Where To Find Value-for-money Builders?

[vampree 0]

with 1200 sqft, one can have a decent size kitchen/LR/DR and granny room on the ground floor. Granny does not need to go upstairs since all activities (eg) from car to her room = same level or dinner/toilet = same level etc ...

hence you can do away with the cost of the lift and spend it on something else ???

i hope besides the $500K budget, you do have at least 10%-15% spare cash to tide the unknowns ? Else it will be massive headache when things go wrong ...

[leechaorui 2]

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Edited January 5, 2010 by leechaorui

[wuga98 0]

$500k for 4 storey is an impossible sum to work with. Even the $200psf is a very low figure which i think may be very hard to source and hidden cost is something that you could be faced with. Have you explore A&A instead. You may not get 4 storey but can be creative in your design.

I know it's a tough reality. If you have time, you can try to get a quote from a design and build company and see what they come back with in terms of quote.

Don't think I will install an air well as it is a corner terrace and 3 sides of the house can be open up. It is quite windy and airy as my place is unblock. Will probably install a fan on top of the lift, but I supposed the lift installer would know how to do it.

Probably when the piling work for the IRs are completed, there will be some spare capacity for piling to be distributed elsewhere. $200 psf for a 4 storey house is beyond my budget. I prefer to work on lump sum basis, design and build because I think project cost will certainly overrun.

If you have good lobang, do pm me. Thanks.

[leechaorui 2]

Better to list down the items to be build.

I choose the cheapest contractor that tender for my project. After the house have been tear down, I need to top up 30 to 50k because they say it was not included in the project amount....example the wall of the semi-D house that share with the neighbour....etc.

I ask them for a performance bond but somehow they didn't show proof of the performance bond they had bought.

I am aware that the lowest quote may not be the lowest amount I have to pay. I will need to learn from experience bros like you. Notwithstanding the need to learn and take valuable lessons from learned bros, I would prefer that the job be given to someone who is reliable and has some spare capacity to do the construction.

Some contractors are able to charge lower because they have lower overheads or spare capacity or they can get materials at lower price because of special contacts, etc...

I think it is difficult for contractors to lower their prices now as jobs are plentiful. I suspect that once the IRs are more or less done and if the economy is still gloomy, there will be opportunities for contractors to charge lower. Although my budget is low in building a house, the amount is very substantial to me and I will need to get a bank loan by mortgaging my house.

Wanted to rebuild much later but looking at the health of my parents, I thought I should let them enjoy while they can.

Cheers.

[leechaorui 2]

$500k for 4 storey is an impossible sum to work with. Even the $200psf is a very low figure which i think may be very hard to source and hidden cost is something that you could be faced with. Have you explore A&A instead. You may not get 4 storey but can be creative in your design.

I know it's a tough reality. If you have time, you can try to get a quote from a design and build company and see what they come back with in terms of quote.

Thank you for your advice in the forum and by pm.

Just saw your blog on house construction. It was very informative and I believe you enjoyed the process of building the house.

Yup, $500K for 4 storey properly build house is not easy at this time. There are quotes which my neighbours got, $300K for a 2 storey and it is considered very cheap. The same contractor quoted me $500K for a nice 2.5 storey house. I think once the demand for houses is reduced due to the recession, there may be opportunities for contractors to do the job just to occupy spare capacity and keep their workers employed.

If you know of geniune contractors who can deliver at my budget, you could introduce to me.

[white^7 0]

Thank you for your advice in the forum and by pm.

Just saw your blog on house construction. It was very informative and I believe you enjoyed the process of building the house.

Yup, $500K for 4 storey properly build house is not easy at this time. There are quotes which my neighbours got, $300K for a 2 storey and it is considered very cheap. The same contractor quoted me $500K for a nice 2.5 storey house. I think once the demand for houses is reduced due to the recession, there may be opportunities for contractors to do the job just to occupy spare capacity and keep their workers employed.

If you know of geniune contractors who can deliver at my budget, you could introduce to me.

Hi leechaorui,

Did you manage to get my PM?

[leechaorui 2]

Hi leechaorui,

Did you manage to get my PM?

Thanks. PM replied.

[Highroller 0]

Hi Guys,

I am looking to build a 3000 sqft (maybe smaller for garden or pool?), 2.5 storey with roof terrace with a budget of about 400-500k. Would like to ask the pros here if that is a comfortable amount to work with?

Also, is it possible to buy land directly from the government instead of looking for a corner terrace and then tear down to build? Can't seem to see anywhere on URA site that sells land parcels in that kind of size.

Hoping the experienced bros in this forum can advise.

Thanks!

HR

[OurLivingSpaces 1]

Hi Guys,

I am looking to build a 3000 sqft (maybe smaller for garden or pool?), 2.5 storey with roof terrace with a budget of about 400-500k. Would like to ask the pros here if that is a comfortable amount to work with?

Also, is it possible to buy land directly from the government instead of looking for a corner terrace and then tear down to build? Can't seem to see anywhere on URA site that sells land parcels in that kind of size.

Hoping the experienced bros in this forum can advise.

Thanks!

HR

Hi Highroller,

My house is currently under construction for below $400k. Like yours, my house is 2.5 storey with a roof terrace and a total GFA of around 3000 sqft. Hence, I think you have a comfortable budget to work with. The cost will of course, depend on your design, materials used and who you engage. You can check out images of my new house from my Facebook page called "Our Living Spaces" to see if your requirements are similar as mine.

[Highroller 0]

Hi Highroller,

My house is currently under construction for below $400k. Like yours, my house is 2.5 storey with a roof terrace and a total GFA of around 3000 sqft. Hence, I think you have a comfortable budget to work with. The cost will of course, depend on your design, materials used and who you engage. You can check out images of my new house from my Facebook page called "Our Living Spaces" to see if your requirements are similar as mine.

Hi OLS,

Thanks for the info. Did visit your FB page and saw the "artist impression" of your new place. Wow.. looks chioh man

By the way, if we come up with our own design and get the architect to come up with the structural design and blue print, will that help save on costs?

Thanks!

[OurLivingSpaces 1]

Hi OLS,

Thanks for the info. Did visit your FB page and saw the "artist impression" of your new place. Wow.. looks chioh man

By the way, if we come up with our own design and get the architect to come up with the structural design and blue print, will that help save on costs?

Thanks!

Hi Highroller,

Thanks for your compliments! My architect came out with the design after understanding my likes and dislikes. Along the way, there are some fine tweakings to the design like adding dormer window at the attic bathroom for ventilation and relocating the columns to coincide with room partitioning.

I don't think you can save cost by doing your own design and letting the architect do the blue print. These 2 tasks are inseparable. The architect charges based on the estimated time that he needs to spend on the project, just like other professionals. Btw, structural design is done by a Professional Engineer (PE) who needs to calculate load and advise on the location of beams and columns. My architect, PE and interior designer work closely as a team to come out with the architectural and structural blueprints for us.

The bulk of the cost for rebuilding a house lies with the construction cost and not professional fees. You might want to get a few builders to give you their quotations after you firm up the design with your architect and PE.

[totsboy 0]

Hi all,

In the midst of finding a builder to do up some A& A works to my 3 storey corner terrace such as building an attic, adding an external lift and extending a small part of the living room. No budget to employ architect, can only get builder cos I know what exactly I wanted. Been finding a value for money builders that are responsible and trustworthy but not sure where to start from as none of my friends have such contacts. Been reading thru this forum and learnt quite a lot, any genuine home owners with good afordable builders to share?

[shirleyng 0]

heyz...i got mine done at a recommendation from my childhood friend who did his A n A as well.Reliable builder who was able to show me his previous works around singapore as well as agree on a budget.you can call him (jay - 81195000) .Good luck!

Hi all,

In the midst of finding a builder to do up some A& A works to my 3 storey corner terrace such as building an attic, adding an external lift and extending a small part of the living room. No budget to employ architect, can only get builder cos I know what exactly I wanted. Been finding a value for money builders that are responsible and trustworthy but not sure where to start from as none of my friends have such contacts. Been reading thru this forum and learnt quite a lot, any genuine home owners with good afordable builders to share?

[jumbopanther 2]

I am currently doing A&A to my terrace Hse, my builder is quite good, even my neighbor said they are good

[Sunbird73 0]

Hi jumbopanther,

Can pm me the builder that you have engaged?

Will appreciate it if you could share the details of the works on yr terrace hse?

Am planning to do A&A to my inter terrace hse too.