New Home Buyers Blog

We have experienced a strong up take lately for the installation of home alarm systems in our new home builds. The cost of our alarm systems installed at construction time is around $1200 a very worthwhile investment for your homes protection.  The system includes a camera/monitor for your front door with interface and a battery back. One question you must ask yourself, what are your personal items worth to you? These items in most cases are unable to be replaced
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I have notices lately while looking over our sites in Melbourne there are many builders not finishing their porch entries to their new homes.  What they are leaving in most cases is just concrete which is unsightly and certainly not a finished product.  We offer our clients as a standard finish a small deck or tiling and find this a much better finish instead of the roar concrete left by most builders.
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We are currently selling our Berstan Homes Astoria35 too many of our knock down rebuild clients.  Clients are finding the Astoria35 suits their needs perfectly with a four very generous bedrooms on the first floor and a grand living area between the bedrooms. The ground floor offers an office/study, theatre and living dining area with easy walk through to the alfresco living space. The kitchen is very well appointed with a walk in pantry space and bench space a plenty
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New home builder Berstan Homes is currently experiencing very strong sales in the Eucalypt estate. Reason being the estate offers amazing parks, gardens, BBQ areas for unwinding with family and friends.  There is also plenty of space to kick a ball around or even a game of cricket and the parks offer numerous climbing activities.
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Mernda villages is very dog friendly with a huge dog park which is fully fenced for everyone’s enjoyment. Situated on the corner of Plenty Road and Mernda Village Drive and all are welcomes.  I was surprised at the sheer size of the park most you visit are very small and not much fun. The Mernda Villages dog park is undulating with many points of interest for your canine friend.
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Last weekend I was at a knock down rebuild site in Montmorency. This quiet little suburb nestled between Eltham and Templestowe is definitely an area to keep an eye on the future.  Montmorency is well positioned being close to the major arterials for easy city access and full of treed landscapes.  Homes in this area are prime targets for knock down rebuilds and will be great investment in the years to come being only 18km from the CBD.  
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Interest has increased in the Eltham and Doncaster area for knock down rebuilds of late I believe due to the average of home owning residents looking to retirement. Many are caught up with not as much superannuation as they would like so a knock down rebuild looks very feasible. By building 2 townhouses on their land they can gain a sizeable nest egg to purchase a suitable smaller home. With the build cost of two good size townhouses coming in
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With most of the major new home builders now having foreign owners it"s good to know there are still a few Australian owned family companies remaining, Berstan Homes is one. Established by the Bryson family with strong work ethics and a personal involvement in every aspect of the business we can offer an effortless new home build experience. The new home build process with Berstan Homes is very different to other companies you actually get to speak with the owners
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We are currently working on  a project in Templestowe which is a knock down rebuild and the bank in this case Westpac required the existing home to be standing before they would clear the project for approval. Another client asked if it was necessary to have the home standing for loan approval and from our experience the answer is definitely yes. 
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Inner Melbourne suburban streetscapes are being slowly renovated with a large uptake of knock down rebuilds. With the changing lifestyles of Melbournians many don't want to make do with an old home in a great location and many are now opting for custom designed homes with their own style inputs.  The cost of renovating these old homes is not only expensive but in most cases far out the cost of a knock down rebuilds solution. A knock down rebuild is
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Bamboo flooring is now available for new homes in a matt finish not just the gloss, which has until now been the norm.  The matt bamboo is also stressed for an earthy rustic appearance at Berstan Homes it has really taken off as favourite flooring over it's highly polished cousin. 
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Lately we have been selling an increasing number of homes to clients that are downsizing and looking at cashing in their land. It's a known fact that many Australians will retire without enough superannuation for a comfortable retirement.  One way of overcoming this financial hurdle is to consider selling your current home and in most cases the land is sub-dividable and worth a lot more than what you paid for it way back when. We have had clients sell their
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What to look for when buying a knock down rebuild site and costs: The construction of two double storey homes around 25 square each The cost of the two homes would be around $650 to $700k including subdivision, surveying, design, demolition, planning, engineering, soil testing and all fees from start to finish.  Some areas you could be looking at are Doncaster, Blackburn, Vermont, Donvale, Ringwood and Reservoir is also worth a look.  Size of land would need to be a
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A client came in today to select her tiles, kitchen, floor coverings, façade, and bricks then commented about a previous experience with a major new home builder in Melbourne. I enquired further and found the selection process with this major new home builder to be interesting and disappointing for the client. In the category 1 range the major builder only offered 2 or 3 different colours and then if you couldn’t choose one of these they offered category 2 with
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Looking for a new home with a knock down rebuild, thought should be put into the positioning of the home on the lot. There are many reasons why thought should be put into location of your new home on your lot I have listed a couple.  Orientation to benefit from the winter sun and summer shade.  Future sub-division.  Views and aspect. If future sub-division is part of your vision then care needs to be taken to provide
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We are currently doing several knock down new builds in the Manningham city council area. With the cost of land with an old home around $600-$700k and the new homes around $850k, it makes financial sense to knock down rebuild.  Most of our enquiry is for dual occupancy dwelling or two stand alone homes. With construction at around $800k for the two that equates to a gross profit of $200k. Some choose to build two homes, sell one and live
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Retirement living at its best with Berstan Homes with most stages sold out, we are now waiting for our next releases. We currently have limited number of homes available in Eucalypt, Mernda Villages and Highlands estates. With prices under $310k and no management fees and no extra costs it is little wonder our packages sell quickly.  Berstan Homes is currently also offering a 10% deposit and no more to pay until your new home is complete, taking 100% of any
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First home buyers and down sizers alike a snapping up these quality built smart designed homes. A partnership between Stockland and Berstan Homes has bought a new home and land product to the market in the form of a 7.5metre lot and all sold out in 6 weeks.
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You're home among the gum trees is a true statement at the Eucalypt estate in Wollert.  There are many 300 year old plus river red gums scattered throughout the development with a strong focus on protection of these ancient trees. It's hard to believe that these magnificent trees started growing 56 years before Captain Cook landed on Australian soil.  Captain Cook
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Many developers talk of great amenity in their estates and most it's just talk. Berstan Homes have been building quality homes in Stockland estates now for many years and find that Stockland not only talk about great amenity but deliver, in their numerous estates throughout Australia.  Some of their estates in Victoria are Mernda Villages Mernda and Highlands estate Craigieburn. These two estates are growing examples of master planned communities boosting shopping centres, schools, parks, gardens and landscaped public spaces
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Aurora estate is a master planned community owned and being developed by the state government. Berstan Homes currently have 12 homes under various stages of construction or development within the Aurora estate.  With construction of the new shopping centre featuring Coles and speciality shops starting shortly and completion scheduled for 2016. Now is the time to purchase a home and land package and take advantage of the prices before the shopping complex is completed. 
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Pre-sell your knock down rebuild new home to secure your construction finance. Many of our knock down rebuild clients are pre selling their developments prior to construction for ease of mind. 
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Many of our clients are currently taking advantage of the low deposit deal Stockland are offering only $5,000 and you are on your way. With such a low deposit this is enabling more new home and land buyers into the market.  Berstan Homes are also offering all pre contract works for a low $5,000 as well to help clients out. These offers won't last so take advantage of this great deal. 
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The Stockland campaign is off and running with strong sales results throughout all estates. Since the campaign started, Berstan Homes has experienced interest with their house and land packages throughout the Stockland estates.  With a quality Stockland estate and a quality Berstan Homes build it's little wonder clients are increasing for both companies. 
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The design of your home is very important for easy living with this in mind our designers have created practical functional living zones. We have a choice of 2 bedroom or 3 bedroom homes and all come with their own secure garage parking. All homes are built on land with its own title and have no body corporate fees.
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Many clients ask about the first steps to a knock down rebuild process. At Berstan Homes we arrange a meeting and site inspection to appraise the site for suitability. The next step is to have a feature survey undertaken which will give a clear outline of the surrounding building setbacks as well as trees and other existing features. Once the survey is completed this will enable a more accurate site appraisal enabling a concept design to be drafted. Some of
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Many people feel they can save a small fortune doing all the pre building permit works themselves. First mistake they make is to choose a team of the cheapest service providers they can find. This is a practice that is fought with difficulties and in the long run very expensive.  Let me explain why by choosing the cheapest consultants you are getting what you pay for, in most cases poor advice and plans with very limited detail. The cheapest consultants
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Berstan Homes is currently introducing a new range of bricks to their selection, the La Paloma by Brickworks.  60% of all Berstan Homes have Austral Bricks and we find their range is variable and exciting, with the La Paloma collection just adding another dimension.
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Once known as the wrong side of town Heidelberg is becoming a very popular suburb for knock down rebuilds with savvy investors and  home owners alike. Heidelberg is appealing due to its close proximity to the CBD being only 12kms away.  Heidelberg also has its own major shopping centre in Northlands with own cinema complex with fifteen screens, Kmart, Myer, Lincraft, numerous foods courts and a total of 330 speciality shops, 4800 plus car parking spaces.    Established in 1966 the Northland Shopping
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Stop don’t buy into a retirement village without looking into the facts about them. A client came to me last week and explained how some friends of hers had purchased a home in a retirement village and the costs were very high. Some of the fees are as follows site fee for having your home on their property. A 30 year lease was offered and at the end of that period the lease would need to be renegotiated. The homes
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