Our Design & Build Process

We recommend coming to see us before going down the traditional path of engaging directly with an architect.
We have seen plenty of clients come with plans already done and when they have been priced up it is too often over their budget as the traditional architect is either out of touch with up-to-date pricing or has been too focused on design that is not practical to build. We have our own in-house designers and with our experience of the construction process we can save a lot of time and disappointment by giving great practical advice.

Download Our E-Book, Build Checklist & Standard Minor Dwelling Floor Plans

The first step is to download our e-book “7 Things You Must Know Before Building A Minor Dwelling”, our Minor Dwelling Build Checklist and our 4 standard Minor Dwelling floor plans.

These three downloads will come through to you via email along with a few extra emails giving you some valuable information around the building process.

Book An Initial Discovery Phone Call

On this call we will discuss the details for your project:

What do you want to build – e.g. Minor Dwelling, Granny Flat, Rental Unit etc…
What do you want to achieve – e.g. Extra dwelling for parents or kids, Extended Family, Rental Income etc…
How far through the process are you – e.g. Right at the start, Trying to work out budget, Ready to make a decision etc…

Before the call takes place you will get a link to complete our Questionnaire which will help us work out what is the best next step for you.

Complete A Zoom Video Call With Us

Based on the Discovery Phone Call and Questionnaire, the next step will likely be to have a Zoom Feasibility Consultation with us.

The first Zoom call is free and we will go through the following details for your project:

Check your site zoning and any issues to work through
Bring your site up on the Auckland Council GeoMaps website and discuss positioning, site requirements and proposed build style
Go through our Minor Dwelling Feasibility Checklist to work out a ball-park budget for the proposed project

You should leave this call with a pretty good idea of what the costs for your project are likely to be. We can then discuss what the next steps will be.

60-Minute site consultation

At this initial site visit we will go through our checklist to determine whether things like a Resource Consent, Geotech Report, Drainage Plan, Site Survey etc are required. We will also give advice around access requirements and whether we think your proposed design will be feasible and offer other options to consider.

Preliminary Building Agreement

Once a Project Brief and budget has been agreed upon, we will go away and collate all the perceived components required to take the project through to lodgement of Building Consent application. This will include Concept Drawings, Working Drawings, Building Consent, and other things that may be required like Engineering, Geotech report, Resource Consent, Site Survey, Quantity Surveying etc. This stage will take about two weeks to put together. Once we have all these costings in, we should be able to give a firm price for these Preliminary Works and we will present you with the Preliminary Building Agreement.

Design Phase

During this stage you will work with our Architectural Designer to confirm the size and layout, how many rooms, orientation for sun and views, wants verses needs and all the important things that are required to start to bring together your quality Minor Dwelling

Scope of Works and Product Selections

Next, we will need to confirm with you the full scope of works required to be priced. We will discuss things like electrical layout, interior finishes, floor coverings, kitchen and bathroom fittings, appliances, window dressings, driveway, pool, fences, decks, landscaping etc.

Once the Scope of Works and Product Selections have been agreed and Working Drawings have been finalised, we will start the pricing process and come back to you with a Fixed Full Contract Build Price. It will take approximately three to four weeks from completion of working drawings to come back to you with a fully detailed Proposal.

Full Contract Building Agreement

As Registered Master Builders we use the Master Builders Standard Contract Agreement.

At this stage we will also fill in the application for the 10-Year Master Build Guarantee and supply this to you to check over along with the building contract.

Once you are happy with the full scope of works included in the Contract, we will give an estimated project time-line with estimated completion date. When this is agreed it is time to sign the contract and pay the deposit so we can lock in our builders, subcontractors and material supplies.

The Build

Once the contract is all signed up and works scheduled we will start work on the agreed date and work through the construction process to bring together the dwelling of your dreams. The build process will involve coordinating lots of different materials, contractors and building inspections. As you see the building coming together you may decide to make the odd change which we will work through with you and provide a variation to the contract to suit the adjusted works.

Handover

Once the final council inspection has the all-clear we will go through our comprehensive Quality Assurance process and checklists to make sure every box has been ticked. Once you are fully satisfied with your dwelling and the final invoice has been paid we will hand you the keys to your brand-new dream granny flat or minor dwelling at the Handover Ceremony.

Maintenance

To give you complete confidence after you building project we have covered you for structural faults, workmanship and materials. This means that we will come back and fix things for you. We have a 12-month maintenance period to sort out issues and we will supply you with all the required maintenance documentation and requirements relating to the up-keep of the specific building materials used for your build.