Holy cow (Oh la vache) time flies. We’ve been a bit slack in the writing and photo uploading department lately but we’re catching up now. There are five, count them FIVE, fresh, new photo albums with loads of fabulous photos. Go check them out!

In the past month there’s been quite a lot of progress on the house. In the beginning of October we saw the piles for the house go in. Then a week later we had a large dance floor. We were nervous about how small the house seemed until the framing went up. I had Seb lay down in our bedroom to make sure our bed would fit and phew! Yes it will! We’re both thrilled with how big the living room/kitchen area is. It will be completely open with a vaulted ceiling so it’s going to be big and spacious while not being overwhelmingly huge…and with a gorgeous view.

Last week Peter (our builder) started on the veranda. It’s taken him just as much time as the house foundation due to ridiculous building regulations that require our veranda to have piles as big as our house…but more of them. Completely insane. It’s so obvious that this regulation was pushed by the timber industry. Our veranda is now stronger than our house. In case of a serious storm I think we’ll just strap ourselves to the deck.

The weather hasn’t been flash this month. We’ve had many days of rain…and even sleet two weeks ago. Spring seems to come to the mountains a little later than it does to the city. The weather systems get stuck in the hills and release their rain on us constantly. What this ultimately means is that it’s now unlikely that the house will be finished by the time Seb and I leave for the U.S. for Christmas. Damn! I’m quite sad about that but when we get back it will be like a huge Christmas surprise.

In the month of October we also had our first guest. David, our super helpful friend spent the weekend with us on the land. He helped Seb with the windows and managed to avoid the ice cold “showers” Seb enjoys in the mornings. While David was there we hiked along our stream from the mid-point down to the bottom and discovered we have a few waterfalls and swimming holes! It was a gorgeous hike and we have plans of making a path to one of the swimming holes for use in the summer. It’s going to be fabulous!

Our first meeting was full of promise. The Builder seemed very confident , knowledgeable, trustworthy and his schedule seemed to match perfectly with ours. “What a pick”, we thought! The first one we meet is the one, how lucky we are!

Thanks to him, we found our architect and had a great time designing our house. In the meantime, the earth movers cleared the land, we built the shed, and the consent process was started. Then came the quoting time…

We provided the Builder with plans, specifications, and our choice of materials. According to the budget we drafted, from speaking with people and doing research on the Internet, we had a good idea of how much we were going to have to invest to get to the lockup stage. After weeks of delays due to slow responses from the material providers, the Builder sent us his quote.

We fell from our chairs.

The Builders quote was 40% more than we estimated and we were stunned. Were we being totally unrealistic with our budget? We thought it could be this or perhaps he didn’t really want the job…or even that he was taking advantage of the fact that we’re not kiwis and (gasp!) that we’re Aucklanders. Not only were the figures excessive for ‘travel to site’, ‘insurance’ or ‘preliminary work’(?) but we would have to pay a solicitor extra to lock the money into a trust account and sign up a complete set of contracts and appendix.

A storm of thoughts and talks went through our place. We then decided to do what we should have done from the beginning…ask for other quotes. We decided to talk with builders on the Coromandel side instead of Whitianga. After many unsuccessful calls, we managed to find two builders to come up to our land the next week-end. Our hopes were up again!

Builder 2 and Builder 3 arrived on time that Saturday. After a brief look at the site, the plans and the schedule, it seemed each of them could jump on board. The questions then were…when and for how much!

That next week, the wait was unbearable. Eventually, on Thursday, Builder 2 rang and gave us a price that was perfectly inline with our budget and with what our research told us we should expect to pay. We were thrilled and at the same time cautious. “Is that material AND labour included?” All included, as per plans, and he could start early September. A faxed confirmation later and this time we were jumping from the chair!

Unlike the first builder, Builder 2 was very keen to show us his work and we were excited to see it. Considering the difference in his price from the first quote we also thought it best to see the handiwork of the magician we were going to give our dream project to, so we popped over to his place on the way to Coromandel Town the following weekend. Our first impression was that his house and lifestyle agreed with us. He took us for a ride around the area, showing us the many houses he built - half of the town really - and then he took us to his masterpiece. Hidden in a valley, he proudly guided us to a huge American Barn which took him a year to build. It was gorgeous and enormous. We spent half an hour admiring the job, inside out. All beautifully hand crafted in timber, from floor to roof. We couldn’t have been happier after seeing his work and especially the barn.

Not only did we like the guy, but he didn’t require a contract or financial securities, in a good old kiwi style. We felt very comfortable with him. In an effort to minimize any misunderstandings we did draft up a short contract that he signed with a grin.

On Tuesday 18th of September 2008, the house started to rise from the ground…

For any house-dreamer, the term building consent gives a chill from head to toe straight away. We were not different than others. The perspective of getting into this battle with council - hereafter named ‘the Devil’ - impacted on our choice of a local architect and on some of design decisions. In the last months we heard stories of long, painful and costly processes of getting a permit for any kind of building. But that was mainly in town, where it seems to be crazy. On our side, we were lucky not to have to build in a small section subdivision, where an army of experts have to determine where you put your house, your fence, your driveway, your sewage pipes and your mother-in-law. In our case, when the limits of your lot are hundreds of meters away, it was easier.

With our architect, we worked to be able to present plans as fast as we could in order to deal with the unavoidable issues that were due to arise. It took a month to draft plans and make little adjustments. As our architect mentioned, we were very lucky to ask for this consent now, because the law on windows is due to change in October. From that date, all new dwellings will have to have double glazing windows. A rule that would condemn all our great restored timber windows to the fires of hell! Ouuuf, that was lucky!

On the 30^th of May, our architect had the first meeting with the Devil. It seems all went well with the plans, but in the back of our minds we thought it was too easy. The Devil found an odd expertise that could slow our process, gnark gnark! Which one? Well…on how we are going to spread our s..t in the bush basically. So, there we go, 2 weeks and $1600 later, we had to provide them with a report on where the wastewater dripping lines will be lined up in the bush…and so the building consent process began. Tic tac tic tac.

The wait continued. A week later, a letter arrived with serious issues to sort on our plans, involving a scary mix of letters and figures (NZ1034?), basically meaning some of our timber was not big enough on the deck - or some similar thing. Luckily, our architect defeated the Devil and sent some corrected plans without the use of a crucifix or blessed water. What would be next?

Another week later, the Devil - mimicking a woman’s voice over the phone - thought he would strike and take our souls away. But we were prepared and provided clues on how we would respect the QEII Trust’ covenant with regard to colours of roof, walls and windows. Ah ah, good try Lucifer!

In the meantime, we found out that our application could be followed up on the Devil’s website (www.tcdc.govt.nz). So all strikes and blows could be foreseen before the letters even arrived! Was that another trick to distract our attention and attack from the side?

Eventually, 5 weeks after the application, exhausted by nights of watching our backs - and sides - we received the letter with the invoice. After a check for poison on the paper, it seems we have our consent!

Thanks to all the saints - and our architect - for that good news!

But it’s not finished. At building stage, we will have to call for Lucifer’s messengers 10 times on site to check on us. We’ll be ready and waiting!

We have our very own tipi!

A while ago we thought it would be great to have a tipi on the land as a sleep-out. As it turns out our architect had one is his backyard when we went to visit him one day and it was then that we decided we should get one to stay in while we are waiting for the house to be built.

We contacted the same people who built our architect’s tipi, Jaia Tipis and they had a 5-meter one in stock, ready to send to us. We were so excited…like a couple of kids waiting for Christmas, crazy with anticipation.

And then finally, it arrived from Golden Bay!

We drove to the Freight depot on a Friday night after work and were astounded to see the size of the poles. They were enormous! Thankfully we had the trailer on the back of the truck as the poles reached midway across the trailer. And I think we were also very lucky not to get pulled over. The tipi gods were smiling on us.

By the time we got to the land it was very late and the weather was looking a bit dodgy so we covered the area where the tipi was going to with a large tarpaulin and went to sleep. We didn’t actually get much sleep though because the wind kept trying to take the tarpaulin away. In the morning the day turned glorious and we began the task of putting up the tipi.

We laid out our poles and admired the craftsmanship. Then we started reading the instructions and were hopeful we’d have the tipi up in a few hours. Five hours later, our tipi was erected.

Seb uttered a phrase his dad had told him on more than one occasion. “Doing and re-doing is still work.” We did a lot of re-doing…the magic number was three times for each re-do. Somehow our relationship remained intact and once the tipi was up we were both happy and all of the re-dos and mistakes were forgotten (well, mostly).

With the sun setting we started putting our items in the tipi. We used pallets as a base for the mattress and spread carpets over the tarpaulin that was now our floor. We put the little pot-belly stove in and started a fire. It was super cozy! Once everything was in we had a celebratory glass of wine with some Coromandel oysters and then I cooked my first dinner on the wood burner…a vege frittata.

As we were going to bed we could hear a storm brewing outside. It only got worse as the night went on and we spent another sleepless night wondering if our tipi would be blown away. We wondered if we should have gotten a caravan instead. Unlike sleeping in the truck, we could hear every single sound in the bush. We thought there were mice in the tipi. We thought the possums were just outside. I thought they might eat us if they were hungry enough and I remembered that story that one of the contractors told me about possums running up onto people’s heads.

As it turns out our tipi was still standing the next morning and the possums didn’t eat us. Only a tiny bit of rain got in and dripped on my head thanks to the rain catcher. I spent the next day wind-proofing the tipi, taking everything out and re-doing the floor. The next storm we go through in it should be much better and we might even get some sleep…

We built a shed!

Well, sorta kinda. Almost.

We had a three day weekend (happy birthday to the Queen) and so we skipped out of work early on Friday, spent two hours packing up the truck and trailer, and then headed off to the Coromandel. The traffic wasn’t horrendous thankfully and we arrived in time to make dinner in the dark and then head off to bed. The next morning we woke early to begin our task. A couple of weekends ago we had set the posts for the shed in concrete so they were well set by now and we began our morning with hot bowls of porridge and humming and hawing around the posts. It was all very exciting. Then after the last drop of coffee was drunk we got to work.

We cut and measured and attached beams all around, then across, then filling in the spots that needed more beams. There were a lot of beams. After the beaming was done we started on the roof. Seb bought loads of corrugated iron for the roof and this came in handy right about now. We had two perfectly sized pieces and the rest were too short. Awesome. So while the first two went on quickly, the remaining 854 pieces (actually it was more like 20) had to have little pieces cut up for them to fit properly. By the end of the day (just in time for an apero) we had finished the roof. We celebrated with a delicious bowl of scrambled frittata (don’t ask) and beer.

The next morning we woke to a glorious day which was great because the weather forecast was less than favourable. We spent the day doing framing and on this day we managed to get our first window into the shed (no thanks to my horrendous measuring skills which meant having to re-do some framing…it was a mistake!!!). Anyway, after that incident I refrained from measuring anymore. Damn metric system. With the first window done we were one a roll and we put the plywood on the wall to make it look all homey. The neighbors had come to visit us the previous day and invited us to dinner and hot shower (oh yeah baby!) and so we packed it up early and set off to their place. We had an awesomely hot shower and a delicious dinner with a couple of the neighbors and then crawled back to our place with a little too much wine making our heads spin.

Needless to say we both woke up with headaches the following day. Headaches and power tools are not a good combination and Seb made it half way through the day of hammering and drilling before I sent him back to the neighbors for head-ache fixer. After that we were back on track. We managed to get the second window in and cover the back and side wall with corrugated iron before the sun set on us again. We were disappointed that we couldn’t finish the work but pretty thrilled that we had managed to get so much done in three days! The shed looks amazing and slightly unfinished but we’ll fix it right up next weekend. That’s what weekends are for!

Check out the shed building photos…now!

If you don’t have hundreds of thousands of dollars to invest, there is the ‘kitset home’ option. Many providers out there have catalogues and can even customize the plans to your requirements. It is a fun process going through all shapes and styles and debating what kitset could provide a good base to our dream. We played with the American Barn, the Polynesian cabin, the typical cottage and more to eventually find the one. A business in the Wairarapa was making settler’s cottages in 4 different sizes and after we saw them we decided that’s what we would build.

On a business trip to Wellington, we escaped by train to Masterton where we visited the cottages at different stages. Their shape was close to what we wanted but there would have been too much work on their plans to make it to our requirements. But the most essential aspect to consider was the building consent process. The plans they provided were council ready in the Wairarapa, but not in the Coromandel! What seemed a cheaper option at first could end up being a more expensive one if things went wrong there. So in the end we decided to use the kitsets for inspiration and go for a local drafter, who was familiar with the Coromandel Council and would straight away know what to do and what not to do.

At an early stage, after we decided on a design, we then started our hunt for windows and doors. It has been an exciting - yet sometimes painful - process. We visited demolition yards, spent a lot of time on trademe searching for the quaint windows and doors that would achieve our goal. One after the other, we bought doors and windows, some very cheap, some not. We found out the hard way that an untidy window would eventually require hours or days of work to be restored. We then spent week-ends sawing, drilling, sanding, scraping and painting. Overall, the result is amazing! On some, we have recovered and exposed beautiful kauri timber, which will be fantastic when installed. Now safely stored in a storage unit, they are impatient to have a second life!

Silly enough, we started this process even before we had bought the land, were sure our design could be done on the land, or found a drafter! We were convinced that we knew what we wanted to do that, here or anywhere. We were also lucky not to do that at the end of the year… As it seems a new law will require double glazing on all new building - which will be fatal to any recycling project in a near future (very sad).

Lucky enough, and after some research on the Internet, we identified a builder living in Whitianga, who seemed available at the projected building period, and he referred us to a local drafter, who was also available. All seemed to fit in nicely. We met the next week-end with the drafter, Trevor, on the land - amidst the clearing of our land, knee deep in clay and power cables - and went through our detailed plans Seb had meticulously drawn on millimeter paper. He seemed fine with our ideas and was able to start the following week. After we gave him all the dimensions of our doors and windows and three weeks later we were delighted to have the first draft and really see our dream finally unveiling.

The power in itself occupied me almost full time for a long time! Before purchasing, we had discovered that the transformer was not there. So to make it from this box on the road 200 meters from our driveway to our building site 150 meters down the driveway there was quite a lot of project management to be done! It involved sorting who has to do what from installing the transformer, to finding the buried cables at our driveway entrance, to burying our cables and connecting the whole lot. I had to spend hours on the phone with Powerco (the infrastructure people), Energex, Tenix, Metering System, Power and Gas Commission of Wellington, and 2 local electricians. We discovered, after fruitless negotiations that we would have to pay for the transformer, but not own it. Not owning the transformer has been extremely frustrating as this means the two lots near us that will depend on our transformer are not actually obliged to assist with the cost of the transformer. We had looked into going off the grid (solar) but that would have cost us at least $30,000 to start. After quotes from all (ouch $18,000) and choosing the right team, it involved getting them to fit in the schedule with diggers, cabling and rain. It eventually went well, with everyone coming and doing their job mostly as planned.

We couldn’t be there for all of the work so one Friday night, after completion, we were surprised to find that power was connected to our temporary box on the building site. Yeah!

While we waited for the response on our first offer we returned to the Estate and met with Kevin, one of the other land owners who provided us with valuable information in regards to features and history of the subdivision. It was started in the 1990’s by local ‘characters’ who had a dodgy reputation but an amazing vision for the Estate. They fought with local authorities to create this giant subdivision secluded in the Coromandel Forest Park, which they thought they would sell for big bucks to wealthy weekenders. The council made them bury power and phone, seal the whole subdivision road and provide a flood of crazy reports on archeology, landscape, roading, natural and visual impact. Surprisingly enough, they did it all. The council made them wait another 6 month before giving the green light – combined with low number of potential buyers – they went down, leaving the Estate with great infrastructure but no governing body. Some lots were used as payments for contractors, some other turned into weed farms. Fortunately, over the years, this jewel was discovered by passionate individuals who started to take over the place…building sheds, then cabins, then starting to really look after their environment. Nowadays, the Estate has its own incorporated society and a great mix of members with complementary skills and will in funding pest control, road maintenance and the well-being of all.

The process of offers and counter offers is especially nerve-wrecking. You never have any direct communication with the owners and what the agent says is always tinted with suspicion as he is primarily working for the adverse party. At some stage, you have great hopes that they will accept your offer, encouraged to think that by the agent who wants to keep you excited, then deception when the counter-offer arrives. In our case the negotiations dragged on for about 8 weeks. We expected a counter-offer on our first offer but had to wait ages until it arrived and then it was a week later than promised by the agent..leaving us with days (and nights) on an emotional roller-coaster. Finally when it arrived, our offer had been scratched through and another, outrageous offer written below.

The closer you get to a reasonable figure, the more you look into details about the property. The Real Estate Agent, Kim Radick, was actually very helpful in the whole process, going the extra mile to make the thing happen with sincerity. We purchased the LIM report (Land Information Referendum) from the council - $200 – and had a read through the 500 pages that arrived by mail! At this point we started calling local trades to find out if our project was even feasible. Is there an available builder around? Can a digger come soon to start preparing the site? How much will it cost to gravel the driveway? …is there power?

All went well, apart from that last question. With the help of a Powerco contractor, we discovered that the nearest transformer box had no transformer in it! We had to track down up to the installer of the network at the time to understand why us (all other lots seemed to have a transformer in their box) and how to deal with that? After quotes, long phone conversations with the power infrastructure people and institutions in Wellington. No escape, we would have to pay for that transformer, and not even be the owner of it! It was an extra cost of $8200 for that.

This last find allowed us to eventually settle the price we were willing to pay for the property.

After 2 month of a tiring process, Champagne!

Well, hum… we discovered that it’s a bit more complicated than what we thought. To start with, when you are a business customer with ASB, all your inquiries will be dealt with by the Business Unit, even if it is a personal matter…and they are not too keen on giving you money for a property outside Auckland! “you mean, just land covered in bush, 2 hours from Auckland, with no house on top?”…”a gravel road to get there?” (at this stage, we barely avoided a collapse of our account manager). After this failed first meeting, a discussion with the National Manager and the meeting with another business account manager, no progress was made. They would exceptionally lend 60% for the purchase of the land and would require inspections before giving more for the house to be built. Thanks, but no.

That is when I thought it would be a good idea to see what a broker could do for us. After a call to a friend in the industry, I get a meeting with John – funny enough lived many years in France. With him, the whole world of mortgage and finance strategy unfolds. Nothing that the bank ever explained to me! They had never looked at my available funds, my goals in short and mid-terms or any solution for me… John looked at all that and we planned on a strategy that would save us fees the first year while we are building, with a floating rate account, that will eventually be fixed in the future, when the house is completed.

We discovered that the story is not only about getting the best rate available, but getting a strategy that works for you with your assets and goals, which banks don’t seem to provide, or at least mine. Also, it is also very good to get somebody to answer your questions and look after issues if they arise with the bank. `

When we did locate properties we were interested in we were able to look them up on Google Earth. Often the listings don’t have the property’s address listed but one call or email to the real estate agent will usually provide that information. Checking out properties on Google Earth before visiting them provided us with a good visual idea of the lay of the land, the location, and surrounding areas. Google Earth is a free program you can download and install on your computer. In most areas it will show the elevation of the land as well as details pertaining to bush (forest) area, water (creeks, rivers, etc), and will even show existing houses in the area. With the 3D feature you can see the property as if you were flying around it. In some cases you can see the view you will get on the land.

Once you locate the property on Google Earth you can create a placemark on it and draw the outline of the boundaries. You can the save these as a file and email this to other people, which would be able to open these files in their own Google Earth. It will then add these in for them and fly them there!

Realestate agents, it seems, have a sense of humor all to their own and they display this in the titles they give each property. Here’s some that we’ve deciphered for you.

Blank canvas (one of our favs)….totally barren land that even Picasso wouldn’t be able to do anything with.
Vendor said “sell!”….well, yeah, we kinda already assumed that.