Everything You Need To Know About Building Your Dream Home In Mandurah

Let’s face it. Everybody wants to build their dream home, at some stage of their lives. But, for many, it is the culmination of a life’s worth of savings, and can be quite stressful. It’s often not a straightforward process. And if you choose the wrong builder or design, it can go South extremely quickly.

So it’s best to do some prior research. If you’re looking to build in Mandurah, here are some tips from specialists that have been designing homes in the region for 28 years.

#1 – Approval

In order to build a new home, you will need to get a permit from the local authority. Thankfully, Compass Homes or a similar contractor will take care of this for you. But you can also do this yourself, and the City of Mandurah encourages you to file online where the application can be tracked 24/7. It’s also worth mentioning that a single house and ancillary structures where the proposal complies with the Residential Design Codes do not require approval.

#2 – Estimated Fees

The following fees are taken from the official City of Mandurah estimates page.

Development Application Fees

• Lower than $50,000 – $147.00
• Between $50,00/$500,000 – 0.32% of the estimated development cost
• Between $500,001 /$2.5 million – $1700.00 + 0.257% for every $1.00 above $500,000
• Between$2.5 million /$5 million – $7 161.00 + 0.206% for every $1.00 above $2.5 million
• Between $5 million/$21.5 million – $12,633 + 0.123% for every $1.00 above $5 million
• More than $21.5 million – $34,196.00

Planning Application Fees

• Change of use – $295.00
• Approval of amended plans – $200.00
• Building envelop – $147.00
• Extractive industry – $739.00
• Home occupation initial application – $222.00
• Home occupation renewal – $73.00
• Applications requested by applicants to be considered by Council – $500.00
• Local development plan – $500.00

Scheme amendments, outline development plans

• Major scheme amendments/outline development plans – $5,500.00
• Minor Scheme Amendments – $3,500.00
• Modifications to Outline Development Plans/Subdivision Guide Plans – $2,500.00

Subdivision clearances

• 5 lots or less –  $73 per lot
• 5 lots/196 lots – $73 for the first 5 lots and $35 thereafter.
• 196 lots or more –  $7393.00

As you can see, the fees can really stack up! Which is why you should work with a licenced and registered builder to run you through all of them in detail. There are other miscellaneous fees that are not mentioned and the above is just a general outline.

#3 – Understand Custom vs Volume Builders

A custom builder is one that designs the home to your specifications, within reasonable limits. A volume builder will only provide you with a cookie-cutter design and will not offer the level of customised & personalised service. It is best to understand how the building process works and the difference between design and build contractors, architects, volume builders, and custom builds. Where possible, work with as few parties as possible to increase efficiency.

#4 – Opt For ‘Design & Build’ vs Architects

It used to be the case that you would go to an architect, get the blueprints, and then try finding a builder that would fulfil them. It was, all things considered, a nightmare. The architect would draft the ‘dream home in Mandurah’, the client would take it to a builder, who would indicate that it could not be done or quote an extremely high figure. A design & build contractor does both, so you know that the drafted plans are affordable and meet the local regulations.

#5 – Itemise Everything

Lower quality builders (such as volume builders) can easily cut costs on everything from plumbing to lighting to roofing. The person supervising such builds could be managing 20+ units! The best builders will actually itemise every single product brand and code for you. You certainly don’t want random products in your home, and you need to have a checklist of items that your home is to be fitted with.

#6 – Have a Direct Point of Contact

Perhaps the most important point of all. When constructing your dream home in Mandurah, you want somebody you can trust and that you can contact. The last thing you want is to be kept waiting for weeks regarding a response. Personalised building services will give you direct access and inform you on each step of the journey.

#7 – Be Clear, Firm, & Authoritative

Do your research and have a clear firm of what design you would like and what price you are willing to pay. Vague ideas will generate vague results. The more specific you can be about your dream home in Mandurah, the easier it can be created.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line of building your dream home in Mandurah is:

1. Get a personalised home where possible.
2. Do not purchase a home that you immediately have to upgrade.
3. Read the contract and understand the terms and conditions.
4. Use a trusted builder who will keep you informed.
5. Research the building process and what it entails.

For a design & build contractor that satisfies all of the above criteria, get in touch with Reece Grantham today on 0403 724 878.

We’ll help design, craft, and build your dream home in Mandurah asap.