DIY Granny Flats - anyone ever use them?

Discussion in 'Granny Flats' started by elbowz17, 4th Feb, 2022.

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  1. elbowz17

    elbowz17 Member

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    Hello all,

    I've been looking at a few options in building a granny flat on an IP in Ipswich and I came across a company called DIY Granny Flats. I spoke to the two gents who run the show there, Dean & Mark, who provided me with a quote for $7300 to conduct the following work (list below), plus an additional $8800 to project manage the build from start to finish:
    upload_2022-2-4_18-0-2.png

    My issue is I'll be at least $7300 out of pocket before knowing i) the design of the flat, ii) the actual cost of construction, iii) the timeline to build the flat, and iv) other costs including council fees etc. And they've advised that they'll source quotes from builders, organise all the running around to get council approval, as well as manage the site until handover.

    Now, I can't find any reviews, commentary, or any other mention of these guys anywhere on the net reviewing their previous work or projects, so as you can appreciate I'm a little hesitant to go ahead and spend that money only to have them come back and say it's going to cost $150k for a single bed granny flat that I can probably source for $110k elsewhere.

    Has anyone on here dealt with these guys or had any prior experience with this company?

    TIA
    Elbowz
     
  2. Joynz

    Joynz Well-Known Member

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    Sounds like they are architects or building designers.

    But doesn’t seem to include construction level drawings…

    Have you approached any other companies?
     
    elbowz17 likes this.
  3. jaydee

    jaydee Well-Known Member

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    If you have no idea of your end cost why would you even start with them?
     
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  4. elbowz17

    elbowz17 Member

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    The only other company that's actually got back to me in Ipswich was Superior Granny Flats, all other multiple online queries for someone to call me have fallen on deaf ears. They're designs and pricing seem fair, but reviews are not flash hot, so a little reserved to go down that avenue. When I asked how long the build time will be, they responded with 9+ months - which is fine by me, but price rises during that time period worry me.

    Never done a granny flat before, but I'm wondering if buying a pre-fab kit and getting a builder to construct it will save me money. Haven't done my research into that option yet.
     
  5. elbowz17

    elbowz17 Member

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    Yep, my thoughts exactly. They're selling the whole project as "We'll save you money by doing all the running around for you, getting you the quotes from builders, applying to council, etc, and it'll be cheaper for you because we'll save you the 30-35% margin builders make" - but like you said, I don't have an end figure which makes me think I'll be spending more than the 'One stop shop' builders currently around.
     
  6. Cousinit

    Cousinit Well-Known Member

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    Have you considered the idea of buying a transportable granny flat? There are facebook groups you can join where all sorts of people are selling them. Even second hand ones.
     
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  7. Merc

    Merc Member

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    Once you have their design and approved plan, can you source your own builder?
     
  8. PeterCr

    PeterCr Well-Known Member

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    This may be a good option to explore - if one can get a GF that fits into your existing land and relocate the granny flat and connect to services.
     
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  9. elbowz17

    elbowz17 Member

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    Hey Merc, part of the deal (or the way they sell it to you) is that they can handle as much or as little of the project as you want them to, plus when you utilise their services you have access to their building contacts etc. This is great for me because I don't want to be involved and need someone that can handle the whole project end-to-end - plus I got no contacts for a building project. The part I'm not sold on is how much will I really save if I go through them rather than a standard builder.
     
  10. elbowz17

    elbowz17 Member

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    I've gone down that avenue before, even looked at buying a kit and having a builder put it together for me, but I can't seem to find someone who is willing to walk & talk me through the process. Feels like everyone I get in touch with wants to complete the project on their terms & in their own way, rather than exploring other options.
     
  11. bytok

    bytok New Member

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    Did you finally go with them ? I'm also looking for some feedbacks.
     
  12. Kemalatta

    Kemalatta New Member

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    I am going through the process at the moment, I think they will get me there eventually, but they are slow and have a lot to improve in their process. I am not impressed so far, but I am have very little poor to handle this myself (I work 14-15 hour a day), so I needed someone to handle this for me.
     
  13. Kemalatta

    Kemalatta New Member

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    *little time, or time poor
     
  14. noneother

    noneother Well-Known Member

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    Looking at DIY Granny flats too.
    Seems like for a $7.5k package they do all the design (architect), planning, survey, engineering, submission to council etc. 3 revisions.

    I shopped around and can get a local draftsman for $2k (unlimited revisions) and includes all the planning, survey, engineering etc.
     
  15. trunks

    trunks Well-Known Member

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    @noneother something to consider is that you can farm off seperate parts of the overall build to different parties, but some builders like to own the end to end process for the ease of it all. They also may charge you more for the build itself because you haven't bought into their package deal, and they may also not assist with the full OC when it gets to that which requires landscaping to be completed as well.
     
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  16. Pinkmarjory

    Pinkmarjory Well-Known Member

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    who is that local draftsman? in NSW? are you able to share the details? any reviews/feedback on them? thanks so much
     
  17. noneother

    noneother Well-Known Member

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    It's in the ACT. Cash job for that price.
     
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  18. Emma V

    Emma V New Member

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    How are you going with DIY Granny? I’m in the process with them currently too.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: 9th Mar, 2023
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  19. StormWarning

    StormWarning New Member

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    I'm also keen to know how people have gone with them before? I've had a quote of $7800 to do the work that elbowz17 described in the thread. This is excluding the cost of a private certifier/council costs etc. Does this seem a little bit excessive?
     
  20. Kemalatta

    Kemalatta New Member

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    Apologies, I haven't been checking the chat.
    I wouldn't recommend going with them at all!
    After filling in a non-user friendly lengthy form about my design requirements, it was totally ignored. Caused many revisions and didn't give me what I was looking for.
    Poor communications all throughout, lots of delays and bad attitude if you ask any questions. They say they will help you because they have experience, but if you ask any question about the functionality of a design or it's impact on costs, it's out of scope.
    Get a draftperson, do the paperwork yourself and you'll save $$$ thousands. You will have to pay council contributions, which in my case were close to $15k, they don't tell you about that.
    Stay away and save your time and money!!
     
    Renée_23 likes this.