Decisions...Decisions.....
September 29th was my last blog entry and I have been siting on this post for months. So much has happened in this time and I struggled to come to terms with writing an update as we really were on an emotional roller coaster. I really didn't want to post an update that was just negative so I decided to wait until something good happened and I could update on a high, whilst still sharing the bad news.
Today is that day.
So lets go back to October and go over the bad stuff that happened. October saw us take a little break and we had a week away in Tangalooma which was nice and very much needed. It was great to relax on Moreton Island and coming off the high of our colours selection appointment, we were feeling pretty good.
This all came crashing down on the way home though.
I think we were somewhere north of Coffs Harbour when Michelle noticed posts on the Calderwood Valley Residents Facebook page about an asbestos contamination. Rumours were running hot about a sub-contractor (Wollongong Recycling) being fined by the EPA for distributing fill that was laced with Asbestos Containing Material (ACM). It appeared at this stage that some of this fill had found it's way to our Estate. We really didn't know what it meant but the rumours were running hot on the page and it really didn't sound to good at all.
Lend Lease contacted us shortly thereafter confirming that the rumours were in fact true. We were due at Mojo four days after receiving this email to sign our building contract. We put a stop to that luckily as things would have been far worse if we had signed for our build!
In the days following the media picked it up and ran a few stories, some of which seem to have disappeared from their webpage (this is good!). In a nutshell this meant more delays, more frustration, more anger, more disappointment, a potential decrease in land value and more interestingly...the talk of legal action! Everyone is in a different situation...some are severely impacted where the costs are mounting right now, others like ourselves have to deal with the disappointment but are not heavily financially impacted at this stage. Remember, our release is finished! Streets are complete, street lights are on and blocks have now remained dormant for months. Very, very frustrating.
The second update from Lend Lease advised that we will hit our sunset date. This will be extended and our block is secure which is great but we have struggled with what to do as we really need more space now. Our family is living in our cramped 3 bedroom home with no study in a period of time when the HSC is looming and Michelle is in her second year of Uni. Far from ideal.
Phase 1 of the clean up was finished in late October. This was a pretty quick process taking only a matter of weeks. Phase two is the big one with much of the fill behind the retaining walls needing to be removed and replaced.
Whilst this was all going on we were trying to decide what was the best option for us. We couldn't do anything about the delay but the frustration really was building. We agreed that there was no way our block would be registered by early 2018 as previously advised and we were very much of the opinion that best case scenario was a mid year registration. Even this would be a stretch. If this was the case we would be lucky to have a slab down by Christmas next year with the build then flowing well over into 2019...potentially another 18+ months away. We decided to look at buying an existing home and crossing the building bridge if and when the time ever arrived.
So we went shopping!
We spent some time looking around the local area for a comparable home - 4 beds, double garage, 2 bathrooms etc. Prices are similar to what our build and land would cost us which again is frustrating given these homes are 10-15+ years old but this is what we thought would be best for us. There were some nice homes around but they were coming and going so quickly! Then I found a nice one - just last weekend. Michelle was away in Brisbane with Josh and I was doing the Saturday morning "open house" run around the area. There was a home I had found a few days before and the agent had agreed to meet with me that afternoon. It was awesome!
The house needed some work, updated kitchen and eventually the Bathrooms but there was a lot that could be done straight away that would have made it very comfortable to live in. I really, really liked it.
I liked it so much I put an offer in!
I spent most of the weekend thinking about this house and the work I could do to make it great. Michelle was excited too! Then on Sunday evening I drove to Sydney to pick up Michelle and Josh from the airport and we spoke about the decision we had made. We then realised this probably wasn' the right decision. It was a lot of money and needed work. We would be committing, probably with very little chance of building once the land did register. Again...all these thoughts and decisions!
So we withdrew our offer 😜
The best decision for us in the end is to rent. We don't need to worry about stamp duty, we can rent out our current home and see how we like being a landlord and we can get more space now! So within 24 hours I went out looking at rental properties with a couple being available in Calderwood Valley. I only looked at two homes and that afternoon put an application in for a brand new rental in Calderwood Valley.
The house is located on Bartlett Crescent, located at the foot of our hill in Calderwood Valley. It is pretty much completed with only the back fence and aircon to be finished. On Wednesday we got the call that our application was successful - so we're moving to Calderwood Valley!!
I was lucky enough to be given time off work next week to move and to get as much cleaning and painting done in our current home. I will post progress pics of our move and the preparation of our home for tenants in coming weeks... until then there is a lot of work to be done.
Today is that day.
So lets go back to October and go over the bad stuff that happened. October saw us take a little break and we had a week away in Tangalooma which was nice and very much needed. It was great to relax on Moreton Island and coming off the high of our colours selection appointment, we were feeling pretty good.
This all came crashing down on the way home though.
I think we were somewhere north of Coffs Harbour when Michelle noticed posts on the Calderwood Valley Residents Facebook page about an asbestos contamination. Rumours were running hot about a sub-contractor (Wollongong Recycling) being fined by the EPA for distributing fill that was laced with Asbestos Containing Material (ACM). It appeared at this stage that some of this fill had found it's way to our Estate. We really didn't know what it meant but the rumours were running hot on the page and it really didn't sound to good at all.
Lend Lease contacted us shortly thereafter confirming that the rumours were in fact true. We were due at Mojo four days after receiving this email to sign our building contract. We put a stop to that luckily as things would have been far worse if we had signed for our build!
 |
| Click to see large |
In the days following the media picked it up and ran a few stories, some of which seem to have disappeared from their webpage (this is good!). In a nutshell this meant more delays, more frustration, more anger, more disappointment, a potential decrease in land value and more interestingly...the talk of legal action! Everyone is in a different situation...some are severely impacted where the costs are mounting right now, others like ourselves have to deal with the disappointment but are not heavily financially impacted at this stage. Remember, our release is finished! Streets are complete, street lights are on and blocks have now remained dormant for months. Very, very frustrating.
The second update from Lend Lease advised that we will hit our sunset date. This will be extended and our block is secure which is great but we have struggled with what to do as we really need more space now. Our family is living in our cramped 3 bedroom home with no study in a period of time when the HSC is looming and Michelle is in her second year of Uni. Far from ideal.
Phase 1 of the clean up was finished in late October. This was a pretty quick process taking only a matter of weeks. Phase two is the big one with much of the fill behind the retaining walls needing to be removed and replaced.
 |
| Click to make large |
Whilst this was all going on we were trying to decide what was the best option for us. We couldn't do anything about the delay but the frustration really was building. We agreed that there was no way our block would be registered by early 2018 as previously advised and we were very much of the opinion that best case scenario was a mid year registration. Even this would be a stretch. If this was the case we would be lucky to have a slab down by Christmas next year with the build then flowing well over into 2019...potentially another 18+ months away. We decided to look at buying an existing home and crossing the building bridge if and when the time ever arrived.
So we went shopping!
We spent some time looking around the local area for a comparable home - 4 beds, double garage, 2 bathrooms etc. Prices are similar to what our build and land would cost us which again is frustrating given these homes are 10-15+ years old but this is what we thought would be best for us. There were some nice homes around but they were coming and going so quickly! Then I found a nice one - just last weekend. Michelle was away in Brisbane with Josh and I was doing the Saturday morning "open house" run around the area. There was a home I had found a few days before and the agent had agreed to meet with me that afternoon. It was awesome!
 |
| Was a neat little home |
The house needed some work, updated kitchen and eventually the Bathrooms but there was a lot that could be done straight away that would have made it very comfortable to live in. I really, really liked it.
I liked it so much I put an offer in!
I spent most of the weekend thinking about this house and the work I could do to make it great. Michelle was excited too! Then on Sunday evening I drove to Sydney to pick up Michelle and Josh from the airport and we spoke about the decision we had made. We then realised this probably wasn' the right decision. It was a lot of money and needed work. We would be committing, probably with very little chance of building once the land did register. Again...all these thoughts and decisions!
So we withdrew our offer 😜
The best decision for us in the end is to rent. We don't need to worry about stamp duty, we can rent out our current home and see how we like being a landlord and we can get more space now! So within 24 hours I went out looking at rental properties with a couple being available in Calderwood Valley. I only looked at two homes and that afternoon put an application in for a brand new rental in Calderwood Valley.
The house is located on Bartlett Crescent, located at the foot of our hill in Calderwood Valley. It is pretty much completed with only the back fence and aircon to be finished. On Wednesday we got the call that our application was successful - so we're moving to Calderwood Valley!!
I was lucky enough to be given time off work next week to move and to get as much cleaning and painting done in our current home. I will post progress pics of our move and the preparation of our home for tenants in coming weeks... until then there is a lot of work to be done.
We are so glad you haven’t given up on your dream. And lucky you, getting to live in the valley whilst waiting for your land. You’ll already be a part of the community when you move into your own new home. We think you’ve found a great solution to the current problems. Happy moving Lashbrooks xx
ReplyDeleteCheers Irene. It’s a big move with limited time at the wrong time of the year but in the long run it is the best decision. Thanks for reading the blog 😁
ReplyDelete