The Biggest Building Delays and How to Avoid Them

Time is money. When the completion date of your new home, extension, or renovation keeps on getting pushed back, you don’t just lose precious time; you also lose your hard-earned cash.

Nobody wants their building project to be delayed, so it’s important to take some precautions instead of just diving head-first into construction. Here are some major causes of building delays and tips on how to avoid them.

Incomplete plans

The first few steps in any major building or renovation project involve acquiring some permits or approvals, such as the Development Approval (DA). Even when your plans get approved as soon as possible, it still takes a couple of weeks. However, when your plans get sent back for adjustments or when your approval gets delayed due to lack of detail or other missing requirements, your building can get pushed back for several weeks more.

To avoid DA delays, get an expert architect to make your plans for you. Professional architects are experts at detecting things in your design that might cause your plans to be denied. An architect can draw up a foolproof building plan for you and even help you secure that DA or building permit as soon as possible.

Inept or lazy builders

Even when you have the best building plans, your project won’t push through smoothly without the help of good builders and other tradies. This is why it’s important that you screen your tradies thoroughly before hiring them.

When you receive quotes from a builder, tiler, plumber, electrician, and so on, don’t just go for the cheapest one. Choose the ones whose rates seem reasonable and check out their business profiles. Read through as many reviews as you can to gauge how reliable they are. You can even give some of their past customers a call to get feedback about the quality, speed, and cleanliness of their work.

It’s also advisable to meet up with a builder personally to see if your personality will jive with theirs. After all, you’ll be working with each other for quite some time, so it’s important that you understand each other.

Insufficient funds

Most building projects cost quite a sum of money. To avoid getting short on cash and causing your project to halt midway, set a budget and stick to it. When budgeting for your renovation or new home, remember to have at least 10% of the total budget on hand. This is to make room for some unexpected costs, such as inflated material prices, repair costs for accidental damage to your property, and so on.

Want to get started on your building project as soon as possible? Get quotes from professional builders right now!