We have been waiting for council approval for our building plans and we finally found out that they have been approved and we received in the mail today.
We had a bit of an issue when the final drawings were forwarded to us, as these were the first plans that had the correct spa bath in our ensuite, and were the first electrical drawings that showed the heating and cooling. The spa (Signature Spa's Ovelle Deluxe) that was included in our upgrade was the "Harmony" which is a rectangular single spa, but we wanted an oval spa (to fit 2) and we also were keen to have the headrests either end. This meant that they had to be re-drawn, then the wording of the contract didn't specify between 2 oval baths, so we had to get clarification which it was that was being included, and then the drawings re-done again as the 2 oval spas are slightly different dimentions. So our final drawings had the right spa (finally) but by the time we received them they had already been signed and approved... with the tap on the near side on the left "corner" which is where someone would potentially be getting in which we thought was a bad idea. We asked for the tap to be moved to the opposite side of the bath (still on the left but at the back of the bath in the corner of the room). We were told that we couldn't change anything as they could not be re-drawn (yada yada) but after a couple of chats explaining that it was the first time we had sighted the bath (even though the tap was in that position all along - we just hadn't noticed) they have decided to swap it over to the back for us (YAY). This means that the mixer and the spout are being moved, and it will make it harder to turn the tap on, we still think it's a better idea than having the spout at the front.
As for the electricals, we get 5 evaporative cooling points in the house as part of the summer promo ($1500 instead of $4500) and for the first time got to see where these would be placed. There is one in the master, sitting, dining and family room, with the 5th in the doorway of the 2nd bedroom. We thought this is a silly place for it - 1 the bedrooms aren't overly big and 2 - the 3rd bedroom misses out (which will probably end up being Miss Emily's). We thought it would be a much better idea to have it located in the middle of the passage way so that the air can flow to both bedrooms. After we approached them about this they said that they don't determine the location of the heating and cooling points but that the supplier/installer has set locations for maximum effectiveness (yada yada) and they couldn't do anything about it. We got the suggestion that we could bring it up with our site super (when we get one) and ask if it could be changed - but seeing as we won't have anything in writing I don't like our chances...
Finance is being finalised this week, so all going well we may actually have something to look at in a couple of weeks (just need to wait for the ordering). YAY!
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Our Plan
Thought I'd better add our house plan.
Due to the shape of the land we had to delete the outdoor room. We also have a different ensuite to the one shown here, with the shower being where the first hand basin is, then the spa (the ensuite is longer and the bedroom shorter to accomodate). The basins are on the wall where the short WIR shelf is, and the toilet runs the other way from off the far end of the ensuite - with the WIR changed to an L shape... clear as mud, right?!
Saturday, August 4, 2007
In the beginning...
How it all began:
Mid 2006 we started looking at (with no intention of buying) homes in the west of Melbourne. After a regular search of realestate.com I found a listing for a block in a good location for what I thought could not be the right price. We inquired and found out that, in fact it was the correct price and it had been dropped substantially not long before. After much discussion we decided it was an opportunity that was too good to refuse and put down a deposit.
We then began our search for a plan that would fit both the block and our needs and we always came back to Metricon. At that stage we were looking at the Connolly 23 plan, but found out (after spending time in meetings at the display) that it was being discontinued at the end of 2006, but the "replacement" was the Aspen 25. The cost was a little more, but we thought that the fact that we would have direct access to the house internally was a major advantage and fell in love with it.
We had the issue that our land has an easement at the rear, that would need the house being less than the standard council setback. In order to get approval, we needed to submit drawing to the council, and in order to get the drawings, we had to pay the initial deposit for the house. We paid our deposit in Feb '07 and received drawings shortly after which we submitted to council, only to find 3 weeks later that the drawings were not detailed enough and had to be re-submitted which took another 4 weeks. After this long drawn out process we found out that we had approval to build at 3.5m from the footpath (excluding the portico which could be closer), which meant that we could proceed with the plans.
June '07 we finally got booked in for our pre-contract and colour selection appointments, then our electrical appointment.
As it stands the buider has applied for the building permit late last week, and we should be starting on site some time next month by the time they get the permit and do the ordering, etc. It's very daunting but very exciting too! Our own home - at last!
Mid 2006 we started looking at (with no intention of buying) homes in the west of Melbourne. After a regular search of realestate.com I found a listing for a block in a good location for what I thought could not be the right price. We inquired and found out that, in fact it was the correct price and it had been dropped substantially not long before. After much discussion we decided it was an opportunity that was too good to refuse and put down a deposit.
We then began our search for a plan that would fit both the block and our needs and we always came back to Metricon. At that stage we were looking at the Connolly 23 plan, but found out (after spending time in meetings at the display) that it was being discontinued at the end of 2006, but the "replacement" was the Aspen 25. The cost was a little more, but we thought that the fact that we would have direct access to the house internally was a major advantage and fell in love with it.
We had the issue that our land has an easement at the rear, that would need the house being less than the standard council setback. In order to get approval, we needed to submit drawing to the council, and in order to get the drawings, we had to pay the initial deposit for the house. We paid our deposit in Feb '07 and received drawings shortly after which we submitted to council, only to find 3 weeks later that the drawings were not detailed enough and had to be re-submitted which took another 4 weeks. After this long drawn out process we found out that we had approval to build at 3.5m from the footpath (excluding the portico which could be closer), which meant that we could proceed with the plans.
June '07 we finally got booked in for our pre-contract and colour selection appointments, then our electrical appointment.
As it stands the buider has applied for the building permit late last week, and we should be starting on site some time next month by the time they get the permit and do the ordering, etc. It's very daunting but very exciting too! Our own home - at last!
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