I tackled the project with confidence
Personal satisfaction and pride are outcomes of owner building own home.
Chris Offord got plenty of enjoyment from building his own Paal kit home and finished up with just the result he had hoped for.
“There’s a great feeling of satisfaction – much more so than you get with a project home or one from a master builder. And since I built it myself, I know it’s done with integrity.”
Chris and Carla’s house is situated on seven acres between Picton and the Southern Highlands. “I’ve bought and renovated a few houses before, so I tackled the project with confidence,” he said.
Before buying, he looked at all the kit homes on the market. “Some seemed too fiddly and involved, with a lot of cutting required. I was also warned about the fire danger with timber.”
The Riverina model he chose has a modern colonial exterior with verandahs all around and generous windows on every side.
“Project home companies just don’t make them like this. My previous house was a project home, but it wasn’t really what I wanted. We much prefer the colonial style.”
Chris did most of the building himself, employing help for the concrete slab and using licensed tradespeople for the plumbing and electrical wiring.
From excavation to moving in took just nine months. “This was very good considering that I was working full-time on my landscaping business. I built at weekends and holidays, plus a few days off work.”
Chris’s advice to prospective builders is to do your homework, compare apples with apples, and speak to people who have built their own homes.
He and Carla are now planning another Paal kit home – this time a Camden on a larger acreage. The couple are personalising the standard design, which is a straightforward matter when building with Paal.
