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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
05
Handover
You move into the home you walked through, because we sorted the detail first. No surprises at the end, because there were none left by the start.
Process questions
Before you start
A free quote is quick because it is a guess, and it hides the unknowns until after you sign, when you can least afford to say no. A paid preliminary stage covers the design, selections, site reports, engineering and real supplier prices needed to give a genuine fixed price. The fee is what lets the builder stand behind the number. At Highwater Homes, the preliminary for a design and build can cost up to $40,000, which includes council approval fees, and a tender on existing approved plans is $5,000.
Yes. Council approvals, and the reports, drawings and engineering behind them, are part of our preliminary stage, so you are never left coordinating consultants yourself. Around Camden and Macarthur, council itself is usually straightforward. The trickier part is estate design guidelines, which can set rules on your colours, style and size and often need the developer's approval before council even sees the plans. We know which estates are strict and we handle that process for you.
You deal with Toby and the same small team the whole way through, not a rotating cast. We answer messages within 24 hours, and you have a 24/7 online client portal with your plans, selections and progress in one place, so you never have to chase us for an update. Because we cap our builds at ten a year, the person answering your question is the person who actually knows your job, which is what makes fast answers possible.
The most common are site costs you cannot see when you buy the block. A contour survey often shows a "flat" block has up to a metre and a half of fall, which adds retaining, fill and engineering costs. Soil removal can cost thousands of dollars and adds nothing to the finished home. Estate design guidelines can also add cost by dictating your materials, colours and style. A contour survey and soil test done before pricing turn all of these from surprises into known figures.