Building a home or adding a second floor or extension excites many people, especially those who have lived in less affordable living.

Home designing & building is sometimes a life long project; however, it can be a stressful and challenging journey for those without experience.
Many people simply don't know how to get started.
Although the process can be complex, there are generally some important initial steps to take when embarking upon the journey of constructing your new home or new additions to your existing home.

Determine Your Budget & allow for extras

Calculating how much you can afford for a new home or addition is crucial for the success of a home-building project.

This should take place at the very onset of your planning and research because all other building decisions are affected by the amount of money you have to spend. This covers what size of home, type of materials,
location and quality of the builder. It may also be helpful to sit down with an experienced lender who deals frequently with new construction home loans.

Find a Location

You'll need to decide whether you'd like to live within a subdivision or away from town in a more rural area or close to the beach perhaps on the Central Coast NSW.

Most areas within city limits have tighter rules and restrictions, and these neighborhood rules may interfere with your intended use of the property.

Check for Flood affected areas.
You will need to build higher than on the ground due to high flood levels usually inscribed by Councils Engineers to avoid a 1 in 100 year occurrence.
Make sure you check Council before you buy it.

Check for Bushfire Zones in your area.
We will need to design the building to withstand heat & Fire or ember controls due to the area you may want to live.
Make sure you check Council before you buy it.

Heritage requirements are always an issue when building or extending.
Strict heritage rules sometimes dont allow you to paint a colour or change a roof.
Heritage Conservation areas dont permit you to demolish an existing home & rebuild a new one.
Make sure you check Council or Call us before you buy it.

The absence of readily available amenities such as water,
electricity or sewer systems in rural areas not only affects your decision, but also your pocket.
Septic systems may come with hefty price tags, so it's important to obtain accurate project cost estimates before purchasing a block of land.

Call us for advice and assitance before you buy!
Pick a House Plan or Custom design.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You may find a builder who may have a selection of plans available for you to review -- complete with a price list and description of features --
or you may have the option of designing your own plan, custom designed.

GAP Designers can help you with designing your custom designed home or additions.

Remember that a house plan needs to be aesthetically pleasing and functional.
Planning items such as an Entry or a study or a Second Living room can include the general layout, room dimensions, width of hallways, amount of storage space and special accessibility considerations.
Two storey additions can also require more intense documentation due to the shadow or privacy impact on your neighbours and thus requiring special setback solutions & roof designing to suit the Councils strict rules and requirements.

Choice of Materials are also discussed to save you money.

First on the Check list - Organize a Contour Survey from a Registered Surveyor.
This is required to establish the levels and contours of the site including boundary lengths and width accurate within 5mm.
Heights of neighbours buildings, their windows, trees, sheds & outbuildings are also shown to accurately design a solution that will NOT IMPACT the neighbours.

We need the Survey to begin designing your new home or new additions on your site and so does the Council, Private Certifier, Engineers and finally the Builder.  

We always guide you through the entire process and if any other Consultants are required due to the nature of the work that is being done, we help & refer you to the right people who will sort out the additional plans, reports or details insisted upon
by Local Certifiers or Council.

The process of approvals can take up to 6 - 8 weeks in Council for a Development Application or 10 days if you choose to use a Private Certifier who can save you
time yet they can get expensive due to their fees.

When you recieve approval to Build via a Development Application process via Council you need to apply and have approval for a Building Construction Certificate
before you actually lay a brick. Dont forget that.

Private Certifiers though grant you a Complying Development Certification instead & you need to provide all they request up front such as Architectural plans, Engineers plans, Surveys, Geotechnical Soil Reports, Basix Certificates etc. including all their fees.
They can approve the plans within 10 working days and you can start building.


Finally Choose a Builder

We can help you with that!

Finding a reputable builder is crucial to making your dream a reality, and it's a good idea to go & visit their jobs on site.

Remember, you'll be dealing with this person or company for several months during the construction process.
It's important to check references, ask about any warranties offered, standard features included or charges for upgrades, which are structural or cosmetic changes made by a buyer after plans have been drawn and construction has began.
Additionally, it may be a good idea to get a rough estimate of price per square metre before you begin.

Remember GAP Designers have over 35 years of experience dealing with Councils, Private Certifiers, Engineers, Town Planners, and Builders.
We can help & save you time & money.