Noob looking to buy block and build in Canterbury

Hi All,

Currently renting and looking at taking the pretty scary step of buying a block and putting a home on it so that we can get all our animals back in one place (tired of trekking round the district feeding out stock, and walking dogs twice a day).
If anyone can furnish me with advice, tips, tricks, or contacts that could help me stretch our meager budget to the max then I'm all ears.

Thanks for any help in this direction.

As a start in my quest for knowledge, does anyone have suggestions on a cost effective build solution that is rustic and in keeping with rural area? We need something that the bank is likely to lend on so would have to be 'permanent' structure once finished.

make your money go further:
check out this website, it's full of great ideas

pigtitsandparsleysauce.co.nz/free-recipes/

One of the more cost effective claddings, and in keeping with a rural area, is vertically run corrugated steel. It saves the cost and labour of cavity battens (which can be significant), as it creates its own.

Keep the shape of the building simple, and it will help keep costs down. Simple structure, simple cladding makes it cheaper to build. Avoid lots of in and out shapes that seem to be standard with group house companies, and have a simple form, which can look much more attractive if done well.

Plan to minimise wasted space.

Save doing all your floor finishes, plastering and internal joinery until later. Just do what you need to keep dry and easy to clean, floors and walls in kitchen and bathroom areas. That can allow you to get Council sign-off for Code Compliance and that will keep the bank happy.
Leave building any built in wardrobes and other storage for later, and buy a cheap second hand kitchen that will serve for a few years. Second hand appliances will also save you money.

Spend on the things with long term benefit that you can't easily redo, like extra insulation and good design for sun and living.

The first thing I would suggest is to talk to the bank. They have criteria that builds need to conform to and it would be awful to get your heart set on something that you are not going to be able to finance.

rider1803;512701 wrote: The first thing I would suggest is to talk to the bank. They have criteria that builds need to conform to and it would be awful to get your heart set on something that you are not going to be able to finance.

Thanks, good advice

I'm just trying to find out a cost for undergrounding the power from the boundary.
I guess we will just need single phase, but block we are looking at has a run of about 250m to the build site. Trenching has been estimated at ~$900 but i've no idea how much to allow for cable and conduit, also can i put phone and water in the same trench?

check out this:
www.lifestyleblock.co.nz/lsb-forum/showthread.php?t=41063

might have some useful bits in it.
I think phone and power can go in the same one.
Would you be on town supply water?

If you can possibly afford it, I'd advise you to run 3 phase cable as far as your house, even if it is only connected on single phase. Our previous home was cabled this way, and saved us an enormous amount when we later built a shed which OH put his 3 phase lathe in.
You can hire a machine called a dingo, from the likes of kennards, or hire pool for a few hundred dollars and dig the trench yourself. It needs to be 700 deep and those machines are built to do that. There is also one called a ditch witch, but they are really hard to keep going in a straightish line. Make sure before you dig, that there are not other cables in the vacinity. Water and telephone can go in the same trench, but some space needs to be provided for between the cables. All need to go in conduit. (Except water pipe) The heavy 3 phase cable is $15 per metre and the light single one $23 so it's a no brainer to see the advantage of 3 phase. If in the future you build a shed that needs 3 phase power, it's already at your house and only the meter will need changing, plus the extra cable from house to shed. Having the entry point at your house avoids the rip-off system, where power companies charge commercial rates for a second meter. It rankles badly that we were using $12 in power each month to run a water pump for farm and the electric fence, (at the barn) and then have to pay $98 for the privilege of "renting" a second meter. All done away with now and looking forward to the monthly savings! This is not a unique problem. Many lifestyle blocks that have been cut up from larger farms, have a bore and pump shed out in the middle of nowhere, and the power use is charged at commercial rates. It's absolutely immoral, but they get away with it!

And welcome to the LSB

Thanks Rider for link to that thread, in answer to your question we are on council scheme but water is from tank on the boundary.

Great thread, looking at doing something similar.
The dream is 10 acres in westmelton.
Struggling to cost out the build cost, looking at rectangular, mono pitch, clad corrugated iron, concrete slab. Hoping to do as much of the inside as we can.
Love to hear how your plans are going?

We have recently been through the exact same situation, wanting to build. Once we started looking a bit harder it became apparent with the current state of the building industry in Canterbury that it possibly a better option to buy one. Once you start adding up all the costs, it is extremely likely you will over capitalise. That said, we have built a few houses in the past in Christchurch and understand that it is also about the journey and satisfaction.

We recently purchased a LSB near Motukara and have had to insure the buildings for well above what we paid. Some good deals out there at the moment.

My advice would be to find someone who has just built on a similar scale as you plan to and get a list of what they have spent so you know for sure up front...

I would also second running a three phase cable to future proof. The cable is only marginally more expensive but note the transformer they need to fit on the power pole is more expensive for three phase. You can put your house on one phase and the shed on another which means when someone is using a big tool in the shed the lights in the house wont dim! You also get more power capacity on three phase.

Ashesman, if you are in the Motukarara area we are fairly near you - in country distance terms anyway!
So, welcome to the area!

Jemj;512743 wrote: I'm just trying to find out a cost for undergrounding the power from the boundary.
I guess we will just need single phase, but block we are looking at has a run of about 250m to the build site. Trenching has been estimated at ~$900 but i've no idea how much to allow for cable and conduit, also can i put phone and water in the same trench?

When we built the builder advised us to put extra cable in the trench, 4 extra phone lines ....a little bit extra at the time but saved a whole lot of money when the transformer thing was hit by lightening in an electrical storm and burnt the phone line out...