Frequently Asked Questions
Do you build outside the Sunshine Coast?
Generally not, however, we have builders we know and trust in some areas of Australia. These builders have often constructed our homes previously and understand the high standard we expect. Please refer to the later question related to ‘construction’ for more information or call our office in relation to our preferred builders.
Remember that we can supply a kit home anywhere in Australia and overseas.
What is a Classic Queenslanders kit?
If you purchase a Classic Queenslanders kit home you will be supplied with all the materials required to build the ‘shell’ of your home. This includes engineered plans, stumps, pre-built wall frames and trusses, flooring, verandah decking and rails, windows, internal and external doors and fittings, insulation, external cladding and internal plasterboard and cornice, roof and guttering, windows and built-in robes with robe doors. Please see our Standard Kit Inclusion Guide for a more comprehensive explanation of these materials.
The above is a list of our ‘standard kit inclusions’, however, we can include any construction items or fittings you want. In remote areas or overseas, we often include all the items to complete your home, eg, cabinetry, baths, toilets, dishwasher etc. Sometimes we have included furniture!
What about delivery and transport costs?
Kit home materials will be delivered to your site as required, although in more remote areas, they may have to be delivered all together. As we now have accounts with many national suppliers, we would be able to supply your kit home from the nearest large city to your site, which means there should be little or no cost for transport of your kit home materials. We can supply kit home materials from all capital cities and most major cities around Australia. These arrangements have proven very convenient and inexpensive for our distant clients. It also means you are using local suppliers. Overseas kit homes are transported in containers and freight costs can be confirmed before placement of your kit home order.
Construction of my owner builder home (kit home). What are my options?
There are a number of options to building your kit home
- You can obtain an ‘Owner Builder Permit’. For more information you can go to www.ownerbuilding.com.au or phone 1800 777 996 (Queensland). With an owner builder permit, you can save money on the construction of your new home by organising tradesmen of your choice and perhaps doing some of the work yourself. As the suppliers of your kit home materials, we are only a phone call away if you have any questions during the construction time. An alternative that some owners have used, is to employ a builder to build their kit to ‘lock-up’ and then finish it themselves. Classic Queenslanders will arrange and pay for owner builder courses for their clients.
- If you are building on the Sunshine Coast, we can build your home for you using our builders and tradesmen. Many of these subcontractors have been doing our work for more than 15 years. We can trust them to do a professional job. They are reliable and experienced. Alternatively, if you are on the Sunshine Coast and you wish to buy a kit home, we can suggest reliable tradesmen and you can organise construction yourself.
- If your building site is not on the Sunshine Coast, you may have an experienced builder you know in your area who can build your home for you. He will organize all his preferred tradesmen to construct your home.
- If you do not know a builder in your area, the preferred method of locating one is to contact organizations such as Housing Industry Association (HIA) or the Master Builders Association (MBA) in your state. Alternatively, we may know of a builder in your area who may previously have constructed one of our homes and who we would be happy to recommend. Therefore, sometimes we can suggest a builder for you.
What does ‘Full Build’ mean?
At Classic Queenslanders we describe a ‘full build’ home as a home which has been fully constructed and it is possible for the owners to move in. We do not usually allow for carpets (our homes have polished timber floors as standard ) and window furnishings, such as blinds and curtains, in our ‘full build’ proposals, however, we can arrange for installation of these items if you prefer. Please let us know so that they can be included in your quote.
Therefore, when you request a ‘full build’ home, you can expect your proposal to include all quality materials and all labour costs, using highly experienced and reliable tradesmen. Your home will be constructed to our high, award-winning standards and will be ready for you and your family to move in.
Can my home have steel frames rather than timber?
Yes, we can supply steel frames or timber frames.
We use kiln dried structural treated pine for our pre-nailed wall frames which has a guarantee of up to 25 years against insect attack, however, we can supply steel frames at an additional cost.
Can I change the plans?
Certainly, we have never built the same home twice!
Most people like to customize their floor plans to suit their requirements and needs. Many of our owners have used our floor layouts as a starting point and modified them. However, we can also supply you with kit materials, or construct a ‘full build’ home based on your own plan. Your plan can be posted or emailed to us and we can give you a guide to the cost of your home based on your plan.
Yes, I am interested, how do I begin?
If you have previously contacted us by phone or email, you have probably already reviewed the information we have sent to you regarding our homes, such as inclusions, guide to the building process and plans. We suggest that the next step is to contact one of our team, either by phone or in our office at Buderim, and arrange an Initial Design Consultation with a builder. During this appointment he will be happy to answer your questions and work through with you, the many design ideas and possibilities which must be considered when building a new home. Of course, it’s absolutely free and comes with no obligation.
I have already decided on a plan for my new home, what next?
This is the Preliminary Agreement Stage. You have decided on a floor plan for your new home so the next stage is to pay a deposit of $2500 to have your plans drawn by a professional draftsperson and checked by an engineer. For the plans to be drawn we will need:
- A copy of your land title (Registered Plan)*
- A soil test*
- A contour plan of your block with property information*
*Please note that we will organise these documents when you are having us build your home for you. If you are purchasing a kit, we will be asking you to provide these items to us. Refer to the Step-by-Step Guides for kit and ‘full build’ homes for more information.
When your preliminary plans are drawn, we can have your home accurately priced by suppliers for a kit, and suppliers and tradesmen for a ‘full build’ home so that you are well aware of all costs before you begin. You will already have an estimate of these prices, however, sometimes the estimate can change due to issues with soil testing, wind ratings and modifications to your home which may involve engineering.
How long will it take to build my new home?
This will depend on the size of your home and availability of tradesmen in your area.
We generally advise owners that it takes approximately 3 months to organise the paperwork for your new home. After all we want to get it right before we begin. This includes plans, engineering, pricing, organisation of tradesmen and suppliers, preparation of contracts etc.
The construction time can take from 12 to 22 weeks, depending on the size of your new home.
We allow approximately 12-15 weeks for 3-4 bedroom homes and the longer times for the larger home. This is only a guide and does not take into account weather delays. If, in consultation with you, the owner, we have all the paperwork in place before we begin, we usually do not experience delays.
Are there any hidden extras?
At Classic Queenslanders, we pride ourselves on NOT deceiving our valued clients with little (or big) surprises during the building process. This is why we spend 3 months painstakingly and accurately preparing all the paperwork for your home. We know all the costs involved and we let you know before contracts are signed. Of course, occasionally during construction, our owners might find they prefer to add something to their home which they had not previously considered; an example may be air conditioning or extra lights. We understand that this can occur and we can factor in variations to the contract in this event.
Please be aware that we also prefer not to ‘upsell’; that is, give you a low price which will entice you to buy from us and then try to convince you to buy extra items or upgrade materials and inclusions. The price we give you initially includes quality items which we consider will provide you with a home which you will be proud to own. We include timber floors and high (2.7m) ceilings in our initial costings, we do not give you a cheap initial price and tempt you with these items after contracts have been signed. We try to be as honest with our pricing as possible, while considering as many variations as we can.
Do you have an office outside the Sunshine Coast?
At present, we also have agents in Townsville, Proserpine, Mackay, Gold Coast, Northern NSW and Adelaide who will be able to help owners in those areas. These people are new additions to our team, however they will prove invaluable to owners building in these areas as they will be able to assist with designs and tradespeople and capable of answering questions at a local level while liasing with the head office in Buderim.
