Medium density townhouses and small apartment complexes tend to be more environmentally-friendly than tall apartment buildings, at least in terms of energy efficiency,primarily because they don't need elevators, special high-rise plumbing and large HVAC systems.
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But seriously. Those housing prices! How do you do it?
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Tigers!
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Last week the builders building the home of my daughter (she who got recently married) went into voluntary administration. That means all work stops.
They only had left the driveway to do, install the garage door, paint the garage, clear the block, install the bath (why it was not done earlier escapes me) and attach the power, water, gas.
Now the waiting game. Will the company survive to finish the house? Will they give the house to my daughter as is or try to sell it?
The side effect is that the daughter and hubby were to leave our house in mid May. Now looks like at least mid June.
They only had left the driveway to do, install the garage door, paint the garage, clear the block, install the bath (why it was not done earlier escapes me) and attach the power, water, gas.
Now the waiting game. Will the company survive to finish the house? Will they give the house to my daughter as is or try to sell it?
The side effect is that the daughter and hubby were to leave our house in mid May. Now looks like at least mid June.
It wasn't done earlier because they didn't have the money to pay their subs.Last week the builders building the home of my daughter (she who got recently married) went into voluntary administration. That means all work stops.
They only had left the driveway to do, install the garage door, paint the garage, clear the block, install the bath (why it was not done earlier escapes me) and attach the power, water, gas.
Now the waiting game. Will the company survive to finish the house? Will they give the house to my daughter as is or try to sell it?
The side effect is that the daughter and hubby were to leave our house in mid May. Now looks like at least mid June.
I don't know how the law works where you are but under US law I would expect multiple subs to have liens on the property for work they haven't been paid for. They probably can't deliver the house. I hope they don't have too much out of pocket on this. (We bought this place before the foundation was even poured--and I don't recall all the details but I'm sure we had spent at least 5 figures on things that were part of the house but not paid to the builder. Most things if you wanted better than standard you dealt directly with whatever sub was doing that part of the construction--and those payments were made when ordering.)
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My daughter and her now husband went with the company to build the house on a block of land they owned. The added complication is that they own the land but not the house upon it. I would not have done it that way myself. My family through the years have built 6 houses around Victoria in 30 years for various members. We purchase the land separately, purchase a copy of the desired house plan ourselves then subbied it out. Tedious and very time consuming but safer. I know why my daughter went through the company but I warned her anyway. She had a fixed price contract. Interest rates in Australia has risen 11 times in about 12 months, from 0.10% to 3.6%It wasn't done earlier because they didn't have the money to pay their subs.Last week the builders building the home of my daughter (she who got recently married) went into voluntary administration. That means all work stops.
They only had left the driveway to do, install the garage door, paint the garage, clear the block, install the bath (why it was not done earlier escapes me) and attach the power, water, gas.
Now the waiting game. Will the company survive to finish the house? Will they give the house to my daughter as is or try to sell it?
The side effect is that the daughter and hubby were to leave our house in mid May. Now looks like at least mid June.
I don't know how the law works where you are but under US law I would expect multiple subs to have liens on the property for work they haven't been paid for. They probably can't deliver the house. I hope they don't have too much out of pocket on this. (We bought this place before the foundation was even poured--and I don't recall all the details but I'm sure we had spent at least 5 figures on things that were part of the house but not paid to the builder. Most things if you wanted better than standard you dealt directly with whatever sub was doing that part of the construction--and those payments were made when ordering.)
(My sister and I had interest of 17% with our house for a time in the 1990s.)
Along with tradie shortages and supply issues due to Covid. A bad mixture. 5 major builders has failde this year in Australia
If the subs have recourse that's going to make it even worse for them.My daughter and her now husband went with the company to build the house on a block of land they owned. The added complication is that they own the land but not the house upon it. I would not have done it that way myself. My family through the years have built 6 houses around Victoria in 30 years for various members. We purchase the land separately, purchase a copy of the desired house plan ourselves then subbied it out. Tedious and very time consuming but safer. I know why my daughter went through the company but I warned her anyway. She had a fixed price contract. Interest rates in Australia has risen 11 times in about 12 months, from 0.10% to 3.6%It wasn't done earlier because they didn't have the money to pay their subs.Last week the builders building the home of my daughter (she who got recently married) went into voluntary administration. That means all work stops.
They only had left the driveway to do, install the garage door, paint the garage, clear the block, install the bath (why it was not done earlier escapes me) and attach the power, water, gas.
Now the waiting game. Will the company survive to finish the house? Will they give the house to my daughter as is or try to sell it?
The side effect is that the daughter and hubby were to leave our house in mid May. Now looks like at least mid June.
I don't know how the law works where you are but under US law I would expect multiple subs to have liens on the property for work they haven't been paid for. They probably can't deliver the house. I hope they don't have too much out of pocket on this. (We bought this place before the foundation was even poured--and I don't recall all the details but I'm sure we had spent at least 5 figures on things that were part of the house but not paid to the builder. Most things if you wanted better than standard you dealt directly with whatever sub was doing that part of the construction--and those payments were made when ordering.)
View attachment 43095
(My sister and I had interest of 17% with our house for a time in the 1990s.)
Along with tradie shortages and supply issues due to Covid. A bad mixture. 5 major builders has failde this year in Australia
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An update on my daughter's house building.
On 29th May there were be a meeting to accept/reject the only offer to complete some of the unfinished homes. The same bloke whose company went into receivership is the proposer.
Basically all clients ( > 800) are being told that there will be a 6.5% price increase on all contracts. Not just the balance outstanding but on the entire contract price. MY daughter has already paid 73% of the contract price yet is being slugged on the 100% price. That is > $15,0000AUD extra. The votes is yes or no of > 70% of clients.
There are 19 agenda items on the meetings, some contradictory. Items 1-11 concern the payment of the administrators. They are requesting $1.3M for 38 days work (Good job if you can get it). Item 12 is to postpone the meeting (What????). Item 18 is to wind up the company. There is no explicit item to vote on the proposed new structure. There is no given importance to any given item, it seems, apart from order of appearance
If yes, then clients will be told whose houses will be completed. Houses beyond lock-up stage will be worked on (but crucially no guarantee of completion has been given). Those < lock-up stage fate is unknown. Fortunately my daughter is beyond lock-up stage and only has 1-2 weeks work required.
If the vote is no the company will be wound up. That means all clients are in the hands of the receivers. That fate are unknown for all clients.
It has been revealed that the company may have been insolvent since 2021. Even before my daughter signed up.
This has been an outrageous abuse of process. The administrator is forcing clients into a chosen direction. With the recent collapses in building companies there is a growing ground swell of opinion for a wholesale look at the whole industry.
It cannot come too soon.
I will most probably go to the meeting with my daughter, despite no vote, to support her.
On 29th May there were be a meeting to accept/reject the only offer to complete some of the unfinished homes. The same bloke whose company went into receivership is the proposer.
Basically all clients ( > 800) are being told that there will be a 6.5% price increase on all contracts. Not just the balance outstanding but on the entire contract price. MY daughter has already paid 73% of the contract price yet is being slugged on the 100% price. That is > $15,0000AUD extra. The votes is yes or no of > 70% of clients.
There are 19 agenda items on the meetings, some contradictory. Items 1-11 concern the payment of the administrators. They are requesting $1.3M for 38 days work (Good job if you can get it). Item 12 is to postpone the meeting (What????). Item 18 is to wind up the company. There is no explicit item to vote on the proposed new structure. There is no given importance to any given item, it seems, apart from order of appearance
If yes, then clients will be told whose houses will be completed. Houses beyond lock-up stage will be worked on (but crucially no guarantee of completion has been given). Those < lock-up stage fate is unknown. Fortunately my daughter is beyond lock-up stage and only has 1-2 weeks work required.
If the vote is no the company will be wound up. That means all clients are in the hands of the receivers. That fate are unknown for all clients.
It has been revealed that the company may have been insolvent since 2021. Even before my daughter signed up.
This has been an outrageous abuse of process. The administrator is forcing clients into a chosen direction. With the recent collapses in building companies there is a growing ground swell of opinion for a wholesale look at the whole industry.
It cannot come too soon.
I will most probably go to the meeting with my daughter, despite no vote, to support her.
Toni
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Yikes! What a position to be in!
Like many people, I’ve often fantasize zed about building my own home—that is, hiring a general contractor to hire/manage the subs, working with a purchased plans. And to be honest, I’m sure I’d want changes in the plan. Reading what your daughter is going through, I’m glad I’ve ever been in that position.
A good friend and her husband have had built a number of homes over the years. I’ve heard a lot about shoddy workmanship from my friend over the years, from contractors that were well regarded and well rated. Her husband is an attorney, which I think has helped. They know their rights and will stick up for themselves.
Having built their dream home and been in it for only a few years, they relocated to be near their daughter when she gave birth to twins and ended up buying an existing newer home near their daughter. They are now in the process of correcting all the defects in the home (there were a couple of things I could not believe passed inspection) and improving the aesthetics to their taste. They’ve had a lot more delays with their projects over the past 3 years than we did just renovating a bathroom and adding a bathroom.
Our home was built in the late 1890’s and is built very very solid. And now has modern plumbing and electrical systems. It has been a lot of work and a lot of money but I think it’s been worth it.
Like many people, I’ve often fantasize zed about building my own home—that is, hiring a general contractor to hire/manage the subs, working with a purchased plans. And to be honest, I’m sure I’d want changes in the plan. Reading what your daughter is going through, I’m glad I’ve ever been in that position.
A good friend and her husband have had built a number of homes over the years. I’ve heard a lot about shoddy workmanship from my friend over the years, from contractors that were well regarded and well rated. Her husband is an attorney, which I think has helped. They know their rights and will stick up for themselves.
Having built their dream home and been in it for only a few years, they relocated to be near their daughter when she gave birth to twins and ended up buying an existing newer home near their daughter. They are now in the process of correcting all the defects in the home (there were a couple of things I could not believe passed inspection) and improving the aesthetics to their taste. They’ve had a lot more delays with their projects over the past 3 years than we did just renovating a bathroom and adding a bathroom.
Our home was built in the late 1890’s and is built very very solid. And now has modern plumbing and electrical systems. It has been a lot of work and a lot of money but I think it’s been worth it.
hurtinbuckaroo
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Prices in our development seem to have paused their relentless climb. Two houses, both priced aggressively high, have been sitting nearly two months; until recently, a week was a long time to wait for a contract above asking price. One owner bought their home only a year ago, and is asking 10% more than their purchase price, which had been an easy get for the past few years.
Even though the market here is somewhat resistant to interest rate hikes due to buyers having significant cash assets from selling their previous home, it may be time for sellers to come down to earth a bit.
Even though the market here is somewhat resistant to interest rate hikes due to buyers having significant cash assets from selling their previous home, it may be time for sellers to come down to earth a bit.
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The meeting was held yesterday concerning the future of the unbuilt houses including my daughter's.
> 80% of the meeting voted to accept the proposed restructuring yet < 70% accepted the financial terms i.e a 6.5% increase in the total contract price. Not certain how some people think their house will be built at the same cost under the new structure.
BUT
another mob called the VMBA (cannot find anything about them. Presumably not the Victorian Medical Benevolent Association) have to agree. If they do not the company will be liquidated and all bets are off.
They have to respond within 15 days.
Probably the best possible outcome so far but not ideal.
> 80% of the meeting voted to accept the proposed restructuring yet < 70% accepted the financial terms i.e a 6.5% increase in the total contract price. Not certain how some people think their house will be built at the same cost under the new structure.
BUT
another mob called the VMBA (cannot find anything about them. Presumably not the Victorian Medical Benevolent Association) have to agree. If they do not the company will be liquidated and all bets are off.They have to respond within 15 days.
Probably the best possible outcome so far but not ideal.
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The good news with my daughter's house is that the work restarted yesterday.
The company's restructuring by the administrators was successful.
Wardrobes are in, shelves are in the pantry, laundry & linen press. The painting is finished.
All that is left now is the driveway, garage roller door, clear and level the block. Bath, showerhead, hot water service, dishwasher & stove to go in. And of course the final inspection.
Because the house was supposed to be finished (in Nov. 2022, then Mar. 2023) we have had delivered to our place (wife & I) all manner of tables, chairs, beds, white goods, furniture of all descriptions. Our place is chokkers.
You forget just how much furniture there is in a house.
But we are almost there.
The company's restructuring by the administrators was successful.
Wardrobes are in, shelves are in the pantry, laundry & linen press. The painting is finished.
All that is left now is the driveway, garage roller door, clear and level the block. Bath, showerhead, hot water service, dishwasher & stove to go in. And of course the final inspection.
Because the house was supposed to be finished (in Nov. 2022, then Mar. 2023) we have had delivered to our place (wife & I) all manner of tables, chairs, beds, white goods, furniture of all descriptions. Our place is chokkers.
You forget just how much furniture there is in a house.
But we are almost there.
gmbteach
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When Bilby moved into my little three bedroom place, it was chokkers with two houses of furniture. I think we had 4 beds, two lounge suites, three dining tables, and chairs, two washing machines, two dryers, 3 freezers and 6 fridges. Thankfully Bilby is an expert at three dimensional Tetris and we stored it in one bedroom and half of the library/office.
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A man of many talents is Bilby.
Right now in Australia housing affordability is in the political spotlight.
The political debate is focused on two factors:
Landlords.
We have a large landlord class in Australia who each own anywhere between one to dozens of investment properties and are living off of sky-high rents and a real-estate price bubble. While most have tenants, many of these investment properties are either vacant or leased as short-term rentals (like AirBnB). Landlords force up property prices for aspiring home buyers by artificially reducing the supply of property (by leaving houses empty and off the market) and increase demand by bidding against those same home buyers to expand their investment portfolios.
There is nothing to stop this trend from continuing. These landlords receive extremely generous tax breaks, meaning it is too easy to turn a profit from buying homes. With each generation home ownership will dwindle and houses will become almost exclusively the property of landlords.
Unless the law is changed to make this kind of house-hoarding either illegal or simply unprofitable then every generation is going to be more fucked than the one before it. Right now such reforms are politically impossible because there are too many boomers with a stake in keeping negative gearing, capital gains tax concessions, and over-inflated property values.
The political debate is focused on two factors:
- Housing can be made more affordable by increasing supply.
- The government should cap rents vs. the government should subsidise rent.
Landlords.
We have a large landlord class in Australia who each own anywhere between one to dozens of investment properties and are living off of sky-high rents and a real-estate price bubble. While most have tenants, many of these investment properties are either vacant or leased as short-term rentals (like AirBnB). Landlords force up property prices for aspiring home buyers by artificially reducing the supply of property (by leaving houses empty and off the market) and increase demand by bidding against those same home buyers to expand their investment portfolios.
There is nothing to stop this trend from continuing. These landlords receive extremely generous tax breaks, meaning it is too easy to turn a profit from buying homes. With each generation home ownership will dwindle and houses will become almost exclusively the property of landlords.
Unless the law is changed to make this kind of house-hoarding either illegal or simply unprofitable then every generation is going to be more fucked than the one before it. Right now such reforms are politically impossible because there are too many boomers with a stake in keeping negative gearing, capital gains tax concessions, and over-inflated property values.
Harry Bosch
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I'm curious. What are the tax breaks that landlords get in Australia?
Capital gains tax discount and negative gearing.
Tax concessions for housing investors to cost $20bn a year within a decade, analysis shows
Parliamentary budget office report shows high income earners will benefit most from negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions
gmbteach
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Anastasia alphabet has built heaps of housing and using old hospital and the quarantine barracks for affordable housing. Not sure how to qualify for it though?
Tigers!
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And so many pollies, both state and Commonwealth, are landlords too. Thus making a decision even harder.
Australia needs house prices to fall by at least 25-33%. But any government that engineered that will guarantee losing the next election so it will not be done. Plus if prices fall too far so many people in Australia (100,00s) will have negative equity in their homes i.e loan is > the price of the house. This will prevent a lot from not being able to move for work, health, kids etc. Plus reduce ability to do renovations etc.
We are in asituation where houses prioces need to fall but it can be done without causing major finanical troiuble fro so mmay Aussies.
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Can you really nor spell her surname?
bilby
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I think it's a cute nickname.
Though I knew her father, and I doubt anyone would have dared call him Henry Alphabet.
The Palaczszuk family have been ALP power brokers in the left faction for a long time, and are world famous in Inala.
Toni
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This is increasingly an issue in the US in more desirable urban or vacation areas. Home prices are extremely high in major cities and even in our small nowheresville city, our home is worth now more than I would have ever dreamed of paying for a house when we purchased it. We're fortunate that 3 of our 4 kids were able to purchase homes, a couple of them exploiting some special programs for first time home owners and one using VA loans to secure their homes. The last one....just needs to get their act together and figure out what kind of life they actually want...and then get down to it. As the kids say today, adulting is haaaaaardddddd