Maybe time to call in some expert help to assist you in making the best of this and reducing any costs.

Awesome. Happy Xmas in your new home. Congratulations.

Newcastle is subtropics, same as the climate I was gardening in. So here's my pick of things to try.
Corn - look for a 60 day to harvest variety
Tomato -…

What climate are you in? Ironically summer isnt the time to start new plants. The weather gets hot too fast for an emerging plant to cope with. But here's a…

If I'm holding land to build and live on, I could care less about property investment to be honest. If I had bought land with the idea of subdividing and…

I don't have much experience but I can tell you this. Your local council website will have an annual report, in it they list all the levies and rates they…

Question answered. The architect got back to me today. Because it's spec'd in American lumber I can't make use of those plans here. We have different lumber sizes so I…

Depends, what's the application. Are you in a house, apartment? There may be an alternate solution to installing an appliance. Pretty much any refrigeration appliance is not exactly going to…

And here is this barn built from scratch, after seeing it in the flesh. I'm loving it even more.
http://thinmac.wordpress.com/building-my-small-barn/
I think it's time to contact this…

Excellent series. Thanks for posting. Just watched the first episode and it's an eye opener that's for sure. I guess not many people associate climate change with starvation and war.…

Meh they're over-rated. I live in one now and the amount of subsidence and subsequent cost to my landlord is going to require a mortgage just about. It's so bad…

Actually after looking at that awesome barn door recently posted. I went a hunting and found....tada! The exact kind of building I want for a home. Yes folks it is…

They look great WG. Agree can be used for all sorts of things. Mind is now ticking over.... Like the old industrial box car rollers…

I love your door. If I were building a barn, I'd be putting one of those on it. Amazing.

Great use of space there, love the cupboard beds, have considered doing that myself an dispensing with bedrooms. I've seen lots of great alcove beds that do double duty as…

Actually I love those old concrete sinks. I want to get some to go in the kitchen and laundry of my house. I've seen one of those installed as a…

Do you need the kids zone? You've already got a games room. Eliminating that room will enable you to move the dining and kitchen back so that the end of…

Yeah. It is only to get a general idea but I found it handy nonetheless.

Fixed it. Cut the beginning of the address off.

Not sure if it's just me, but I'm finding this an interesting read at the design stage of my planning. It's good to check that what you have in mind…

Thanks Johnson,
I'd say you definately got your house right. It looks amazing. I'll have a look at that book too. The last thing I want is to do all…

Okay. I've rejigged the original floorplan, to accomodate a guest room in a loft over the downstairs bedroom. Where to put the blasted stairs is always the thing, they take…

Have you heard about wicking beds? This is where you build (easy to do) a small retention tank under a garden bed that sits there and continues to water the…

I fell in love with the idea of tankless water retention on site when I came across these....old swimming pools now turned into naturalistic water holes. Looks far better than…

I love your hard landscaping design. Very nice and your garden seems to be going so well.

Clearly you are building a superior home and the local fawna have decided to move-in pre occupation certificate. At least you won't have a problem with rodents.

I agree, but if the wall is low that width can do double duty as seating. i've seen them topped with wood decking and also flagstones. Look amazing. But it…

If you are building a slab nearly all blocks will require some excavation anyway don't they? That fall isn't much at all. And some variation in height can make a…