Rebuild or Renovate?

Are you weighing your options to rebuild or renovate? If you're after significant design changes, a knockdown rebuild could be your best option.

Whether you are considering staying in your beloved neighbourhood or redeveloping an old house somewhere else, a knockdown rebuild will allow you the freedom to create a you home. It may also be significantly cheaper than renovating.

• 10 reasons to knockdown and rebuild
• 10 reasons to build with an expert
• Common questions answered

10 reasons to knockdown and rebuild.

#1 CREATE YOUR VERY OWN personalised home to suit not only your land but your family and lifestyle. When renovating you are limited to the foundations of what already exists, these can be restricting to create a design that works for your family.

#2 STAY WITHIN BUDGET and know all costs upfront before you commence construction, when renovating unforeseen issues can arise with areas such as plumbing, electrical and foundation works once you start demolishing existing structures.

#3 CREATE NEW MEMORIES. “We wanted a fresh start and new memories. It’s not the same when you renovate and inherit a world of problems! Budget blowouts are common with an old home like ours. Rebuilding seemed the way to go” . Hear from our clients Vini and Sheena's Story.

#4 IMPROVE YOUR RESALE VALUE AND STREET APPEAL with a brand new home fetching a higher sales return than an existing newly renovated home.

#5 BUILD A MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT HOME, saving you money on bills and future proof your home for your evolving lifestyle.

#6 STAY IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD that you know and love , remain close to friends and family and don’t unsettle your family by changing schools and daycare.

#7 STRUCTURAL CONSTRAINTS. Existing structures will limit your design to increase ceiling heights and change the location of your kitchen and/or bathroom.

#8 BE SMART WITH YOUR INVESTMENT. With the average cost per m2 when renovating sitting around $3,000 per m2 vs a knockdown rebuild which averages between $1,600 - $1,800 per m2 dependent on your site and finishes.

#9 IT’S TIME. “It wasn’t an easy decision as we lived in our home for 6 years and had made wonderful memories but the structures were literally falling down around us!” Heidi's Family story.

#10 Build a you home. Build your forever home.

10 reasons to rebuild with an expert.

#1 CUSTOMISATION & FLEXIBILITY Designing and building your dream home is highly rewarding and brings a lifetime of satisfaction. We provide a holistic architectural experience where you can customise our plans, personalise with significant design changes or create your own. Flip the design, move the stairs or change the facade! Find out more about our custom design solutions.

#2 GENUINE PRICE
We put you first and do the background work to ensure you are getting a genuine price before you sign a contract. This ensures you know exactly how much your build is going to cost. Our tender estimates are typically within 1-3% of the actual tender price.

#3 DESIGNER INCLUSIONS
Our Interior Designers and Colour Consultants have handpicked a stunning collection of luxury inclusions from world leading brands so you can create your personal spaces with elegance, refinement and finesse. Often our inclusions are referred to as upgrades by other builders.

#4 PERSONALISED INTERIOR DESIGN SELECTIONS PROCESS
Our highly experienced and qualified Interior Designers will work with you to develop a design brief and understand your home design aspirations. They will guide you through the decision making process and curate a personalised look based on your thoughts and ideas from their knowledge and industry experience and remove the decision fatigue that is associated with the selections process. Your selection appointments are held at our internal studio, Studio You.

#5 EXPERT KNOCKDOWN REBUILD TEAM
We’ve got your whole team in-house. Sales and design a town planner, architectural designers, drafting, colour consultants, interior designer (with a dedicated selections centre) electrical, estimating, pricing, purchasing and construction supervisors.

#6 PRE-LODGEMENT FROM COUNCIL We can lodge your plans earlier in the process if we feel there may be issues on getting your plans approved. This will save us precious time as we move through
pre-construction.

#7 TECHNOLOGY & EXPERIENCE
We have in-depth knowledge of all Sydney based councils and their requirements and the NSW CDC requirements. This allows Hall & Hart Homes to confirm which process will provide you with the best outcome for your new home. We have years of experience with:

• planning and building on difficult blocks.
• dealing with issues such as zone of influence, tree protection, arborist requirements, swimming pools, site access, site services, demolition, bushfire requirements, flood-affected areas and much more.
• Our industry-leading technology allows us to modify and create plans with you to optimise the outcome of your dream home based on the legislative restrictions.

#8 NO CONTRACTS UNTIL AFTER FINAL APPROVALS AND SELECTIONS
You don’t sign until after you’ve received council approvals, final material selections, your homeowners’ warranty and construction certificate. This means you have clarity on the exact costs to build your new Hall & Hart home before committing to signing a contract.

#9 EXPERT ADVICE
Independent reviews of your proposed plans to our 3rd party specialist ensure that all regulations are met, and all potential costs are provided upfront, including a hydraulic engineer check prior to receiving your tender. This will provide you clarity upfront to allow you to budget effectively.

#10 LOW SUPERVISOR TO CONSTRUCTION RATIO:
We only build a maximum of 100 homes per year with our supervisors working on less than 10 projects at any one time, this allows them to focus on our customers and deliver on the high standards we set as a team and truly personalise your building journey.

We are here to help.

We understand when you start planning your knockdown and rebuild you may have a lot of questions. Here are some answers to the most frequently asked knockdown rebuild questions that we get asked.

WHAT SIZE HOME CAN I BUILD ON MY LAND?
There are 2 different sets of legislation that we could choose to use. Our expert sales and Design team are all very knowledgeable in this field and can walk you through your options.

1. The first being CDC which will allow for a size home based on a formula that correlated to your land size.
2. The other option is through the council rulings which normally works on a percentage based on the size of your land.

CAN I BRING MY HOUSE FORWARD?
This quite often depends on the front setbacks of the neighbouring properties. Most councils (not all) will allow you to build to the average front setback of the neighbouring properties on either side of your dwelling.

MY LAND SLOPES TO THE REAR OF THE PROPERTY CAN I build a standard 2 storey home?
This is not something to worry about and can sometimes be a blessing in disguise, when your property slopes to the rear we can introduce a few steps throughout your hallway leading down to increased ceiling heights in the rooms towards the rear of your home. This will provide you with a luxurious and spacious feel to the main living quarters of your new home. You can find out more about building on sloping blocks here.

WHAT IS THE AVERAGE COST/SQM?
Cost will be dependent on your site conditions, materials used in your build and internal fixtures and fittings. Generally, on a standard level block the average cost/sqm can range from $1,600 - $1,800.

WHAT ARE SITE COSTS AND HOW MUCH WILL MINE COST?
Site costs include but are not limited to:

• creating a level platform to build your slab on making your house structurally sound.
• importing or exporting soil to provide you with a level platform.
• running new services such as sewer connections, stormwater connections and potential on site detention for stormwater (OSD), services and connections for gas, and water, provide you with your own private power pole, running the new electrical connection underground to your house,
• rainwater tanks to meet hydraulic requirements,
• construction site fencing,
• scaffolding for a 2 storey home.

Each house and site is individually assessed based on its requirements. Our Sales and design team will be able to provide you with a fairly accurate guide to your requirements before ordering specific reports.

DO YOU INCLUDE SITE COSTS IN YOUR TENDER ESTIMATE AND FINAL TENDER?
Yes, we provide detailed site cost based on numerous reports we gather to confirm the overall costs at the time of tender. This means no nasty unforeseen surprises later down the track.

CAN YOU LOOK AFTER THE DEMOLITION FOR US?
We partner with a trusted demolition team which is an external company, We will provide you with a quote from the company and will assist in the communication and timing to ensure everything is completed in time to start your new build.

ARE THERE ADDITIONAL COSTS?
There are a few costs that council charges that should be considered towards your overall budget. These costs include:

• Section 94 contributions fees which is a council fee charged when constructing a new dwelling. This fee can differ from council to council but a rough rule of thumb would be 1% of the build cost.
• Additional costs will be incurred for Granny flats or Dual occupancy.
• There may also be council bonds applicable or Sydney water section 73 fees if you are extending or relocating their services.

WHEN DO I SIGN THE CONTRACT?
We want to ensure we are giving you the true cost of building your dream home which is why you will sign your contract:

• AFTER you have signed off on your internal and external selections
• AFTER your plans have been approved by the authority
• AFTER we issue your Home Owners Warranty and Construction Certificate

WHAT PAYMENTS ARE REQUIRED ONCE CONSTRUCTION STARTS?
There are 6 progress payments as per the standard HIA. You only pay after each construction stage is complete and after you have had a chance to review the works on site with your supervisor. Below is the progress payment schedule for single dwellings.

PRE-CONSTRUCTION
Tender fee will be shown as a credit on the final page of the Tender. Tender fee charged is subject to site location.

1. Tender Fee
   2. Tender acceptance fee
   3. Tender and Plan acceptance fee
   4. Contract signing fee (% of the contract price)

1.  Slab pour (Less Tender Acceptance fee, Plan Acceptance fee and contract signing fee)
   2. Frame
   3. Exterior cladding
   4. Internal linings
   5. Fixout
   6. Practical completion

If you are serious about building...

The best way to get a realistic assessment is to speak to our friendly sales and design team who are experts in knockdown rebuild. Take comfort in knowing that through our experience and knowledge, the upfront estimates show you what you need to know providing you with a realistic final build cost to complete your home, on your land with the inclusions you want

Please fill out the form below and let us know what you are looking for.