Tuesday 26 March 2013

Day 3 + A Peek at Coburg Hill Display's

Just wanted to share some pictures with you of the excavating job so far on the house.

Being Day 3 there has not been any huge changes however I thought you might be interested in seeing how the job is going.


Excavators hard at work this morning

Retaining wall being constructed




Bricks (Homestead Tan) were delivered on Monday



On the weekend we went to visit the new Metricon display centre at Coburg Hill (in Melbourne).  I wanted to go and see what new decor and designs Metricon had.  Now that we have started the building process I wanted to get some interior design ideas.

Also I wanted to take a "sticky beak" at the new designs!

The Coburg Hill project is huge...however the blocks are tiny! 

Below is a link to the Metricon homes currently on display at Coburg Hill;


The display that I liked the most was the Metro 32. Got to be honest there are only 2 Metricon homes on display! 

Even though the blocks are small (I did mention that didn't I?), I really loved the open plan - especially the stacking doors leading to the outdoor area.

Below are some pics of the display....









We also went to see a Simonds Home display - their Masterpiece range. I have to say it was pretty dissapointing.  There was no living area and the BBQ area didn't even have room for a table!

It felt so cramped compared to the Metricon displays.


Above is an image of the Simonds Masterpiece home. 

http://www.masterpiecehomes.com.au/coburghill/#coburg_hill

Will post another update towards the end of the week with more pics!






Friday 22 March 2013

Day 1

Today marked day 1 of the building process.

As planned the excavators started working on the block to make way for the slab. I was fortunate enough to be able to meet with our Manager for stage 1 of the building process. He was great. I drove to the site today and started to take a few photos. John (the Stage 1 Site Manager) came to greet me and take me through what was happening.

John is not going to be our Builder however he will be overseeing Stage 1 which includes the slab.

He advised us that they expect the slab to be laid by April 5 (which is 2 weeks away). We requested that the slab sit for 5 days before they commence work on the house. We have heard that it is worthwhile letting the slab sit for a few weeks (preferably) as this lets the slab settle on the site. Many have questioned this due to the advancements in concrete technology, but we thought there was no harm in letting it sit for a few days.

The only draw back we had today was when the excavators found a septic tank in the ground on site. Obviously they removed it however they have to charge us to take it away!!

John estimated the cost to be around $600. Seems that we may need to start shaking that money tree we planted a few months back!

Sunday 17 March 2013

It's Been a Long Time Coming

It has definitely been a while since I last posted. In fact since my last post we have not even heard from Metricon until an email came through on Friday afternoon at 4pm.

We have a site start date!!!!

All things going to plan the Metricon team will start building our dream home on Friday.

We have been patiently watching the grass grow and now the time has come.

Just wanted to know if anyone has had any experience in building a home with Metricon and ordering additional bricks in the same batch in order to build a brick fence (for the front of the house).

I have mentioned this numerous times to our Customer Service Rep at Metricon and she seemed to think it was "all fine" and that we could order the additional bricks prior to building.

Since those discussions took place we have a new Customer Service Consultant (taking us through the building phase). Prior to starting the build process Metricon need to order all the products for the house. I would assume this includes the bricks. I have mentioned the additional bricks a few times now and I am yet to get a solid response.

Would love to know if anyone has ordered additional bricks before.

I am eager to do this as we need to order the bricks direct with the supplier...so we would hate to miss the same batch.

It has been relayed to us that by ordering the bricks in the same batch will ensure that there are no huge changes in the colour.

For the time been we sit and wait...but will post on Friday with an update.