Drop Edge Beams
If you want to build your new home on a slope you may need to have the additional cost of needing drop edge beams on the low side of the slabs.
These are a sort of retaining wall to hold the fill under the house slab as shown in the drawing below.
Here is a photo of a typical drop edge beam before the brickwork has been started.
Costs (2013) are in the order of $500-$700/sqm of beam, plus the cost of the fill under the slab.
Say. . . $12,000 to $18,000 for a 20m long house with a 1.5m drop beam so a significant extra!
The photo below shows the same wall after the brickwork has been completed.
If you are building on a slope you may also want to know about Retaining Wall Fairness