When you’ve built four homes, you know what works and what doesn’t. That’s exactly why Papamoa couple Shirley and Trevor Bolten chose to build again with Generation Homes.
Both semi-retired, Shirley works in administration while Trevor is in customer service. The couple had been living in Papamoa for 15 years but were ready for a change. Their previous property built by Generation Homes was located right beside a busy roundabout and after years of constant traffic noise, they knew they needed something different for their next chapter.
Originally from the King Country, Shirley and Trevor have always appreciated a rural feel and open spaces.
When Generation Homes offered a house and land package for a two-bedroom, two-bathroom home with a reserve outlook in a quiet location just five minutes from where they were living, it was exactly what they were looking for.
TREVOR
We looked around considerably at existing properties, but we found there was just too much work needed on them renovation-wise. It was easier to build new rather than face all those initial renovation costs.
SHIRLEY
We had already built with them before and had a good experience. When we decided to move and build again, we went back to Generation Homes. They had a perfect section that backed onto a reserve with an existing plan (two bedrooms and two bathrooms) that suited us. We made a few modifications and ended up with exactly what we wanted – a house with a beautiful reserve outlook.
TREVOR
While we had a few very minor issues the first time we built with them, we chose Generation again because they had the perfect house and land package with the reserve outlook we were after. They’re really good to deal with and while things can differ depending on your salesperson, having a fixed price contract gives you great peace of mind – there are no hidden costs and the price you see is what you’re going to pay.
They were also flexible. They allowed us to supply all our own bathroom fittings, kitchen fittings and vanity units ourselves. It’s great that they were okay with us doing that because not a lot of companies allow it, and we were able to save some money.
SHIRLEY
This was our fourth house build so we knew exactly what we wanted and how the process works. The communication and understanding between everyone was excellent, which made the whole experience smooth.
TREVOR
Oh, for sure. Having built before we knew all the processes and what the requirements were. We trusted them enough to stick with them and go with them again. They give you a move-in date and a fixed price, which is good.
TREVOR
We upgraded from a single garage to a double garage and reduced the bedrooms from three to two, keeping both bathrooms. Removing one bedroom gave us much more garage space, which we really needed.
SHIRLEY
We also moved the sliding door from the lounge area to just the dining room. This created better flow and made the most of our reserve outlook.
SHIRLEY
The whole house is great and exactly what we wanted. We’ve downsized, so we didn’t have any features I could get excited about, but the whole thing works just how we wanted it. If I had to pick one feature I’d say it’s the kitchen as we went with a forest green this time instead of white, and I was really pleased with the choice we made.
TREVOR
Having a double garage is great for the extra space for things you need to put away and the sliding door off the dining room helps the flow of the house.
TREVOR
Definitely the reserve outlook. We were in a busy area before, right beside a roundabout. We knew specifically we needed a reserve outlook in a quiet area.
SHIRLEY
We’re from a rural background anyway – we originally came from the King Country. So, we like that rural feel and the open space. We’re literally only five minutes’ drive from where we were, so we’re virtually in the same area, but the outlook makes all the difference.
SHIRLEY
We were pleased to be in there, certainly pleased to move. We’d been renting for six months and most of our stuff was in storage, so that was a bit frustrating. It did seem small at first because the house we were renting was big, so going from a big house to this, we did struggle with that a little bit.
TREVOR
You have to make sure you cover everything. Make sure your plans and your budget are all done before it even goes to council. In the past with one house we built, we changed and added something after it went to council which was a costly exercise.
SHIRLEY
Make sure you allow for those extra adjustments or anything extra that you’re wanting to have. Whether it be $5,000 or $20,000, you need to make sure that’s budgeted for. Having the schedule and your progress payments is good to work with – you know where you’re at and what you’ve got to have at certain times when you’re building.
TREVOR
Don’t get too carried away with the size of the house – keep it to a minimum. It’s easy to say you want this, that and everything, but you’ve got to pay for it at the end of the day. Don’t get too carried away – leave that for another day, another house.
