Choosing the right home

Making the final decision is always hard when you have so many options and ideas to choose from. At the end of the day you do end up finding something that suits your needs and budget after a bit of hunting.

When we first thought of building our first home we went ahead and started looking at display homes to give us an idea of what to expect within our budget. Among the few of the very first builders that we approached were Metricon and Eden Brae. We want to build a double storey house because we thought of investing into our future. This is a house we plan to live and build family in for the next 10-15 years at least. 

Initially we were impressed by Metricon home designs due to the fact no matter what Metricon display home you walked into gave you the feeling of open living. Eden Brae at the time also had a promotion which offered $35-$45K discount on your home. 

Our house planning was however then put to a stop due to our land settlement taking longer than anticipated. 

Fast forward to now and our settlement has finally happened and we are officially owners of a 557 Sqm block with a width of 17 meters. While most house designs we like can easily fit onto our block of land we need to be mindful of council restrictions and requirements. 

Once the settlement occurred it was easier to approach builders in regarding costs and house plans. We shortlisted some of the well known builders in Sydney and started our hunt for the right home. The list included Eden Brae, Metricon, Mc Donald Jones, MOJO and Kurmond homes. After our first visit of the homeworlds in Marsden Park and Kellyville we were able to shorten our list even more due to information that was provided and budget constraints to Mc Donald Jones, Metricon and MOJO. 

Our budget for the construction of our house is around $450,000 which excludes driveway and landscaping. You might think that is a very easy manageable budget but what you see in display homes isn’t what you get in a base price. There are other things that you need to consider which include site costs plus any additional upgrades and finishes that are not included in the standard package. 

After various estimates we are now at a stage where we like two houses with some slight changes. The one we choose will depend on the final quote both builders provide in a weeks time from now. 

Design 1: Enigma 41 by MOJO

Home width: 11.75

Home length: 22.3

3D Virtual tour: https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=sY8ZkVRYGTm

This is a 5 bedroom home which we would like to change to 4 bedrooms. We are happy with the layout and design but would change the home theatre to a formal living and have it in front of the house in lieu to the study. 

Design 2: Bridgetown 34 by Mc Donald Jones

House Width: 12.97m

House Length: 19.60m

Total: 392.24m²

A very similar design to the Enigma 41 but this is already a 4 bedroom house. We also liked Tallavera and Saxonvale designs however there is little change needed in the Bridgetown design. Right now Mc Donald Jones has a $45K promotion. Which allows us to select the designer package without overriding our budget goals.  The package includes upgrades to Fisher and Paykel appliances in the kitchen and laundry, stairs, hebel and options for taps, sink as well as door handles.

Both builders have offered to give us a free site inspection and an initial tender which will give us a better idea of which option is cheaper and meets our needs.