on your land, which outline limitations that must be met (such as eave size, setbacks or set colours). Your New Homes Consultant will let you know what the rules are, so you can take this on board when selecting options for your home. We’ll get your developer’s approval before we send off your plans for a building permit.

Final plans

These are the final plans of your house, which show any changes made. You will sign your final plans as acceptance and they become part of your contract.

Footings

The part of the house that supports everything else — usually made of concrete. Importantly, footings aren’t the same as foundations.

HIA Housing Industry Association.

House settlement

Final payment for the completed home by the owner to the builder. This stage is reached when the final claim for completion has been paid. At this point keys and warranty certificates to the home are handed to the owner.

New Home Contract Legal agreement between Boutique Homes and the owner (you!) detailing conditions relating to the construction of the home. This includes your final plans and price.

PWC

Preliminary Works Contract. An initial agreement describing items to be completed before the preparation of your New Home Contract. This is where you select options for your home so you can be sure of your final price, before paying any deposit.

Re-establishment survey Survey undertaken by a licensed surveyor to identify correct boundaries on a land allotment. This is especially important when building on the boundary.

RTS

Ready to Start — the stage a new home contract reaches when all contractual requirements have been satisfied and the job can be handed over to the building team to begin construction.

Frequently asked questions

What is land title?

Land title is a certificate that identifies the land and who owns it.

Most vacant blocks of land purchased in Melbourne’s growth area subdivisions begin their life as part of large single parcels of land or even multiple parcels joined together to form an estate. In most cases these original parcels of land were farmland.

Once a site is identified as a potential subdivision, many things have to occur in order for the final block to be delivered ready to build a new house on. This includes initial acquisition and planning approvals, finance and construction, followed by compliance.

In order to achieve individual titles a developer must obtain certificates of compliance to show that all works on each individual lot have been completed correctly and that all authorities are ready to accept the new assets. This is then sent to council in preparation for Statement of Compliance.

Any issues identified by the authorities need to be rectified before certificates are issued.

At the completion of civil works a council inspection will also be undertaken. Once council is satisfied that all required works are complete Statement of Compliance will be issued.

Once a Statement of Compliance is issued by council it is then sent to the titles office where individual titles are issued.

When can I make changes to my home?

Before you sign your Preliminary Works Contract (PWC), you can choose from a range of facades and floorplan design options to personalise your new home. But in line with our commitment to providing you with an upfront, fixed price before you pay a deposit, we don’t permit any changes to facades or floorplans after you sign your PWC.

During your colour selection meeting, you can choose floor coverings, colours and fittings for your home. You’ll also have a separate electrical consultation where you can choose the electrical requirements for your home, such as power points, downlights and security if required.

What is a structural change?

In preparation of your HIA contract signing appointment, our Drafting team will complete your contract plans according to all of your requests outlined in your PWC. Boutique cannot allow any structural changes once your contract plans have been finalised as this will impact the efficiency of our pre-construction process.

A structural change can be defined as a major alteration that will affect your plans and documentation i.e. engineering, 6 star energy rating.

Refer to your PWC for a list of structural changes that need to be finalised before your contract plans are completed.

What payments do I need to make?

• $2,500 at the time of signing your PWC

• 5% deposit at New Home Contract signing (less the $2,500 already paid)

• 2.5% is required if you are a Resolve Finance customer

The following progress payments during construction:

Base slab complete: 10%

Frame complete: 15%

Lock-up complete: 35%

Fixing complete: 25%

Completion: 10%

How long will it take to build my home?

Pre-construction timeframe (Titled): Deposit to Contract Signing: 6-8 weeks

• Contract signing to Ready to Start (RTS): 12 weeks

Please note: Refer to your What to Expect flyer for more specific timings and details. Timeframes differ for untitled land dependant on expected title dates.

The time taken for pre-construction can vary, depending on whether we require site-specific and local authority approvals. The time taken to obtain titles is in addition to the timeframes noted above.

Construction:

• Single-storey homes: 260 days as outlined in your HIA contract

• Double-storey homes: 290 days as outlined in your HIA contract

Please note: The time taken for construction can depend onsite conditions and weather. Our contractual building period for single-storey homes is 260 days, and 290 days for double-storey homes.

Can I supply my own products or employ my own trades for the construction of my home?

Due to the required insurances and the supplier agreements we have in place to deliver you the best value, it’s not possible for customers to supply their own products.

We also regret it isn’t possible for customers to engage their own trades to work on the home during construction, or to nominate which trades will work on their Boutique home.

The reason we keep everything in-house is to maintain our quality standards for every new home we build, and to ensure we construct your home within our guaranteed timeframes.

Will I receive a confirmed completion date?

We work hard to stick to our projected schedule, but there are many factors outside our control that can affect the construction timeframe — including the weather. So our Site Manager can only confirm your completion date towards the end of construction.

But we always keep you informed every step of the way — your Site Manager will provide you with fortnightly updates, and your Customer Experience Coordinator (Construction) will provide weekly updates.

When do my contract days commence?

Your HIA contract outlines the contract building period within which we’ll build your home. This period begins from the date when the site cut commences.

Who is responsible for paying for gas, electricity and water throughout construction?

As the land owner, you’re responsible for paying for any gas and water usage and any associated costs throughout construction. Boutique Homes will pay for any electricity consumption throughout the build.

+ TOP TIPS

Monochromatic use of colour, paired with natural timbers and hues can create a minimialistic look and feel to your home.

We’re listening

Our customers are at the centre of everything we do. That’s why your feedback is welcomed at every stage of the journey, even after we’ve handed over the keys.

Upfront, always

Building a home is complex, but it doesn’t have to be confusing. Our team will be clear and transparent throughout.

Discover the difference BoutiqueHomes.com.au or call 9674 4554

Raising the standard

We deliver beyond the standard. We only use quality materials and tradespeople with thorough supervision and quality control inspections throughout.

12 month assist

We offer a superior 12-month Warranty Service so your new home has enough time to settle and experience all four seasons.

25 year guarantee

Our commitments don’t end when construction wraps. We stand by the quality of our homes and back each one with a 25-year Structural Guarantee.

Building since 1978

Proudly part of the ABN Group, we’ve been delivering superior service, design excellence and exceptional quality since 1978.