Get in touch with a brief summary of what you are planning, a rough location, and a timeline if you have one. If you are working with an architect, the best introduction often comes through them. We will arrange a conversation to understand the scope and, if it looks right, talk through how to proceed from there.

Yes, and this is how a significant portion of our work comes through. We are comfortable reading architectural drawings, working within the sequencing an architect specifies, and looking after the client relationship the same way we look after the programme. Architects who have worked with us tend to come back because we do not create problems on site that were not already on the drawings.

We can work on projects without a separate architect, particularly for renovations and extensions where the scope is clear. For new architectural homes, we would generally recommend engaging an architect. The quality of the drawings directly affects the quality of what gets built.

We work best on new architectural homes, significant villa renovations, and substantial extensions. We are moving toward fewer, larger projects where the scope justifies a proper team and a proper process. We are not the right fit for small repair work or projects competing primarily on price.

For most architectural new homes, we work on a charge up basis. Architectural drawings change during construction, often significantly. A fixed price contract does not account for that movement and tends to produce disputes or corner cutting. Charge up means you pay for what we actually do, at agreed rates, with full visibility on costs.

Charge up means you are billed for labour, materials, and subcontractors at actual cost, plus an agreed margin. You see every invoice. There are no hidden markups and no incentive to rush or cut material quality. It is the honest way to run this kind of work.

We review the drawings, visit the site, and put together a schedule of rates and estimated costs. For straightforward work with complete drawings, we can give a reliable estimate. For more complex projects we may propose starting with a preliminary works phase to establish conditions before pricing the full build.

Architectural drawings change during construction. Structural conditions, specification changes, and design development during the build mean that what is on the drawings at consent is rarely what gets built. A fixed price either bakes in a large contingency that you pay for whether problems arise or not, or it creates pressure to cut corners when they do. We do not work that way.

Yes. Villa and character home work is something we have done a lot of. Restoring and extending houses built before the 1930s requires different skills to standard residential construction. We understand the structure of these houses, the materials that were used, and what matching existing joinery and detailing actually involves.

The structure is older and often unpredictable until you open walls. Timber sizes do not match modern standards. You will often find previous work that needs remediation. Sequencing matters more because the work is not straightforward to undo. Understanding what is actually there before the first cut is the whole game with old houses.

This depends on whether the property sits within a Special Character Area under the Auckland Unitary Plan or has a heritage schedule. Many inner Auckland villas are subject to rules that restrict external alterations. We work alongside architects who understand these overlays and can read the applicable rules before design begins. Getting this right at the start avoids consent delays later.

In most cases, yes. We have done enough of this work to know where to source matching materials and how to detail transitions between old and new. Some original joinery profiles and mouldings are still available from specialist suppliers. Where they are not, we work with joiners who can replicate them.

A new architectural home in Auckland typically takes 12 to 18 months on site once consents are in place. Structural work usually takes 3 to 4 months. Fit out after that takes another 4 to 6 months depending on specification. The consent and pre construction phase before any work starts often adds another 6 to 12 months. Total time from starting the architect engagement to moving in is commonly 2 to 3 years for a complex home.

Consent needs to be granted by Auckland Council, which takes 3 to 6 months depending on complexity. Before lodgement, structural engineering drawings need to be completed, typically taking 4 to 6 weeks. Geotechnical reports may be required depending on site conditions. We can often run procurement and some preliminary works in parallel with consent processing to reduce total time.

We run a weekly site meeting, typically on Tuesday mornings, where we review programme, upcoming work, and any issues. You receive a written summary after each meeting. We keep the site clean and organised throughout. We coordinate subcontractors directly and take responsibility for their work on site.

Variations are priced before the work is done and confirmed in writing. On a charge up build this process is simpler because rates are already agreed. We flag likely variations as early as possible so you can make informed decisions rather than being presented with a cost after the fact. No variation work proceeds without written confirmation.

We work across Auckland. We have completed projects in Whitford, Clevedon, Ness Valley, and across the central suburbs, North Shore, and Manukau area. We do not restrict ourselves to specific suburbs.

We coordinate the consent process alongside the architect and engineer. The consent application itself is typically lodged by the architect. We assist with compliance documentation, Health and Safety plans to NZS 4602, and any Building Warrant of Fitness requirements for commercial or mixed use work.

Yes. All our work complies with the New Zealand Building Code (NZBC). For new homes, the primary compliance pathway is NZS 3604 for timber framed construction. For architectural homes that fall outside the scope of NZS 3604, we work with structural engineers to produce specific design solutions and obtain the relevant engineering assessments for Auckland Council.

We take direction from the architect on design intent and flag anything on site that could compromise it. We attend design meetings when it helps. We give architects honest feedback on buildability, cost implications of specification changes, and programme impacts. On a good project the conversation is direct and the work moves forward together.

Completed resource consent drawings, structural engineering drawings, and a specification. We can work from preliminary drawings for estimating purposes, but we do not start building without consented documents. The more complete the drawings, the more reliable the initial cost estimate and the smoother the build.

Yes. A lot of our work comes through architects who have used us before. Architects refer clients to builders they trust to look after the project and the people in it. We have worked with a number of Auckland practices on multiple projects. Good work and being straightforward to deal with is how that happens.

Yes. We are comfortable working under standard New Zealand contract forms including the NZS 3910 conditions of contract. We understand the architect's role in contract administration, the process for variations and progress claims, and the certification process. Working under a properly administered contract protects everyone.