Here's a story I've seen play out far too often. A family gets three quotes for a new home. Two come in around the same number, and the third is a hundred grand cheaper. Guess which one most people pick? Of course — the cheap one. And nine times out of ten, by the time the keys get handed over, that "cheap" build has cost them as much as the others, and sometimes more. That's low-balling, and it's one of the biggest traps in our industry.
A low-ball quote is one a builder knows isn't enough to do the job properly, but they put it in to win the work. Once they've got you signed, the variations start. Site costs were "underestimated." Prime cost items "blew out." Materials they "couldn't get" had to be substituted. Suddenly your bargain is anything but.
So how do you spot one before you sign? A few things I'd watch for. First, the inclusions schedule. A real Brisbane South builder will hand you a detailed list of what's actually in your home — fittings, finishes, allowances. If a quote is light on detail, that's a red flag. Second, prime costs and provisional sums. If those allowances look skinny compared to the other quotes, the builder is hoping you won't notice — until you start choosing taps and tiles and the real numbers land. Third, ask how the quote was put together. A proper bill of quantities takes a lot of work. A square-metre-rate guess takes about five minutes. You can tell which you've been given.
Here's the rule I share with every family I sit down with: when comparing two quotes, you have to compare apples with apples. If Builder A allows $5,000 for site works and Builder B allows $25,000, one of them is wrong — and the cheap one usually is.
Price matters. Of course it does. But the lowest number on day one isn't the same thing as the lowest number on handover day. A bit of patience up front saves a lot of pain later.
If you'd like help reading through a quote you've received as a custom new home builder for Brisbane South, I'll happily walk you through it. Find me at inh.com.au/BrisbaneSouth.
