Building with Comdain

With the end in sight, we thought it was about time we summarised our building experience. First and foremost, dealing with Comdain has been a real pleasure. So much so that it hasn't put us off the idea of one day building again. There is no doubt that you could build a cheaper house with another company and people often ask us whether the "extra" cost of Comdain is worth it. Here's what we think we got for our money:
Excellent communication - there was not one enquiry or email or phone call that wasn't responded to in a timely manner. Unlike our experiences with another builder, we did not have to chase Comdain for answers.
Custom design - when we originally looked at high volume builders, we were often trying to adjust their layout, accepting a façade we didn't particularly like because it fit our block, tacking on more rooms in odd places. Now we have a home that suits our lifestyle rather than the other way around.
Quality workmanship - The tradies that Comdain use have been with them for many years. Their attention to detail, and that of the SS and CM are clearly evident. In addition, they were great to talk to and provided us with some very good and sound advice.
Common sense - Going into the building phase, one of our fears was being locked into decisions made earlier that may later turn out not to be the best. Our concerns were unfounded. Comdain were very reasonable with ongoing adjustments and even suggested some themselves. In addition, they were accommodating when it came to other requests, e.g. allowing the TV antenna installation by a third party while their scaffolding was still up.

This is not to say that everything went to plan. There were details that were discussed early on which we were told we would be consulted about at the right time, that unfortunately never occurred. One example was trying to specify the location of the ducted vacuuming ports. We really wanted a vac-pan (port for sweepings from the floor) located in the main ensuite. We were told this could be discussed with the installer when the time came, but one day we walked in to find that the ports were all installed and it was too late to make any adjustments. This is not a criticism of Comdain particularly but a caution about the building process with any company. So much time is spent going through your wants and needs with the sales person and house designer but unless these are documented in your contract, it is likely that your SS or CM will never hear about or remember all of these. If you can't have a clause written in your contract such as "Locations of ducted vacuuming points to be determined with client", then you need to be on the ball and constantly monitoring your stages.

Are we happy we built with Comdain? Yes. Would we recommend them? Certainly.

Details of the PCI to come.