Welcome

Welcome to A New Home For Our Family!

In late 2013 We knocked down our little 2 bedroom weatherboard 1950s home and built a Harkaway Home (Victorian Gable) because we love period style homes.  We engaged a builder to do the entire job for us – GB Homes, and have been very happy with the result.  We moved into our new home in September 2014.

The blog has recorded our progress, frustrations and triumphs along the way.  If you are interested in building a Harkaway home there are a lot of great resources here and feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

Saying Goodbye
Saying Goodbye to the old House
Our new home
Our new home

And from above:

Aerial View 4th September 2013
Aerial View 4th September 2013
Aerial View 5th September 2014
Aerial View 5th September 2014

8 comments on “Welcome

  1. Hi, my wife and myself came across this blog when we were looking up Harkaway Homes. You have got yourselves a beautiful house!

    I have read that the final built cost is about at least double the base price of the home and add another 20% on top if built by a builder. Just wondering if you would share a ball part figure having it built by a builder?? Don’t need numbers. Cheers!

    • Hi Kane,
      thank you, we are very happy with the end result! Cost really depends on your fit out, but your cost estimate is not far off our costs, just a bit over the double base proce. Our builder did the foundation, construction of the Harkaway kit and full fit out.

      Cheers

      Sandra

  2. Hi Sandra

    How would you rate your builder, would you recommend them?

    When you say the builder did the full fit out, do you mean to the lock up stage?

    cheers!

  3. also, how were Dig Dig and were you happy with the demolition? (ball park cost for demo?)

    cheers!

    • Hi Cadan,
      our builder, GB Homes, was fantastic and we would highly recommend them. The fit out was everything not in the Harkaway package- the deck, verandahs, flooring, kitchen, laundry, bathrooms, electrical, installation of lights and fans (we purchased them), installing the heating system (we provided), painting, internal doors and door fittings, picture rails, skirting, corcnices, ceiling roses and decorative archways.

      Dif Dig were very good. They quoted two days for the actual clearing of the site but were finished in one, although we didn’t clear the whole block so it was a slightly smaller job.

  4. Hi Guys,

    Congratulations on building your new home!!

    I am writing from a building inspection company as we offer progress and practical completion inspections.

    I have only read your most recent blogs and was wondering if you had any progress or practical completion inspections done by an independent company and if so, if you found them to be helpful?

    Thanks,
    Jo

  5. Robert Nottingham on said:

    Hi, my wife and i are thinking ofbuilding a new house in the Southern Highlands using a Harkaway design versus buying an existing property. Could you give me a rough order of magnitude of the final cost per m2. This would enable us to focus are thoughts on” new” versus “old”

  6. Katrina on said:

    Hi there,
    Congrats. Your home looks great. We are in Bayside Melbourne on a block 55 x 136 foot. I was keen to understand the size of the truck/crane that delivered the frame and trusses and roofing. What width at the front was required for truck access? We are keen to keep our existing 1.8m high front fence and wondered whether you think the truck can get in and do it’s stuff with only, say, a 4m opening/width. Did you have to pay traffic management fees and other delivery costs not initially quoted by Harkaway. I’m concerned the base price looks good, but that there may be hidden delivery and access costs for a suburban block. Can you advise your experience? Cheers

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A blog about the exciting, frustrating and crazy process of building a new home