Our Easy Design And Construction Process

A free quote is quick because it is a guess, and it hides the unknowns until after you sign, when you can least afford to say no. A paid preliminary stage covers the design, selections, site reports, engineering and real supplier prices needed to give a genuine fixed price. The fee is what lets the builder stand behind the number. At Highwater Homes, the preliminary for a design and build can cost up to $40,000, and a tender on existing approved plans starts from $5,000. 

Yes. Council approvals, and the reports, drawings and engineering behind them, are part of our preliminary stage, so you are never left coordinating consultants yourself. Around Camden and Macarthur, council itself is usually straightforward. The trickier part is estate design guidelines, which can set rules on your colours, style and size and often need the developer's approval before council even sees the plans. We know which estates are strict and we handle that process for you.

You deal with Toby and the same small team the whole way through, not a rotating cast. We answer messages within 24 hours, and you have a 24/7 online client portal with your plans, selections and progress in one place, so you never have to chase us for an update. Because we cap our builds at ten a year, the person answering your question is the person who actually knows your job, which is what makes fast answers possible.

The most common are site costs you cannot see when you buy the block. A contour survey often shows a "flat" block has up to a metre and a half of fall, which adds retaining, fill and engineering costs. Soil removal can cost thousands of dollars and adds nothing to the finished home. Estate design guidelines can also add cost by dictating your materials, colours and style. A contour survey and soil test done before pricing turn all of these from surprises into known figures.