Welcome to the latest instalment of “we’re building a house”. So if you came here this week for some personal finance nuggets you may have to wait another week. Do feel free to stay though if you like a good rant.
The almighty council who we need to provide us with a building consent have come back and told us that our Geotech report is missing some important information. They need an assessment of the sites flood hazards.
But we have already had a Geotech report completed by the Engineers. A Geotech report is supposed to identify any natural hazards on site so that any building work will comply with the building code. Even I know flooding is a hazard and I am a complete novice with regards to building and construction. Why the engineering company did not provide this information in the first place is beyond me.
To add salt to the wound, the Engineers are now asking for another $1,000 for the information we need. Basically a statement from them saying that the land complies with section 71 of the building code. No more than 30 minutes work for them surely.
Not only are they charging an exorbitant amount for little work, but they are charging us for something that should have been done in the first place.
We could accept the $1,000 bill and get moving with the process or we could fight the charge and delay the build. We are choosing the latter.
It will probably cost us more than if we just paid the $1,000 because of the delays we will now experience. The Engineers are ignoring our efforts to communicate. But my wife and I have strong principles around treating people right and this just doesn’t sit well with us at all and we wonder how many other clients they have done this to. They probably rely on people not fighting and just paying the extra bills.
Our build is now being delayed and we will likely be more out of pocket than the cost of the bill. But companies like this need to be held to account for not doing their job and taking advantage.
I am sure there will be many more hurdles as we progress through the build. But to have the so called professional Engineers let us down so early is a bit of the kick in the guts.