You have to get proper legal advice. In Victoria most custom builders will get the clients to sign a preliminary building agreement where most clients do not realize they…

Do not go to builders to do town planning, it is not the best way. I've been involved with iver 1000 town planning projects and seen far too many people…

If your project is in melbourne then the engineer will need to supply a certificate of compliance for the building permit. If he hasn't then he is operating illegally and…

Bloody hell how can we stop such stupidity. I canot believe as an architect that this stupidity onsite still happens.
the builder is ultimately responsible for any errors onsite, he…

Get an arborist to provide report to the engineer. The tree is over 7m away yet still young tree. The zone of influence will be determined by the arborist, they…

With a tight budget of around $200,000 you should be getting a soil test and contour survey done on your block of land asap to determine site costs before signing…

Yes very unfortunate, just when you thought all is ok they spring this on you, sad but its happened now. Normally +15% is normal for extras on a provisional sum…

Hi there
The top of the embankment is at an RL28.8 approx and bottom of embankment at RL28.0 approx, therefore will be approx 0.8m height. Its where it says top…

There is alot to be done. Too much to talk about here, but breifly you will need a number of trades all at same time, they include setout surveyor to…

Without knowing the design of the house the quote seems quite good priced BUT it seems the engineer should not of proceeded without your written instructions, the enginneer should of…

You need to follow the drawings showing required levels exactly, any variation to the levels and site prepareation will allow the builder to claim huge extra costs, so be carefull.…

As an Architect I'm just dumb founded by such cost escalations and/or underquoting, If only people would seek expert advice from either an experienced building designer or architect then alot…

Not much you can do without building contracts and permits, its the old saying always get everything in writing and never ever just trust a builder freind because as you…

As an architect there are many high quality builders that only do 4 or 5 homes year built to perfection with great attention to detail and service but really depends…

Had a client that had similar damaged bricks, they were quite badly damaged to large area. They are unacceptable and you can advise the builder in writing immediately. …

Your red line is your boundary line, the site plan shows the "ditch" on the drawing with the site levels shown. You will have a embankment on your site. A…

Any advice on fees that architects or building designers charge/quote these days. I'll be interested to know and compare. Thanks inadvance.

$1500 for a chat with an architect !! Wow wish I can charge that with my clients. reality is most don't. There are plenty of building designers and Architects…

Usually (but not always) when subdividing into lots less than 500sqm you must acheive planning permit first. You have to design the new home and ensure existing home complies with…

all regulations and process written in rescode 54 but you need to know councils policy as well, check their schedule to zoning, by the way which council is it anyway?…

that's why in victoria we have legally binding protection works agreements to resolve and avoid such issues. No one can do any works or affect your site without protection works…

if you do not have a easement on title or a legal point of discharge for them on your site then they cannot go onto anypart of your block. Full…

Your going to struggle for less than $10k per square, even through volume builders unless one of their plans happen to fit with simple customization as you know. i've had…

Yes this is ok and normal practice. It will be hidden in wall to suit your vanity.

A break down of typical town planning costs and working drawing drawings are usually as follows, keep in mind town planning is seperate process to building permit approval, town planning…

organise soil test directly yourself, they are around $330-$380 for standard soil test and report. significantly cheaper than builders will charge for the sake of a phone call. you will…

All Standard building contracts have 15% max capping on all provisional sums, that is builders cannot exceed a estimated provisional sum by more than 15%, but ofcourse they may…

Your better off going to building designer or architect for advice due to town planning issues. You will be surprised how much cheaper they are in advice than some builders.