01
Work with the builder and owner
You deal with Toby, the licensed builder and owner, from first chat to handover. One point of contact, one mobile number, no account manager in between.
Custom home builders · Est. 2011
Macarthur’s BespokeCustom Home Builders
Custom homes for people who have built before and do not want to do it badly again. Fixed-price contracts, capped build slots, and a full-size walkthrough of your home before construction begins.
- Family owned and building since
- 2011
- Family owned and building since
- Homes a year, never more
- 10
- Homes a year, never more
- Price contracts, no allowances
- Fixed
- Price contracts, no allowances
- Australian Business Partner of the Year 2021
- HIA
- Australian Business Partner of the Year 2021
Award-winning builder
Recognised by the Housing Industry Association
Being recognised within the construction industry and acknowledged by our peers is of the utmost importance, and we are proud that Highwater Homes has received that acknowledgement from the HIA in recent years.
2024
Finalist · HIA NSW Housing Awards
Custom Built Home, The Oaks
2023
Finalist · HIA NSW Housing Awards
NSW Professional Small Builder of the Year
- Winner
2021
Winner · HIA-CSR Australian Housing Awards
Australian Business Partner of the Year
- Winner
2020
Winner · HIA NSW Housing Awards
NSW Business Partner of the Year
2020
Finalist · HIA NSW Housing Awards
NSW Professional Small Builder of the Year
2019
Finalist · HIA NSW Housing Awards
NSW Professional Small Builder of the Year
2017
Finalist · HIA NSW Housing Awards
Custom Built Home, Wilton and Cobbitty
HIA Housing Awards · 2017–2024
- State and national wins
- 02
- Finalist nominations
- 06
About Highwater
Enjoy your home, love your building experience
We build up to ten custom homes a year, and no more. We keep it small on purpose, so the same trusted trades work on every home and nothing gets rushed.
10Homes a year. Never more.
Toby Searle
Director & Builder
Family owned with Elizabeth Searle since 2011
We have been doing it this way for more than 15 years, and we have never seen a reason to change it. Growth for its own sake is how quality slips, and quality is the only reason to choose a custom builder in the first place.
The thing we care about most is managing your expectations honestly. If something will be hard, or will cost more, we tell you. If a wall is going to be a problem, we say so, before it becomes your problem.
Why Highwater
Why choose Highwater Homes to build your new home?
02
Capped construction slots
We build up to ten homes a year and space them four to six weeks apart, so the same trades stay on your build from start to finish.
03
Regular communication
Calls, messages and emails are answered within 24 business hours, and you hear from us weekly during construction without having to chase.
04
Walk through your home before it is built
You walk your plans at full size with furniture in place, and change anything while changing it is still free.
05
Specialist support
We gather every specialist report and council document, and guide your plan and colour selections, so you are not managing consultants yourself.
06
Online client portal
Your budget, selections, schedule and daily progress photos sit in one portal you can open 24/7 from anywhere.
Our process
How we design and build, step by step
Most people who call us are a bit unsure how this all works, and do not want to feel sold to. Fair enough. So here is exactly what happens, in order, with nothing hidden.
Step 01 · First chat
Start with a conversation, not a sales pitch.
Calls, messages and emails are answered within 24 business hours.
- Step 01
First chat
You tell us what you want, and just as importantly, what you never want to go through again. No hard sell, no pressure, no obligation.
- Step 02
Preliminary stage
We finalise the design and your selections, and investigate the block with a contour survey and soil test. We get real fixed prices from our suppliers, not guesses.
- Step 03
Full-size walkthrough
Before we build, you walk your home at full size, with furniture in place, and change anything while it is cheap to change.
- Step 04
Fixed price and build
You sign a fixed price contract with no allowances hiding in it. Your build takes one of our limited slots for the year, so the same trades stay on it start to finish.
What we build
Two ways to a home built around you
02 pathways
Custom Design & Build
Eight or nine out of ten of our clients start from a blank canvas. We design the home to suit your block and the way you live, then build it at a genuine fixed price.
Explore custom builds
Knockdown Rebuild
Stay in the suburb you love and start fresh. We guide the design, the approvals, the demolition of the old home and the construction of the new one.
Explore knockdown rebuildsClient reviews
What Highwater clients say
The process from design to build was explained meticulously throughout.
From the first phone call to site visit at one of the nearly completed homes that the Highwater team had built, we felt comfortable that Toby knew his craft very well.
Toby truly stood out with his understanding, honesty, and communication skills.
Building a house can be stressful and daunting for any homeowners. However, our building experience has been stress-free, exciting, and enjoyable with Highwater Homes.
Trustworthiness, genuineness and excellent communication.
We spoke to a few builders during the quoting stage, but we felt most comfortable with Toby.
Toby’s attention to detail was unlike anyone else’s.
He read through our many documents and drawings and did everything he could to deliver a smooth building process for us.
Attention to detail is at the forefront with Highwater Homes.
Toby and Elizabeth made sure they looked after the little details as much as they looked after the large pieces of work.
A quality build with zero stress.
Nothing was ever too much to ask and they were easy to get in touch with every step of the way.
Toby was transparent from the very beginning and had nothing to hide.
From our very first meeting with Highwater Homes, Toby was upfront with all costs and was very flexible with any changes that we wanted.
Would we build again? Absolutely, but only with Toby!
The whole building process was fantastic and everything flowed nicely and organised.
Attention to detail and commitment to quality.
Toby and the team at Highwater Homes have created our beautiful home on budget, on time and of exceptional quality.
Building our home was so much fun.
Once Highwater Homes finished building our house and handed over the keys, Rob said to me, “I want to build another one”.
Start here
Talk to Toby.
Start with a conversation, not a sales pitch.
“You need a builder who tells you the truth early, even when the truth is not what you were hoping to hear.”
Your first chat covers:
- 01Your brief, your block and your budget
- 02What your land will mean for your build
- 03How the preliminary stage and fixed price work
- 04Lifesize plan walkthrough, explained
- 05Realistic timing for your build slot
Request a call back
Calls, messages and emails are answered within 24 business hours.
Questions
Straight answers before you build
If your question is not answered here, ask Toby directly. You will get the truth early, even when it is not what you were hoping to hear.
Ask Toby
0483 943 309Only if it has no allowances, provisional sums or prime costs in it. Those are guessed figures that can rise after you sign, and the risk of the increase sits with you, not the builder. A contract with none of them is genuinely fixed, because everything in it has been properly priced before signing.
Highwater Homes builds custom homes across Macarthur, Camden, the Illawarra and the Southern Highlands in New South Wales. If you are still choosing a block anywhere in these areas, talk to us before you buy and we will tell you what the land will mean for your build.
Custom homes are priced to your design and block, so there is no single base price and we would not quote one over the phone, because any number given without a contour survey, soil test and real selections would be a guess. What we promise is a genuine fixed price once your selections and site reports are done.
Check five things. Does the contract contain allowances, provisional sums or prime costs? How many homes does the builder run at once, and will you deal with the owner? How quickly do they respond? Have they done a contour survey and soil test? And can they show you in writing what you will pay if you change nothing? Vague answers are the warning sign.
Fewer is usually better. Highwater Homes builds up to ten homes a year, spaced about four to six weeks apart, and gives each client direct access to the owner and the same team throughout. Ask any builder how many jobs they are running right now and who you will actually deal with.