10 Hidden Costs of Building a House in Australia
Ready to build your very own home? When it comes to building a home, there are so many extra costs that aren't included within the initial price of the house. Whether you are looking at house and land packages or looking to build your dream custom home, to avoid being stung with a large bill once your home is completed, here are some hidden costs homeowners miss when it comes to building a house. We recommend you factor these in before you enter a contract.
1) Furniture storage and removals costs
This one seems like an obvious one, but many people often forget to factor in the costs of moving from one house to another. Unless you know someone with a large truck, chances are you'll need to factor in the cost of local removalists to help you move houses. If you're renting whilst your new home is under construction, you may need to consider the costs of storage units or shipping containers to store larger items. For a quicker, easier storage solution, check out your local mobile storage services.
2) Stamp duty
Regardless of whether you buy or build a new home, you need to factor in the cost of stamp study. Stamp duty varies from state to state and can add significant extra costs when building a house. When buying land, you may be able to use online stamp duty calculators to gather a rough estimate.
3) Council rates
People often forget that you still have to pay local council rates for vacant blocks of land. Council rates vary from suburb to suburb but can easily be in excess of a couple of thousand dollars. Unfortunately, you can’t minimise the amount of council rates payable, it’s just one of those hidden costs of building a house.
4) Insurance
If you're building your first home, you'll want to start paying for home and contents insurance to ensure both your building and its contents are protected. You may also need extra contents insurance depending on what furniture and appliances you'll be moving into your new home with you. Certain regions also require certain levels of insurance such as flood prone areas, which can bring in additional fees.
5) Site works
Site costs are the costs involved to prepare your construction site. These may involve a soil test, engineers' reports, retaining walls, soil compaction, and more. When you sign a building contract, site works are normally included as a provisional sum. However, some builders leave it out. Therefore, it's always important to check for site costs in your contract. Site costs can also vary. Got a sloped block of land? You could easily be paying in excess of $50,000.
6) Conveyancing, land registration and titles
This is a fee paid to a conveyancer or settlement agent for the legal costs associated with buying and selling property, including vacant blocks of land. These conveyancing fees often include fees associated with land registration and titles. You may be able to shop around for cheaper services, however, like most things in life, cheapest isn’t always best so be sure to factor this in when estimating home building costs.
7) Building Inspections
Building inspections are crucial throughout a home construction project to ensure that the construction process complies with safety standards, regulations, and quality requirements.
They serve as checkpoints to identify potential issues, defects, or deviations from the approved plans, allowing for corrections and improvements before they become more costly and difficult to rectify.
Key building inspections during a home build project include:
8) Landscaping & Driveways
More often than not, landscaping isn't included in your build. Some newer land estates include front landscaping but often it's only the bare minimum and it doesn't cover your backyard. Unless you enjoy being surrounded by a large sandpit, landscaping is something you are going to have the foot the bill for. The great thing about landscaping is it's an area you can easily save money in by doing parts of it yourself.
Driveways are something everyone needs, but it's not something that's always included in the building contract. If you’re wanting a trendy exposed aggregate concrete driveway, either include it in your building contract or budget the additional costs for after key handover. Another thing to note about driveways is some volume builders only include up to the council cross-over. So even if you have a driveway included in your contract, ensure that it's the full driveway.
And remember, if you want driveway and/or pedestrian gates, they'll also be an additional cost.
Plan how you want your outdoor living area and yard to look and get quotes accordingly. For example, do you want a lush green garden, full of trees and plants, or are you wanting to install a low-maintenance deck for a minimalist look? You'll need to get quotes accordingly and factor those into your budget.
9) BAL & coastal conditions
If you're building in a bushfire-prone area, you'll be subject to meeting the Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) rating requirements. If you're building near the beach, you may be hit with a bunch of coastal conditions to be met. These requirements can easily make material costs skyrocket. When shopping for a block of land, definitely factor in the added requirements of your land as a part of the hidden costs of building a house.
10) Utility connections
You need to consider how you're going to power your home. Whether you opt for natural gas or residential LPG, you’ll need to factor in the costs of connection. Some home builders will include the costs of getting power, gas, internet and phone lines connected. Others make you foot the bill yourself. The rule of thumb is; if it's not in the contract, it isn't covered by them and you’ll need to budget these additional expenses.
It’s no fun incurring hidden costs when building a house. By doing some research before committing to building your new home, you should be able to mitigate the number of unforeseen costs that may be thrown your way.
1) Furniture storage and removals costs
This one seems like an obvious one, but many people often forget to factor in the costs of moving from one house to another. Unless you know someone with a large truck, chances are you'll need to factor in the cost of local removalists to help you move houses. If you're renting whilst your new home is under construction, you may need to consider the costs of storage units or shipping containers to store larger items. For a quicker, easier storage solution, check out your local mobile storage services.
2) Stamp duty
Regardless of whether you buy or build a new home, you need to factor in the cost of stamp study. Stamp duty varies from state to state and can add significant extra costs when building a house. When buying land, you may be able to use online stamp duty calculators to gather a rough estimate.
3) Council rates
People often forget that you still have to pay local council rates for vacant blocks of land. Council rates vary from suburb to suburb but can easily be in excess of a couple of thousand dollars. Unfortunately, you can’t minimise the amount of council rates payable, it’s just one of those hidden costs of building a house.
4) Insurance
If you're building your first home, you'll want to start paying for home and contents insurance to ensure both your building and its contents are protected. You may also need extra contents insurance depending on what furniture and appliances you'll be moving into your new home with you. Certain regions also require certain levels of insurance such as flood prone areas, which can bring in additional fees.
5) Site works
Site costs are the costs involved to prepare your construction site. These may involve a soil test, engineers' reports, retaining walls, soil compaction, and more. When you sign a building contract, site works are normally included as a provisional sum. However, some builders leave it out. Therefore, it's always important to check for site costs in your contract. Site costs can also vary. Got a sloped block of land? You could easily be paying in excess of $50,000.
6) Conveyancing, land registration and titles
This is a fee paid to a conveyancer or settlement agent for the legal costs associated with buying and selling property, including vacant blocks of land. These conveyancing fees often include fees associated with land registration and titles. You may be able to shop around for cheaper services, however, like most things in life, cheapest isn’t always best so be sure to factor this in when estimating home building costs.
7) Building Inspections
Building inspections are crucial throughout a home construction project to ensure that the construction process complies with safety standards, regulations, and quality requirements.
They serve as checkpoints to identify potential issues, defects, or deviations from the approved plans, allowing for corrections and improvements before they become more costly and difficult to rectify.
Key building inspections during a home build project include:
- Slab inspection: this is conducted after foundation pouring and checks the concrete quality and structural integrity.
- Plate height inspection: verifies wall alignment before roof construction.
- Roof frame inspection: examines framing for stability.
- Practical completion inspection: this is the final check. It ensures the entire project complies with codes and specifications, covering structural, electrical, plumbing, and finishing aspects. These inspections prevent costly issues by identifying defects early, ensuring a safe and high-quality home.
8) Landscaping & Driveways
More often than not, landscaping isn't included in your build. Some newer land estates include front landscaping but often it's only the bare minimum and it doesn't cover your backyard. Unless you enjoy being surrounded by a large sandpit, landscaping is something you are going to have the foot the bill for. The great thing about landscaping is it's an area you can easily save money in by doing parts of it yourself.
Driveways are something everyone needs, but it's not something that's always included in the building contract. If you’re wanting a trendy exposed aggregate concrete driveway, either include it in your building contract or budget the additional costs for after key handover. Another thing to note about driveways is some volume builders only include up to the council cross-over. So even if you have a driveway included in your contract, ensure that it's the full driveway.
And remember, if you want driveway and/or pedestrian gates, they'll also be an additional cost.
Plan how you want your outdoor living area and yard to look and get quotes accordingly. For example, do you want a lush green garden, full of trees and plants, or are you wanting to install a low-maintenance deck for a minimalist look? You'll need to get quotes accordingly and factor those into your budget.
9) BAL & coastal conditions
If you're building in a bushfire-prone area, you'll be subject to meeting the Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) rating requirements. If you're building near the beach, you may be hit with a bunch of coastal conditions to be met. These requirements can easily make material costs skyrocket. When shopping for a block of land, definitely factor in the added requirements of your land as a part of the hidden costs of building a house.
10) Utility connections
You need to consider how you're going to power your home. Whether you opt for natural gas or residential LPG, you’ll need to factor in the costs of connection. Some home builders will include the costs of getting power, gas, internet and phone lines connected. Others make you foot the bill yourself. The rule of thumb is; if it's not in the contract, it isn't covered by them and you’ll need to budget these additional expenses.
It’s no fun incurring hidden costs when building a house. By doing some research before committing to building your new home, you should be able to mitigate the number of unforeseen costs that may be thrown your way.
