Contracts
Protecting the Footpath
An issue that can result in grief from the Local Council and additional costs to you is damage to the footpath. Legally The last time I built any damage was covered by the Clause which says “The Builder must indemnify the…
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Builder’s Christmas Shutdown
Every Year I hear complaints of “Everything has stopped on my House Build for a month” What can make it worse is when the builder ‘Tries’ to claim an ‘Extension of Time’ for the Build. What Does The Contract Say?…
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Paying Contractors
Sponsored by CheckVault The advice you always get about paying contractors is “Don’t pay until the works are complete.” Easy to say. . . . . but most small contractors want payments up front! Why Contractors Want Up-Front Payment I…
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Specification
Control of costs is really important if you don’t want to run over budget on your new home. One of the key areas in controlling costs is understanding the specification of the house. One of the traps that many people…
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New House Guarantees and Warranties
I’m always a bit suspicious of guarantees and warranties! In my opinion most Guarantees are really just a piece of paper that explains how the Guarantor will fulfill their legal liabilities. (In some cases they explain a process which is less than fulfilling…
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Avoiding Splitting Responsibility
I often come across people who want to exclude certain items of the work from a house building contract to save money. They may want to do the work themselves, use their own tradie (relative or friend) or use a different…
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Cost Plus Contracts – Avoid
What Is A Cost Plus Contract Basically it is a contract where you agree to pay all the builders ‘Direct Costs’ plus a ‘Fee for Administration and Profit’. Rather than a quotation the builder provides an estimate with the actual cost…
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Fixed Price Contracts
Having a ‘Fixed Price Contract’ doesn’t mean the bottom line price of the contract will stay the same. All it means is that the majority of prices for individual work items are fixed. Here are reasons for changes in the final price:…
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Beware of Escalation Clauses
What Are Escalation Clauses These are a way of allowing for inflation. Basically it provides a way for the builder to increase his costs in line with inflation. The Clause will quote an inflation index which can be used to…
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Delaying Progress Payments
So your builder has just made a claim for a Progress Payment . . . . . but you are not happy with the workmanship, or don’t agree that the Construction Stage is finished. What can you do? A lot of people…
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