Building a house can be either a dream come true or a nightmare that costs a fortune. However building your own home should be an exciting and fulfilling experience if it is well thought out and planned. The Phoenix Group are hoping to show people that it does not have to be a painful experience by sharing with people their experiences of planning and building the Phoenix Group Show home that can be followed through their blog online. The Observer On Sunday caught up with the man behind the building programme, Managing Director of the Phoenix Group Shayne Howe to talk about how the process was unfolding and what people could learn from the experience.
Q. Why do you think many people are afraid of the custom home building process?
A. People tend to remember the horror stories that they have heard from friends over the years and there are so few positive stories that the perception, for good reason, trends to the negative. Building a home is no different than many things we do in our lives – we choose whom we work with carefully, we build relationships and generally we want to feel good about those we are interacting with – it is the key to success. It is interesting to note; however, that when people approach the building of a home it is common in the bidding process, which is still how many approach this, for the client to have never met their sub-contractors, most of their suppliers and sometimes even their general contractor before committing to the ‘team’ that will be building their home! To make things worse, the team is quite often selected based upon the lowest bid because it’s human nature to feel that this represents “best value”. Unless the drawings are incredibly accurate and every little detail, product and specification is spelled out, you are routinely subject to builder ‘interpretation’ of the programme, which leads to multiple change orders and cost increases. You are putting yourself in a tight situation with people you don’t know very well for, in most cases, the biggest investment in your life. It is not really surprising that the process turns out badly more often than not.
Q. What does the Phoenix Group
do that’s different?
A. At the Phoenix Group we have a different approach with our clients from the outset. First of all, we hope that we have had a chance to speak with them in some detail before they have even selected a building lot, because there are huge building cost implications depending on the ground conditions where you decide to build. From there we discuss the client’s budget in detail, including what the client’s own financial commitments will be on the project; from planning, infrastructure and building permit fees to stamp duties, furnishings and even window treatments - we like to have a comprehensive look at the entire project budget before we start detailed design. It is about making sure our clients understand the entire process and all the costs involved. From there we do schematic designs, which we cost early to make sure the construction number works with the programme, and once the numbers are tracking, we get into design development. This is where you, as the client, meet the rest of your team – the engineers, electrical, plumbing and AC designers, and subcontractors that will help us to finish the design, bring us the very latest innovations, and help to keep the budget on track! It is a very collaborative and educational experience for the homeowner, very creative and yet disciplined in the areas that are critical for the client.
Q. Your show home client says that you are very detail oriented – what does he mean specifically?
A. Well I laugh when I hear that because I cannot imagine why you would not gather every piece of information critical to the programme at the start, have it completely organised and then follow a detailed plan so that there are no surprises for the client! That is the one thing that all of our customers say is the most important thing to them – a clear and accurate view of the project and no surprises; dedication to detail is the only way to accomplish this. We are taking the reputation Phoenix has for quality commercial development and applying it to the residential market.
It is important to us that “A Phoenix Home” means a quality brand, a cost effective programme (“quality” does not equal “expensive”) and a positive experience from start to finish.
Q. I am sure that everyone asks you the same question – “how much does it cost per square foot to build a house, you know, with standard finishes?”– How do you deal with that question?
A. I ask people why they do not buy a car by the square foot and then people realise the answers are the same for as for a custom home. It is a complex decision based upon lifestyle, quality, features, desired resale value, size, operating cost and the warrantees available to back up the purchase. To further complicate things, each and every home is dramatically different, from the amount of fill underneath it to the style, material, size and complexity of the roof on the top – with a stunning selection of materials and finishes at different price points inside, and increasingly, outside the home.
The term ‘standard finishes’ is one that has changed so much over the years that it is now basically meaningless because of the variety of product out there and the shift in how people now define ‘luxury’.
The question can only be answered by the detailed interaction between the client and the design/build team. We recommend that you find a designer and a builder you can trust, get them together as early as possible in the design process so that you can truly control the project.
Consider us – we have that rare group of great people - designers, builders and subcontractors that will allow you to enjoy the process and have one of those positive stories that we already know are all too few!
You can follow the progress of the Phoenix Group show home on http://www.phoenixshowhome.blogspot.com/