Questions and answers

We build new homes, including houses, townhouses, units, garages and sheds, renovate bathrooms, kitchens and laundries, paint homes inside and out, and supervise building projects. See new homes, renovations and supervision.

We’re based in Melbourne and build across Melbourne and suburbs around Victoria. See our service areas, or send us your suburb and we’ll confirm.

They’re building classes in the National Construction Code. Class 1 covers homes such as houses, townhouses and villa units. Class 10a covers non-habitable buildings like garages, carports and sheds. We build both.

It depends on your site, the size and layout, and the finishes you choose, so we don’t publish one-size-fits-all prices. Each service page explains what affects the cost, and we quote in writing before work starts.

Yes. Our projects page shows real photos from our building sites, stage by stage. We never use stock photos of other people’s work.

Send us a message through the contact page with your suburb, what you’d like to build or renovate, and any plans or photos you have. We’ll get back to you to talk it through.

Under the National Construction Code, a Class 1a building is a single house, or attached homes such as townhouses or villa units, where each home is separated by a fire-resisting wall. It’s the classification for most new homes we build. See our projects for examples.

A Class 10a building is a non-habitable building such as a private garage, carport or shed. It still has to meet the building code. Most need a building permit, though some small garden sheds under 10 m² can be exempt. We build them with a new home or as a separate job.

Yes. We build townhouses and villa units as well as single homes. Side-by-side homes are Class 1a under the building code; homes stacked one above another are Class 2. Multi-dwelling projects usually need a planning permit from your council before the building permit. Our permits guide explains the difference.

It depends on the size of the home, the site, the weather and how quickly selections are made. After we’ve reviewed your plans we give you a realistic timeline for each stage: base, frame, lock-up, fixing and completion.

Every new home needs a building permit. Whether you also need a planning permit depends on your zone and any overlays. Building more than one home on a lot usually needs one. A building permit can’t be issued until any required planning permit is in place.

In most residential zones, yes: building more than one dwelling on a lot needs a planning permit from your council before a building permit can be issued. Our permits guide explains the difference.

A dual occupancy is two homes on one lot, either attached side by side or one behind the other. It’s one of the most common ways Melbourne owners develop a larger block.

It depends on your zone, overlays, the size and shape of the block, and the planning permit. Send us your address or plans and we’ll talk through what’s likely to work.

Attached townhouses are separated by fire-resisting walls, built to the National Construction Code requirements for Class 1a homes.

Yes. We build townhouses, villa units and single homes, as well as Class 10a garages and carports that go with them. See new homes.

Often you don’t need a building permit to replace a kitchen or bathroom without structural changes, but plumbing and electrical work must be done by licensed plumbers and electricians. Moving walls or changing the structure usually needs one. Our permits guide explains more.

Usually, yes. For a single room we plan the work to keep disruption low and tell you in advance when water or power will be off. For a kitchen we can talk through ways to manage without it for a while.

No. As well as full bathroom, kitchen and laundry renovations, we take on painting jobs inside and out, and smaller updates to existing rooms.

It depends mostly on whether plumbing moves, the fixtures and tiles you choose, and what we find behind the walls. We don’t publish one-size-fits-all prices. Our renovation costs guide explains what drives the price.

It depends on the size of the room, whether the layout changes and how long the waterproofing needs to cure. We give you a timeline for each stage with your quote, so you can plan around it.

Usually not when you’re replacing a bathroom without structural changes, but plumbing and electrical work must be done by licensed plumbers and electricians. Moving walls usually needs a building permit. See our permits guide.

Usually, yes. It depends on where the drainage can go and getting the right fall to the waste. We check this on the site visit and explain the options.

Strip-out, repairs, plumbing and electrical, waterproofing, tiling, fit-out, painting and the final clean. Your written quote lists everything included and anything that isn’t.

Often, yes. If the wall is load-bearing it needs an engineer’s design and usually a building permit. We check this before you commit to the layout.

Before the cabinetry is finalised. Cabinets are made around exact appliance sizes, so changing an appliance late can mean changing the cabinets.

Usually, yes. An electrician checks whether your switchboard and supply can handle an induction cooktop, and the gas line is disconnected and capped by a licensed gasfitter.

It depends mostly on cabinetry and benchtop lead times. We give you a timeline with your quote and plan the work so you’re without a kitchen for as short a time as possible.

Yes, in parts. Laundries are wet areas under the building code: the floor must be water resistant (and waterproof where there’s a floor waste), and the joint where the tub meets the wall and the tap penetrations must be waterproof. We do this before tiling.

Often, yes, if water supply and drainage can reach the new spot. We check this on the site visit and explain what’s involved.

Yes. A laundry behind doors, with machines under a bench or stacked, works well in apartments and smaller homes, as long as there’s drainage and ventilation.

Yes. We paint interiors (ceilings, walls, trims and doors) and exteriors (walls, eaves, fascias and weatherboards).

Paint needs dry surfaces and suitable temperatures to cure properly, so exterior work is planned around the forecast and may move a day or two in wet weather.

Homes built before 1970 are most likely to have lead-based paint under newer layers, though later homes can too. Home test kits aren’t reliable, so we treat older paint as if it contains lead, or have it tested, and never dry-sand it.

Usually not. In a heritage overlay you may need a planning permit to paint the outside if your property has external paint controls or the surface, such as face brick, has never been painted. Check your planning property report or ask your council.

A building supervisor oversees the work on site: coordinating trades, checking the work is done to the plans and the permit, keeping the programme on track and reporting progress to the owner.

We can supervise and coordinate the trades on your project. If you’re an owner-builder, the legal responsibilities that come with your certificate of consent stay with you, so we agree in writing exactly what we’re responsible for.

Often, yes. We first walk the site, review the plans, permit and work done so far, and tell you honestly what we find before agreeing on a scope.

No. The building surveyor carries out the mandatory inspections for the building permit, or has an inspector do them. Supervision is day-to-day oversight of the work and the trades, and it happens alongside those inspections.

Usually it’s moving plumbing or walls, followed by your choice of tiles and fixtures. Keeping the existing layout is the simplest way to control cost.

Because every home is different. A price list that ignores your layout, finishes and what’s behind the walls isn’t much use. We give you a written quote after seeing the job.

A registered building surveyor, either a private surveyor or the council’s municipal building surveyor.

In most residential zones, building more than one dwelling on a lot needs a planning permit from the council. Check your zone and overlays first.

Use the “Check licence and registration” tool on the Building and Plumbing Commission (BPC) website, and make sure the name and number match your contract.

It replaced Domestic Building Insurance on 1 July 2026. It covers eligible domestic building contracts signed on or after that date that are over $20,000, for buildings of three storeys or less, including lost deposits, incomplete work and defective work.

Base, frame, lock-up, fixing and completion. Most new home contracts are paid as each of these stages is finished.

At the stages listed on the building permit, such as before the footings or slab are poured, at frame stage, and a final inspection at the end. The surveyor may send an inspector acting for them. A new home then gets an occupancy permit before you move in.