# Canterbury House Builders.



## eastendoflondon

Hi All,

Has anyone had any experience with building a new home in the North Canterbury region on the last few years.
We have bought some land and now are looking to build the dream home.
I know of a few building companies in Christchurch but was interested to know if anyone had actual experience with them in the last year or two?

It is important to us that we are looking to build a two storey home with a swimming pool so any experience with builders in that area would be great.

Thanks


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## kiwigser

eastendoflondon said:


> Hi All,
> 
> Has anyone had any experience with building a new home in the North Canterbury region on the last few years.
> We have bought some land and now are looking to build the dream home.
> I know of a few building companies in Christchurch but was interested to know if anyone had actual experience with them in the last year or two?
> 
> It is important to us that we are looking to build a two storey home with a swimming pool so any experience with builders in that area would be great.
> 
> Thanks


Sorry no direct experience in Canterbury, but there are plenty of Franchise builders under a company umbrella. I have been dealing with several in North Island who operate in the south. The cowboys have gone with the down turn in building. If you choose a larger builder they will insure you against the franchisee going under and guarantee the build completion.

Christchurch, Fowler Homes - Christchurch Specifications. NZ New Home Builders, Master Builders, New Homes, House Building Plans, homes, new homes, home builders, new house builders, house, builder, new zealand

Golden Homes - Home

Platinum Homes : Visit Our Showhomes and Sales Centres

REM Building Ltd | Signature Homes NZ

These are some I have dealt with, but it comes down to price and who feel comfortable with. A lot can be done over the internet and Skype.

Things I have found, Golden homes are well built and start at a cheap price per metre squared, but an awful load of extras. 

Platinum seem very good but only build single storey

I also got on well with Fowler Homes.


also have a look at this 


Buying land (section) and planning a house [Art and Tels diary of New Zealand (NZ)]

Its a great opportunity to be able to design and build your own home, it will be warm and guaranteed and can work out cheaper even including the GST. 

Have fun


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## Darla.R

Sovereign Homes went into receivership a few days ago.


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## Darla.R

P.S. careful with design and build - it's a lot more expensive than buying 'off the peg'


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## kiwigser

Darla.R said:


> Sovereign Homes went into receivership a few days ago.


Sovereign went back in Nov 2010 and was not a franchise, but a good company. 

Just make sure everything is covered. We have several estates, north and south of us, solely being built to individual specs, not UK style. It is not a big deal here to use a builder direct.


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## Darla.R

9th March 2011



> "Auckland-based home building firm Sovereign Homes New Zealand Ltd has collapsed.
> 
> Peter Chatfield and Stephen Tietjens of Accru Smith Chilcott Ltd are handling the liquidation and were called in by the company's shareholder.
> 
> "It is very early at this stage but it is fairly clear that we will not be able to complete the contracts," Mr Chatfield told NZPA. The company employs about 11 people.
> 
> The liquidators would be in touch with customers and would try to help them to find new builders, he said.
> 
> The company is a contractor to Kensington Park, a resort style neighbourhood being built at Orewa north of Auckland.
> 
> Sovereign started in 1997 and has built well over 1500 homes, according to its website.
> 
> It is one of the country's largest, wholly-owned, non-franchised, residential builders.
> 
> Homes come with a materials and workmanship guarantees.
> 
> The company has one director, Peter Wood of St Heliers, Auckland, who is the only shareholder via another company."


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## Darla.R

I think what I'm saying here is if a company like Sovereign Homes can go bankrupt in a place as affluent as Auckland one should proceed with care with other building companies.


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## eastendoflondon

Thanks all espesh Kiwigser with those links.The last one shows a wealth of info.
We have approached Stinewood Homes in Chch as they have a v good reputation at that branch.
My partner has built a property off plan before in Auckland so she knows the ropes a bit but no knowledge of Chch.
Will go through those sites with a fine tooth comb 

I've also heard rumours that the government *may*introduce a GST refund policy for new builds which will be good.
It will give the economy a nice lift and makes sense to me.

Here in the UK the government have introduced a scheme:

_"Those who qualify will be eligible for a loan worth up to 20% of the value of the property, jointly funded by the government and housebuilders. The loan will be interest-free for five years and only be repayable when the house is sold.

Osborne intends the fund to help first-time buyers who are currently only able access mortgages requiring much bigger deposits, as lenders tightened their criteria in the wake of the credit crunch and recession. The government hopes the fund will result in the building of 10,000 new homes and protect 40,000 jobs in the construction industry"_
Hopefully they do something similar in NZ!


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## topcat83

Darla.R said:


> I think what I'm saying here is if a company like Sovereign Homes can go bankrupt in a place as affluent as Auckland one should proceed with care with other building companies.


It was a real shame for Sovereign - they were one of the few non-franchise larger building companies left - but their builds did come with a guarantee. Unfortunately the amount of building in New Zealand in general has slumped with the house prices.

I think the best approach is to treat each franchisee within a group as a separate building company, and make sure you are happy with their build quality. Ask to see a number of the houses they have built, and if possible ask the new owners what they think. And make sure the builder has insurance against going bust. That's just sensible.


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## kiwigser

eastendoflondon said:


> Thanks all espesh Kiwigser with those links.The last one shows a wealth of info.
> We have approached Stinewood Homes in Chch as they have a v good reputation at that branch.
> My partner has built a property off plan before in Auckland so she knows the ropes a bit but no knowledge of Chch.
> Will go through those sites with a fine tooth comb
> 
> I've also heard rumours that the government *may*introduce a GST refund policy for new builds which will be good.
> It will give the economy a nice lift and makes sense to me.
> 
> Here in the UK the government have introduced a scheme:
> 
> _"Those who qualify will be eligible for a loan worth up to 20% of the value of the property, jointly funded by the government and housebuilders. The loan will be interest-free for five years and only be repayable when the house is sold.
> 
> Osborne intends the fund to help first-time buyers who are currently only able access mortgages requiring much bigger deposits, as lenders tightened their criteria in the wake of the credit crunch and recession. The government hopes the fund will result in the building of 10,000 new homes and protect 40,000 jobs in the construction industry"_
> Hopefully they do something similar in NZ!


Just remembered, I was in contact with a guy in CHCH who was living off grid and he has just had a house built with a private builder. His link is offgridnz

You will see his email address in the journal


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## BigKiwiDave

Mike Greer Homes Ltd is the builder we're using in Christchurch. Very professional, and are a credit to the building industry. Skype calls are used for updates, and email. They are building 3 separate homes at present for overseas customers. Only 3 months to go for completion. 

I was recommended them from my brother who used them a few years ago, and his place is amazing, with no damage at all after the 2 big 'quakes.

I'm a bit biased, but you'd expect that as they're doing a sterling job for me.


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## kiwigser

BigKiwiDave said:


> Mike Greer Homes Ltd is the builder we're using in Christchurch. Very professional, and are a credit to the building industry. Skype calls are used for updates, and email. They are building 3 separate homes at present for overseas customers. Only 3 months to go for completion.
> 
> I was recommended them from my brother who used them a few years ago, and his place is amazing, with no damage at all after the 2 big 'quakes.
> 
> I'm a bit biased, but you'd expect that as they're doing a sterling job for me.


I am intrigued, if I get this correctly, you are still in the UK and your house is being built thousands of miles away.?


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## BigKiwiDave

Yes mate. I receive regular photograph updates and the foundations were laid 3 weeks ago, timber frame erected 2 weeks ago and the roof will be on in a week. I'm aware there will be between 5000 and 10000 ' new builds' coming up because of the EQ, so we had a feeling it was going to be a long build process. 5 months start to finish is pretty good. Have a look at them and do a bit of research (they have a Facebook site with pictures, as well as their website, to give you an idea of build quality/finish). They also took a look at our land/section when we discussed the original house plan, and made sure our house would fit in with it getting all-day-sun for the winter, and that the house design/choice would suit the land, prior to sending us our original plan. 

I've got nothing but praise for them. I have a 3 month old daughter who has a 3am (ish) feed, so am checking mail/updates during the night, and get the odd reply back to them then. But in general, we reply/respond late evenings in the UK, in time for them starting work in NZ.

We originally approached them saying we liked a certain house style, which was out of our maximum price range by $30K, so were going to go with a different style instead. They then said that we could still have the one we wanted, as they'd build a slightly smaller version of it, at our price (it's still 4 double bedrooms). We loved that flexibility straight away. 

They couriered a load of samples for kitchen detail, roof/garage doors & interior/exterior colour charts. We had 2 separate kitchen designers propose the layout & if we like something out of a magazine, we scan it over & they do it. They've also got commercial price access to appliances which they don't mark up the price on. 

I've had email replies from them up until 10pm (NZT) on weeknights and also on weekends. They seem pretty committed. Hope this helps.


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## kiwigser

BigKiwiDave said:


> I've had email replies from them up until 10pm (NZT) on weeknights and also on weekends. They seem pretty committed. Hope this helps.


Thats great, just amazed.


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## Darla.R

BigKiwiDave said:


> Yes mate. I receive regular photograph updates and the foundations were laid 3 weeks ago, timber frame erected 2 weeks ago and the roof will be on in a week. I'm aware there will be between 5000 and 10000 ' new builds' coming up because of the EQ, so we had a feeling it was going to be a long build process. 5 months start to finish is pretty good. Have a look at them and do a bit of research (they have a Facebook site with pictures, as well as their website, to give you an idea of build quality/finish). They also took a look at our land/section when we discussed the original house plan, and made sure our house would fit in with it getting all-day-sun for the winter, and that the house design/choice would suit the land, prior to sending us our original plan.
> 
> I've got nothing but praise for them. I have a 3 month old daughter who has a 3am (ish) feed, so am checking mail/updates during the night, and get the odd reply back to them then. But in general, we reply/respond late evenings in the UK, in time for them starting work in NZ.
> 
> We originally approached them saying we liked a certain house style, which was out of our maximum price range by $30K, so were going to go with a different style instead. They then said that we could still have the one we wanted, as they'd build a slightly smaller version of it, at our price (it's still 4 double bedrooms). We loved that flexibility straight away.
> 
> They couriered a load of samples for kitchen detail, roof/garage doors & interior/exterior colour charts. We had 2 separate kitchen designers propose the layout & if we like something out of a magazine, we scan it over & they do it. They've also got commercial price access to appliances which they don't mark up the price on.
> 
> I've had email replies from them up until 10pm (NZT) on weeknights and also on weekends. They seem pretty committed. Hope this helps.


Wow! frames erected a week after the foundations were poured. That's very quick.

Once the roof is on they should make the whole building weather tight asap after that, i.e. within a matter of days.

Do the builders also provide you with copies of the official council inspection reports as the build progresses?


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## BigKiwiDave

We haven't requested the reports on the council updates, but have another skype call in a couple of nights, so thanks, that will be a point raised. In reality, it's not really our issue. It's under their control until we get the keys, and they have contractual obligations, etc. Besides, we have every confidence in them, having seen their work first hand, heard how they were during the build progress, and I know some people in the construction industry who are/were complimentary of them


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