What is the pros and cons for building a spec home vs a customised (get an architect to draw from scratch) home? Please cover the cost comparison for architect, builders and other professionals that need to be engaged in those 2 options (spec home vs customised). Thanks in advance.
Ultimately the answer depends upon your market. Project home for anything with a market price up to 25% above the suburb median. Unless you are in a decent suburb and you've got to meet the market.
It all depends. One challenge is design ownership. If you have an architect/designer design the house for you, you own the plans. It means that you can competitively bid the build out to multiple builders - as they are all quoting on exactally the same job. If you select a turn-key option the builder owns the plans. You cant take those plans to another builder to quote. They can quote on a different design but then you arent comparing apples with apples. In either scenario you pay for the design somewhere along the line. In saying that - for small builds - a design by the builder would be my preferance. No reason why you cant customise these designs to suit you. In saying that I dont like spec homes. In general they are all the same, look the same, feel the same. You can move things around a bit but not a lot. And I feel they are generally expensive for what you get. However, it depends on what market you are playing in. Selling a house for $300k - cost is everything. Selling a house for $2mil - quality is everything. Do really... it all depends. Blacky
i've done a spec home before and volume builder as well. if you ask me, i wouldn't do a spec home unless you're like doing in suburbs (melbourne - toorak, brighton) it doesn't make a significant difference. Like i said, i got a friend who did spec homes in kew and the ones who was just a volume builder build was selling more than his. It might be easier to just do volume builder (who now even do subdivisions). and get their X amount of period guarantees of finish build. Otherwise you could end up with delays, arguements, threats with smaller builders etc. Getting architect to drawup plans, submissions, permits etc. Better off get plans off the builder and then modifying them a bit etc on finishes etc). As blacky said - every dollar counts.
Price needs to be weighed up with potential value and yield. Over and under capitalised rentals cost the owner. Depends on market segment you are building for. You should know that BEFORE you start. Some will build cheap as that's what they can afford. Others build cheap as that's the demand. Others may build bespoke design and fittings and expect a "grand design" rent. Your local REA should advise and may recommend appliances, fittings and features a high end renter will expect. Beware of spending money without a return. Just because you spend extra doesn't mean a renter will.
I've always done developments drawing up own designs and getting small builders to custom build. However, I'm currently looking at whether it is more cost effective to do a development with a design and construction from a volume builder. You see them advertised in the papers. I wonder if once you add in all the stuff that is required and up-spec where required, is the cost is less than the custom option? Has anyone gone down this path?
When I build I go with the base model and pay a bit extra for their premium product where the builder adds stone benchtops, nicer door furniture, driveway, letterbox etc. I just had a 29sq double storey (sorry highset) house in north brissie built for 300k turnkey. I don't think I could've gotten that price from a custom builder. The one major difference is the stress in the paperwork stage. With a lot of project builders, you are just a number, not a customer and you get fed through the pasta roller until you get to council submission and you very much dislike the building process and the builder at that point.
