I would strongly recommend never signing a contract on the spot, unless of course you are familiar from experience with how that company operates.
Take some time to read over it…

I prefer brick because there is less maintenance.
With bag and paint, render or Hebel you will have ongoing maintenance in the long term repainting it and fixing any cracking.
If you…

2.7m ceilings are plenty, you don't really need to go higher in my opinion.
2.4m ceilings are horrible, so I went for 2.55m ceilings as it was a reasonable amount…

Yes it does vary a lot from builder to builder.
McDonald Jones really dragged things out between registration and actually starting building. Best bit was they then expect to charge…

Well if you are renting I imagine it won't even come close to covering the cost of your rent.
Other people have managed to negotiate this with MJH. I'd be…

Yup, Stage 1A is obviously registered and the first residents have actually moved in just before Xmas. Display village is supposed to open by the end of March I…

Yeah the cost of the cavity sliders was reasonable enough. Personally I couldn't justify the cost of LIN1 doors and figured it's always something I can do later if…

In reply to some of the questions above:
Timber look finish to the garage door is $1200 according to the price list I got at selections (I stuck with a normal…

That's my understanding to. They want you to buy their expensive tiling or floating floors, so they aren't going to make it any easier to do it yourself after…

The standards are not optional, they are mandatory and enforced through state legislation. No half decent licenced electrician will do what you are requesting if it is not compliant…

When I did my selections appointment last year it was $100 for a Clipsal 11W LED down light. Not sure why you think they will only use halogens...
Also, it's not…

So long as you have good roof cavity space above the spots you want the downlights they will be fine to do after handover if you are looking to save…

Prior to signing the contract I queried about access for a building inspector to get access throughout the build. I was assured both in email prior to contract signing and…

I'd allow about an extra 50% of the base price to cover site costs, a few upgrades, flooring, driveway, basic landscaping,etc....
That's what it has worked out for me but I…

I agree with brad, but I would also point out that it may also be worthwhile getting an independent inspector in at earlier stages such as for the slab form…

Certainly not good to see cracks like those appearing but do you have any idea why it's all cracking? As in, were the joints not properly taped and plastered…

Cheers for the heads up on that FB group! Had never thought to search FB to see if a group existed.

I can certainly appreciate your frustrations. I've been doing everything on my end straight away, complied with their unreasonable timeframes for reviewing and then signing contracts, etc but when it…

Say you want to add an extra bank of drawers in your kitchen, this may cost you $250 to do at the selections appt prior to signing of the contract.
If…

Thanks, made contact with the manager today. I am promised progress on Monday....guess we shall see what happens!

Thanks, yes it's just a building contract with MJH and not a H&L package.
Nope, all the reports have been back for at least two weeks so far. Unfortunately every…

Thanks for the reply.
It's been 4 weeks since my land registered and am still waiting to see the variation that apparently happens before they will update my plans…

Question for people out there that singed their building contract when their land was unregistered, once your land was registered how long did it take for MJH to:
1/ Do…

Was about a $2-2.5k dearer for MJH to tile the living areas in my Cordova One however the carpet price was within a few hundred of getting the same brand…

From memory it was four or five business days for them to prepare the quote and then they ask you to come in for an appointment for them to present…

No worries, glad you enjoyed it.
That's for both benches in the kitchen. Keep in mind it's just the edges that will be 40mm of Caesarstone, the middle of the…

No idea sorry, they didn't have a display home in the area so I didn't look at them.

You could get LendLease to approve your plans prior to registration if your builder was willing to use the site contours that were in LendLease's original plans. My builder…

Agreed on the growth potential, in particular I think that the Albion Park Rail bypass and moreso the Albion Park bypass once completed will ensure we get good growth…

Stage 1A is already registered. It is settlement they are asking for by the 14th June.
Look in the Calderwood Guidelines and the covenants on your block, but i think…