Frequently Asked Questions
I’ve never built before, where do I start?
Start by getting in touch, with over 30 years of experience in the building industry you can trust us to give you the best possible advice and to guide you through the entire building process. Simple advice from a Registered Master Builder when making critical decisions early on can save you a lot of hassle. Past experience has shown clients that go directly to an architect without any consultation from the builder, risk ending up with designs that dont always fit with budget and plans they simply cannot afford to build. Tuatara Construction helps put you in contact with the right architects and engineers and saves you time and money by walking you through the budget process with plans and pricing in the early stages.
Do I need a DA?
In most circumstances you will.
A Development Application (DA) is a formal request for permission to carry out a proposed development. Not all projects require a DA, so to help you decide if you need to submit a DA or build using other avenues, you need to consider the planning rules for where you live and what you want to build there.
As a guide, you will need a DA if you want to:
- erect a new building/structure
- alter or add to an existing building
- demolish a building
- demolish, alter or damage a heritage building or a building within a Heritage Conservation area
- erect any outbuildings
- install a swimming pool and retaining walls.
We are here to help and will support you through the council process to make things easier for you.
Do I get a guarantee?
Yes you do.
Home Warranty Insurance, or Home Building Compensation Fund (HBCF) as it is now referred to in NSW, covers the homeowner and subsequent owners. This cover lasts up to 6 years from completion of the domestic building work. The guarantee covers you for structural defects up to 6 years and non-structural defects for up to 2 years.
In addition to this, Tuatara Construction offers our free “Putting our Money where our mouth is Guarantee” …….our personal guarantee to you. We guarantee your new home will function like something straight out of a box. We will visit your new home at 3, 6 and 12 months to ensure everything is still perfect and if not we will fix it as part of our service.
How can I keep the building project within my budget?
Tuatara Construction believes in accurately identifying the true cost of your proposed build at an early stage through a detailed fixed price quote. This enables you to know exactly what the cost will be and what you will get. By locking this in at the start of the project you will avoid massive budget blowouts, stress and time wasting.
How are payments made during the building project?
You pay on a progress payment system as detailed in your Master Builders fixed price building contract. We will provide you with a payment progress schedule for different stages of job completion eg Concrete slab down or framing complete etc. and also a construction schedule so you know what to expect and when to expect it.
Can I make changes during the building project?
We welcome you to make any changes you would like to enhance your home. Any requests by yourselves incurring extra labour and/or material costs will be treated as a variation to the contract. All variations will be costed and presented to you for approval authorising the builder to carry out these changes before any such works can be started.
