AusHomes

unprofessional and incompetent, I would recommend using another builder – Terrible communication, very slow to follow up. Lots of errors, unorganized and constant delays from no shows. The delays and mistakes have cost me tens of thousands of dollars extra. A very disappointing experience. Show details

Very professional builder – Aushomes provide an extremely well managed build process, the team go out of their way to help, give practical advice and make the process as efficient as possible. No over runs or charges. We did not find any defects at the end. We are Very happy with Aushomes and would recommend them to anyone looking for a professional well run builder. Show details

Very efficient at delivering a cost conscious build, good communication – Good bits 1) Aushomes are fantastic at delivering a house to the value-conscious buyer. 2) Build tracker app is great allows you to track delays against basic information from the project plan without having to ring your project manager, or for downloading copies of approved building plans. 3) Build variation costing is quite reasonable so long… Read more

as you stay within the standard building development envelope.

Bad bits 1) Sometimes we encountered unnecessary delays returning paperwork with my brother being overseas. Some stressful moments occurred due to some inconsistency with email versus snail mail communication, mainly because of critical documents only being snail mailed, instead of both modes of communication. 2) Aushomes strength is delivering a standardized product but this becomes a weakness if you ask for something non-standard. For example, they are used to offering turn-key, house and land packages. We had some moments immediately prior to breaking ground where the builder wouldn’t apply for the council building approval until he had unconditional approval from the bank, and the bank were saying the reverse. This was related to us having purchased land separately to the house build instead of as a package.

Suggestions for change Buildtracker shows actual versus planned completion dates and links to download important paperwork, such as copies of house plans. It would be nice to have the 9 or so project stages labelled in the stage titles 1/9 Initial site works, 2/9 slab stage etc, so that it is obvious to the novice user where they are in the whole process. Alternately, show all 9 headings, with the incomplete stage titles greyed out. Note that the stages are probably project stages, and these don’t coincide with the 5 progress payment stages for new house builds, this was confusing for us first-timers and could do with clarification.

We built a dual occupancy for our mum with a few dementia-friendly build variations to the bathroom and lighting. Our house build was one of the early attempts for Aushomes to cross into the owner-occupier market. We were given a shortlist by our investment agent of 2 companies; Aushomes, responsible for around 200 builds/yr and another smaller company, responsible for around 25 builds/yr. We chose Aushomes because: 1) Initial research showed that Aushomes had a very low rectification rate (3/200 builds required rectification, with only 1 build needing a $75k fix). 2) A review of Aushomes website showed that their founder is very cost conscious and process driven. More extensive line-by-line review of the standard building contract and viewing of near-completion builds nearby reflected this. 3) Aushomes standard build still included a mostly brick exterior compared to foam panels from the other builder. If we ever decided to add external fixings to the house, such as for a pergola over an external concrete slab, this is easily done with brickwork to fix to, not easy at all for foam panels unless those fixing points are preplanned into the design.

In the near-complete build we viewed, we saw the Aushomes default options for everything, where we noticed the branding on the appliances were unfamiliar. Further online research suggested that despite the unfamiliar names, these products were still of sufficient quality to last the builder’s warranty period, so decided that we were happy to concede name brand appliances in favour of the cost savings. The default tile size, lighting and the paintwork in the bathroom were things we were keen to change in our house design, along with addition of extra bathroom grab rails. The default 300x 300 tile size made the auxiliary unit look pokey, so we upgraded to bigger tiles and better carpet. The 2 coat paint system doesn’t hide the blue board colour in the wet areas as well as it does on normal plasterboard, but this got rectified after the pre-handover building inspection. The default lighting is basic fluorescent fittings, and this wasn’t suitable for mum as we switched to downlights throughout using a build variation.

For perspective, despite 2 snippy moments with paperwork described under the bad bits, Aushomes did a pretty good job. The pre-handover building inspection we arranged showed that the build quality was better than average for similar houses, we had a few paint touchups needed especially in the bathroom (normal), and no major structural findings. Overall the whole experience was positive.

Hot tips 1) We came through the Aushomes commercial arm via another investment company that helps investors to build positive cashflow dual-occupancy dwellings. Be sure to mention your agent’s name when you ring through to the office the first time, otherwise it creates sales commission awkwardness if the front desk puts you through to the retail sales people. 2) Buying land separate from the house build - this is the one time that a great deal of stress and suffering could easily be avoided with a few well-placed questions early in the process. We bought our land from a developer than had sub-divided a much larger block in an existing suburb. Before settling on the land, quiz the developer about any NBN-infrastructure relating to the block. Is there only one connection point allowed for in the nearest pit? This could become a problem if you build a dual-occupancy on a single title, each pit only has so many connection points and its first come, best dressed. Do you know who is responsible for lodging the paperwork with NBN to recognize Unit 1 and Unit 2 as separate dwellings? If this paperwork is lodged during the build, the connection time happens concurrently and shouldn’t bother the homeowner much, but if you wait til after moving in, it can mean nothing but mobile internet, if anything, for up to 6 mths. You will inevitably spend a lot of time on hold to various companies and go up a few dead ends before figuring out how to get connected. We wasted at least 6 weeks going in circles with various internet providers promising the world but not delivering because NBN Co owns the infrastructure. This was after moving in, but before we finally got the NBN development application lodged. If the 2 dwellings are not recognized separately, whichever unit connects to the NBN first gets the connection, and the other unit can only ever have mobile broadband, or has to piggyback off the main internet connection. Internet isn’t normally the builder’s responsibility, and because whats needed to establish the connection varies widely based on local site conditions etc etc. “NBN ready” in the building contract just means the builder has laid conduit under the grass and through to the garage, but they don’t organize for the connection itself, it definitely DOES NOT mean all you have to do is ring an internet provider when you move in. This type of situation should no longer occur, as Aushomes have begun offering a fixed price variation they can add into the building contract so that they lodge the paperwork for you. 3) Standard option built-in wardrobes have the cavity bigger than the standard 2100 high sliding doors. Using 2100 high wardrobe doors means the top shelf becomes harder to use due to the minimal clearance between the clothes rail and shelf and the top of the door frame. 4) Make the edge of the wardrobe doors level with the side of wardrobe cavity, as the default wardrobe carcass doesn't include drawers. The default option, which saves cost by using narrower wardrobe doors, doesn’t allow you to retrofit a chest of drawers to store socks etc, and have it hard against the one end of the wardrobe cavity, as the wardrobe door frame stops the drawers from opening fully. The clothes rail itself is pretty sturdy and the shelf has better-than-average bracing brackets, but it would be nice to see Aushomes offer a wardrobe up-spec package that includes bigger sliding doors as well as a more space-efficient wardrobe carcass. 5) Mobility-friendly doors and hallways is difficult on compact floorplans. 900 wide internal doors was initially discussed, but ended up not happening, as the bathroom layout had already been optimized so much that we would have had to forgo towel rails in favour of the wider door. The only way to fix this is being able to afford a bigger floorplan than 227sqm. 6) We had the new house checked over by an occupational therapist as a sanity check. The OT said that the installed grab rail near the toilet was not installed in the correct location or orientation, so that someone could haul themselves upright from a sitting position using the grab rail. These rails are not a standard fixture for Aushomes. Our bathroom design had the toilet in a small alcove, whereas I think a better design is to have the toilet in a corner and allow space for a grab rail forwards of the leading edge of the toilet bowl, without impinging on other bathroom furnishings such as vanity or shower door. 7) The “Methven” style shower rail has a very low profile, right angle exit from the wall. This is fine if you only plan to have the hand-held rose and hose on there, but if at some point you decide to install a shower filter, even the slim-line filters will not screw into the wall fitting, and a standard stubby shower filter casing has no hope of being installed.

Great Follow up throgh the end – We built the house throgh Aus home in Redbank (QLD) and really happy with the service and outcome. Very good service from the team with time to time communication . The house is build and ticking all the boxes and reching above satisfaction. The entire process through Aushome been no stressful at all and all the work is done on time with higher… Read more

expectations. I will recomend their service and will be building my next house with them.

Thanks Kamal

Perfect home for us – First point of contact at Aushomes was with Katie, where we sent through our plans and our wants in a house, Katie designed our home perfectly and without any trouble at all. we loved our home on plans and now that we are living it. Once the initial design stage was complete we then had Katie O help us with organising all other aspects of our… Read more

build. Katie O took the time to explain things and make us feel at ease. At all times Katie was there when we needed help, she kept us updated at every point. Dean was our Builder Supervisor and he was absolutely wonderful, once again he was never to busy to answer question or call us back. Throughout the building process there were a few little issues, but as soon as we chatted to Dean they were sorted. We have been in our brand new home for over a year now and have never had any issues when contacting Aushomes about the odd thing. We should have submitted this review lots sooner as Aushomes really took the time to make our first build very easy which we appreciated very much. I would have no problems recommending Aushomes and the staff to any one else thinking of building. The price we were quoted for our build was the finishing price we paid. Thank you very much to Aushomes, especially Katie, Katie and Dean.

good customer services, prompt responses and good builder – The build quality is great, issues can be rectified promptly if any. Very good customer services , always response your request in a trimming manner. No delay on the building and worthy to deal with. Show details

Excellent service from start to finish – We purchased land in Park Ridge Qld when it was still in development stage. Arranged plans with Aushomes for a suitable dwelling to fit the block. As soon as land was completed building commenced straight away. The whole experience was made simple by the Aushomes team - from our sales consultant right the way through to the on site construction… Read more

team. As we had never done this type of thing before, I was a little nervous at the start, but there was no need as everything went smoothly. The home was completed and handed over without a hitch. Extremely happy with the finished product, and more than happy to recommend Aushomes.

I don't want to leave my house – I build on hendon court, boronia heights 4124 as a first home owner. Choose Aushomes as they offer complete package with landscapes, driveways, and fencing. Their display homes in Pimpama GC doesn't have much extras throws in, unlike other builder which throws in $20k-$30k to make it look nice. Standard inc: stone bench top, alfresco sliding door,… Read more

security screen, blinds, security screen n door. We initialy didn't like their plans on offer, so I photocopied, cut, rearrange and glued my own plan and get them to draw it. There was a lot of modification but there was no charge. They are very easy going.

Colour selection: a bit dissapointed as standart brick, tiles, roofing, colour etc are not as I expected, but the Anna gave us advice on how to mix and match colour to imagine final outcome. And they ended up very very nice.

Correspondence with Aushomes office: they are genuine honest. Response vary to very fast to sometimes slow (they might be busy) but keep trying and.

Interaction with site supervisor: sounds dismissive and in a hurry during phone call. Didn't explain much on progress, need to be asked to get get answer, as a first home owner I don't know what to ask and just googling from google on what to ask. But turns out he is actually very nice when I see him in person.

Final inspection: we hired private building inspector after I go through final inspection with site supervisor just to make sure i don't missed anything. My building inspector actually praised the work particularly the brick work. He said the quality of the build actually better than even the bigger name like clarendon, metricon.

Move in: love every bits of my house. Thinking of taking sicky from work because I missed my house lol.

After sales claim: so far easy and no drama.

Thank you Aushomes for building our house. I won't be hestitate building my next one with them again. Next time maybe 2 stories.

Aushomes - worst builder i dealt with across 4 states – They claim they have 100% track record but i am a live example of that its not. You also have to keep chasing for something that they should update the customer. Despite chasing and i have lost count on how many times i have been disappointed from council plans until the handover. The site supervisor, admin team and even the manager are good in consistently disappointing. I wonder how many have the same experience.  Show details

The perfect no worries build! – From the first introduction to the AusHomes salesperson and her wise advice in finalising the plan all have been excellent and gone to plan. The building process was remarkably smooth and completed well ahead of schedule. I was overseas during much of this with a relative overseeing it and I found liaising with AusHomes from overseas easy. When… Read more ·  1

I arrived and viewed the building it was well built and the final inspection and settlement was straightforward. The on-site manager further said that if I noticed anything to give him a call. I strongly recommend AusHomes.

Terrible: Stay clear of this builder – This builder does not even deserve one star. I invite everyone who is considering this builder, to my house to have a look at the crappy workmanship provided by Aushomes. This builder completely ignored Electric pillar box and a Bio Basin in front of the block (Middle of the driveway) and started building the house and suddenly stopped work… Read more

after receiving most of the payment and started blackmailing us to change the approved Plans.

Our case is in QCAT and I will write a full review of the case and will uncover the whole story. A picture of the incomplete house and the electric pillar box has been attached to this comment.

An outstanding builder - am on to my 6th – For each of my purchases, they have provided a flexible design service so I was happy with the design before fingers on it. The fact that I am on to my 6th purchase from Aushomes is a good indication of how happy I am with the quality of workmanship, the way each build was managed and the customer service. All homes are priced with basic… Read more ·  1

specifications an can be optioned up with a incredible number of add-ons.

Completion times were always well within my expectations.

And having checked on the pricing of other builders each time, Aushomes consistently had the best pricing.

I recommend Aushomes to my family and friends and they are very happy too.

Stunning – These guys are the best in the business. They use fully qualified contractors, not wanna be tilers or brick layers. They finish the job in just 5 months time which short for a 2 floor building. I built with them Ellendale on Lot 234 Brokman Drive. I wouldn't go with any other builder. They give you the best product with reasonable price. Staff is friendly and happy to help.  Show details

Excellent Builder – My name is Cinar Gey. I built 4 bedroom house on LOT 48 Dorville Road Carseldine with Aushomes. I couldn't believe that they finished the building turn key in 12 weeks. They were very helpful throughout the building and after the building has been completed. They delivered what they promised. BE AWARE. I am a property developer. Cheapest builder… Read more

doesn't mean the best. Many builders have cash flow problems and they will go bankrupt in the middle of your building.

AUSHOMES is great that they do great job for a fair price and always have good cash flow.

Many people give bad reviews about Builders. I wonder if have they paid their invoices on time? Maybe that is why their construction is delayed.

I am honest. I gave you my name and where I built.

Very happy with AUSHOMES – I have built a house on LOT 85 WADE STREET VIRGINIA with AUSHOMES. They did an excellent job and finished product is great. They were always smiling and they were quick to attend to your needs. I am very happy that I built with AUSHOMES. They quote you 1 turn key price and if you need anything extra you need to pay for them which is very fair as they are in the business to make money not for charity. I recommend this builder to everyone.  Show details

No to recommend to anyone – I built my first Home owner at Fitzgibbon. The equipment they put are all crap. Even the aircon on the living area is crap. These guys advise to me that if there is any problem anything take a picture and send it to them. And if it is not the matter of urgency then they will fix it by the date of 1 year we move into the house. I send them pictures… Read more

and other issues and i thought they will come to fix these issues. As i took my key from Aushome on 26 January 2016 and i though that they will come after 26 January 2017. But no one has come to fix the issues we send to them through email.

Customer service is act of taking care of customer before, during and after customer needs are met which they don't have at all.

One of the disgusting Builder i have ever seen and recommend not to go with them.

Good builder – We found Aushomes after visiting one of thier display homes. They were easy to deal with and built us an investment home. We followed their advice and had a tenant ready the week it was finished. I actually got $5 more per week than they told me. They guided me through the process and didn't make wild statements like some of the other… Read more

builders did.

They just delivered what we asked for. Overall a good experience and I do recommend them. Straight forward no nonsense contract. Build time was 11 weeks. Claims on rents were accurate. Took longer than I expected in council.

Terrible – We decided to build our first home with them because we could not wait too long for the next stage and their lots were the only ones available (may be that should tell you something). We have been telling our friends, family and work mates not to build with them. This part is what people underestimate these days, if we dont get a good customer… Read more

service, we tell people and leave reviews about them on the net and the world knows.

However, after lots of heartaches, we hope the product they deliver is satisfying. We'll see on my next review in couple of months ;) - Sales people are nice (because they have to) - Their display home at Fitzgibbon is as standard as every man can make. No fancy decorations, furniture are like from garage sales and cracks on the wall and windows-to-wall fittings. They are competing with AVJennings and Ausbuild and what they built is not quite attractive. This, Im afraid, is what kind of level of quality they are going to deliver and the level of seriousness in the industry.

- Customer service is really not their best. After you sign the contracts, they will treat you differently. We are spending $$$ on you, we deserve better! Do not hesitate to voice your concern.

- Information given by them varies, even from one person to the other. Make contacts to a different party who is involved. In our case, ULDA from Bne city council, they will help you to check if they give you the right information and to chase them up for outstanding documents.

- We have to keep asking for updates, even if you have clearly said that you want updates, but they will not give you any after the conversation on the phone is over.

- Check every single detail of your floor plan everytime. Even though they have agreed on changes you requested, some things can be changed back to how they were. Get them to send you the proper plans with all your requested changes incorporated, do not make sketches of your own on the drawings if they are going to be legal documents (parts of your contracts). Those drawings are what the supervisors and tradies are going to look at. The clearer and more detail the drawings the better, to avoid misunderstanding and everybody will appreciate this.

Good builder – We had a pretty good building experience with Aushomes. Everything they said they would do they did. The quality of some of the finishes are basic but we had the choice to upgrade some items. The brother is in the trade, so he suggested we take extra time to ensure everything we wanted was in the contract. The contract was for a 6 month build… Read more ·  1

time but they had us moving in in only 4 months. I checked with the BSA and found they build 100-150 homes a year and have never had a direction to fix. I spoke to three other clients before I signed and they seemed happy too. Overall I would recommend them. Price and speed of building Limited choice in inclusions in some areas

Great homes, we love it – Just got our new home from Aushomes and we are over the moon. The home is great with four bedroom, study and open entertaining area. My mum and dad built with aushomes and they recommended them to me and my husband. The price was $15,000 less than the other builders. We don't know how they do it, but the quality was excellent. I have never… Read more ·  1

built a home before and they guided me through the process. They even had a app for my iphone which allowed me to track our home being built. it is fantastic, no other builder has anything like it. Great quality and the price was really low. I would definably recommend them. Sales lady was a bit pushy but i suppose that is her job