Baulkham Hills Development

Here is a diary journal of my BH development:

We have just commenced construction on our latest development in Baulkham Hills so I thought it is something worth sharing the details with my very good and supportive friends here on the forum.

Purchase:

DA approved site for 4 x 3 bedroom terraces (on a corner block and 3 levels) went for sale on the internet around June 2014 advertised offers over $950,000. I ascertained the DA and plans from the agent and crunched the numbers and it looked ok. I did not physically check out the site and replied on my old friend google maps.

The DD process took me a week (mainly because I was busy with work) and by the time I called the agent back the property was under offer.

I told the agent to keep me number handy in case the purchase fell through during off the cooling off period. Fast forward the following Friday ? I was driving to see a client and the agent called me at 10am and said the purchase fell through (ironically due to finance) and asked if I was interest in purchasing it. I told him to sit tight and I would be there in a few hours to sign the contract. So I did and signed the contract later in the day.

I purchased the site for $970,000. Later that week I went and saw the site and luckily its s beauty ? its perched on the high side of the street with a gorgeous outlook. I also went home and had to explain to my wife that I dropped $1mil on a property that I hadn?t seen yet (she was surprisingly understanding)

I requested for a 3 month delayed settlement so that I could have time lining up all my ducks (CC, construction, finance, etc). They accepted and we settled in August 2014.

I engaged Mflying from the forum to ascertain the CC for me and this took approximately 4 months due to the complexity in the project (it has Basement parking and thus added construction requirements).

We commenced construction in March due to the Christmas shut down period in the construction industry and adding more items in the building contract.

The construction is a lightweight construction (concrete transfer slab and timber floors) and lightweight cladding. The property is nicknamed ?Tribeca Townhomes? and as such the interiors have a very new york feel.

Numbers:

Purchase Price: $970,000
Stamps and Legals: $45,000
CC and s73: $50,000
Bank Fees: $5,000
s94: $10,000
Holding Costs: $75,000 (approx.)
Construction: $1,405,000 (including GST)

Total: $2,560,000

Resales @ $800,000: $3,200,000

Gross Profit @ $800,000: $640,000

Resales @ $900,000: $3,600,000

Gross Profit $900,000: $1,040,000

The resale numbers when we bought the property in August 2014 were $800k for each townhouses however comparable sales support a resale value of $900k.

Lessons Learnt (so far):

1. Project home builders do not do basement builds ? you will need to engage a private builder
2. Basement builds are particularly expensive as evident in the end cost. This is not just the basement itself but also added components such as HVAC systems, extra fire exits, etc)
3. It is really important to engage a good engineer to ensure that the structural and hydraulics are designed efficiently and are not going to cost a bomb to build.
4. You have to get your hands dirty and provide suggestions to design, construction and documentation. Don?t expect the professionals to get it right or to be proactive in providing solutions. Essentially question everything and its never a silly question.

I will add to this list as we go through the construction process as this is where a lot of issues come about.

Where to from here? Im already working on purchasing another site to move to as this one finishes up.

Massive shoutout to Be Developer from the forums for creating the website as I am planning to sell 2 of these dwellings soon - here it is:

http://tribecatownhomes.com.au

 

I must admit, I'm very impressed. I live in Baulkham Hills and I'm surprised the council allowed it to go through. Guess because it's a corner block that helped you? How big was the block when you bought it? I looked it up and it said 702sqm. Did you really manage to fit four onto it?

 

Some more pics of the plans

 

Its just around the corner from the Bull and Bush. Is there a site visit arranged as part of the EOFY meetup?

 

Thanks. DA is under affordable housing which is how we got it through. Euro from the forum is trying to get NRAS licences for me and if we get it then I plan to keep 2 of the NRAS dwellings.

 

Yes it is - nice pick up!

 

Amazing shahin

 

Hi Shahin,
Great development !
IMO , you should mention St Mathews pre school as well - just across the road.
All 3 of my children attended there years ago, one of the best child care centres in the area !!

http://stmatthewsps.net.au/

David

 

I had no idea about that and literally just drove past it now. Thanks for the tip!

 

There are separate DA's you can put as for "affordable housing"? Does that allow you to put more on a smaller block of land?

 

No worries at all.
David

 

Yep you can get some approvals via the SEPP (such as granny flats, boarding homes, over 55's, etc) and bypass the council.

There is no way we could have done 4 townhouses in the Hills council on a 700sqm block.

Added bonus was that the s94 fees was $10,000 which is bugger all.

 

Thanks for the info, Shahin!

 

Great work! look forward to following this journey

 

Shahin - I have decided to dip my toe in water following your ideas from day 1. Existing Castle Hill homesite 1560m2 on a corner with existing dual street access. 67-73 Kings Rd + an adjoining homesite on the map VERY wide frontage for 4-5 T/Houses currently with planner for concept and seems due to wide frontage we may have all with street frontage on a convex curved design with rear vehicle access. Planner also suggested a boutique complex for over 55's and level land is ideal he thinks. Lucky my mate is a dev with deep pockets for land. Land is SO expensive and hard to find in prime areas.

https://www.google.com.au/maps/plac...1s0x6b12a1b820dfaef1:0x7a6bda9dc108bdb2?hl=en

 

A.w.e.s.o.m.e ! Congratulations.
Good on ya mate.

 

Basement excavation complete - shortcrete and basement slab coming up.

 

That porta-loo is really living on the edge.........

 

looking forward to more updates....!

 

Looking good keep the updates and pics coming!