Milestone Homes has had over seventeen years’ experience in building quality homes in the Nelson region and general manager Adam Hills has been with the company most of that time. He is the ideal person to ask about the current trends and challenges in the local residential building industry.
What are the current trends in building?
We have seen a significant shift towards health and comfort with central heating/cooling becoming a significant item on the wish list for a lot of people. From a design perspective, we’re seeing a lot more use of cladding products inside for feature walls which adds impact and mixes up the textures, creating an awesome effect.
What are the challenges of building in the current economic climate?
Access to finance for clients is certainly challenging and has been for eighteen months. People’s budgets are squeezed and there are more compromises along
the way.
The biggest thing we’re seeing from clients is the desire for certainty, both to give them confidence and to satisfy banking requirements when mortgages are required. They want to know the proposed length of the build and the cost. They also want a reputable builder with a long history who has weathered the storm of previous downturns. We went through the global financial crisis and things certainly aren’t as gloomy as they were back then, so although it’s challenging currently, it’s not necessarily a bad thing to have a reset after crazy times. The supply chain has improved dramatically and we’re seeing construction times back down around four months or sooner and that’s giving people a lot more confidence to build. We’re even starting to offer guaranteed completion times so we’re really taking the unknown out of the mix.
Is Milestone Homes still able to ensure fixed price contracts?
We sure are. We have been offering truly fixed price contracts for nearly twelve months and that means total peace of mind for our clients. There are no provisional or prime-cost sums and no clever wording allowing us to charge extra for earthworks. We provide a written statement to our clients, and I’ve run it past lawyers to confirm that by providing this to people, there is no loophole. It is fixed and people have complete peace of mind.
Tell us about your new showhome...
We’re really excited to be opening our new showhome shortly at 52 Summersfield Boulevard by Central Park in The Meadows, Richmond. It showcases what we do and what our clients can expect if building with Milestone. There may even be a feature wall or two using exterior cladding.
What do you enjoy most about your job?
No two days are the same in the building industry, there’s never a dull moment and the awesome team that we have ensures we all have fun along the way.
