TIPS FROM A FIRST TIMER

Julian Clarkstone, Money magazine’s marketing associate director, and his partner weren’t really looking to build a property. But last year, with all the grants being rolled out, he thought, “Why not, it’s a bit of help – $35,000 in grants [first home buyer and HomeBuilder] and a reduction in stamp duty.”

Clarkstone put down his deposit in July for a package in Sydney’s north-west, in a suburb filled with first home buyers and young families. He says the build has only just started and it will be completed in nine months.

The deposit was 10% of the land value, on which stamp duty was added (at a reduced rate). “We have the entire loan approved, but so far are only paying interest on the land and the money will be released in stages from the bank when the invoices come through from the builder,” he says.

Clarkstone says he originally thought he’d find an existing property further south, but while his land is smaller than the typical existing properties there he felt that having a new home was worth it.

Transport infrastructure has been promised by the NSW government, but now seems to be on the backburner. There are also plans for a new school, although there are already some schools in the area.

Clarkstone says the choice of builder was limited: each block of land was allocated to a particular builder, with an extra financial promotion running between the developer and builder. You could change the builder, but then the financial promotion wouldn’t apply. There is a different builder on each block in my street. Just looking at the building signs in front of each property, there are at least 10 builders on that street,” he says.

“We needed to negotiate a lot on the build. We weren’t happy with the design, but the builder said they could offer a custom design. We pushed hard to get what we wanted and although it took a while, with back-and-forth changes, they were helpful in eventually giving us a custom design which included changing the layout. That was a big reason we went with them in the end, because they could change the design.”

Clarkstone says he would recommend that any first home buyers who go through the same experience get a flow chart of what needs to be done from their broker, lawyer or builder.

“I didn’t have one and I found the whole process really confusing. Other family members going through this agree that it can be a nightmare trying to work out when payments are due, or who you need approvals from, what you need from your builders, and when.

“If the builders were clearer about what they needed from us and we had more knowledge, it would be a quicker process.”

He says the most frustrating part of the whole project is the time it takes. “It takes longer than expected.”

Clarkstone and his partner are living with their own parents at the moment so they are not too financially disadvantaged by the delay, but this is a consideration for anyone who is paying rent.