BGC Construction helps build innovative university partnership

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Doing it right the first timeHousing affordability emerges askey issue with first home buyersWhen Joe Gaffa, the Pendle Hill (NSW) wholesale butcher and hiswife decided to renovate and extend a small fibro cottage, they did it rightthe first time.Joe and his family were looking for a larger home that was close toschools, transport and Joe’s business. The 1960’s fibro cottage that theyfound set on the high side of the road, was small, but appeared to havepotential. To help fulfil this potential BGC Duratex was chosen to cladthe dwelling, for the veranda soffits and internal the wet lining. The endresult is their dream come true, a two-storey home that utilises thenortherly aspect and well-proportioned backyard, and is a beautifulenhancement to the existing streetscape.After gutting the existing cottage and extending the framing upwardto form the second storey, Joe clad the dwelling with BGC Duratexsheets, completely covering all the window and door openings. TheDuratex sheets were then cut from the inside of the house to form theopenings ready to receive door and window frames, sills and surrounds.This method ensured that the sheet joints across the openings were cutand set in accordance with the BGC Duratex fixing specifications andsaved time and double handling of the sheets.The door and window sills and surrounds were made from Duratexsheets, cut to size and fixed to raked timber framing to give the openingdetails clean sharp lines.The result is an exemplary example of owner-builder renovations, andhow BGC Fibre Cement Duratex can be utilised to achieve the desiredstyle, colour and texture of the finished dwelling.Throughout the project, Joe had the support of the BGC Fibre Cementand BGC Plasterboard Technical Advisory Service.‘Before and after’ – Joe gaffa’s exemplary example of owner builder renovations.The ‘average’ first homebuyer is slowly being squeezedout of the first home buyermarket, according to recentresearch conducted by BGC.In a report commissioned byAustralia’s biggest home builder,figures showed that the ‘average’Australian household wasfinding it increasingly difficult toenter the first home ownersmarket, despite the introductionof the First Home OwnersGrant.“Based on the lendingcriteria of both a majormortgage broker (Wizard HomeLoans) and Keystart, the WesternAustralian Government lendingbody, a Western Australian adultearning an average income andqualifying for the First HomeOwners Grant can now onlyafford between 65 and 84 percent of the purchase price of themost affordable house and landpackage in Perth, excludingstamp duty and fees,” said BGCResidential General ManagerAnthony Kinder.“We would propose anoverhaul of qualifyingmechanisms on both the Stateand Federal first homebuyersassistance packages to allowthose who are currently caughtby the ‘deposit gap’ a realopportunity to own their ownhome.“We would also suggest theintroduction of an EnergyEfficiency concession for interestrates, which could be awarded tonew home owners who buildtheir homes compliant withBuilders Code of Australiaenergy efficiency principles.Where the homeowner surpassesthe minimum requirements, theconcessional rate could befurther decreased,” he added.“While the housing industryis at capacity at present it is allto easy to think everyone whowants a home can get one, thereality is, we’ll come out of thisboom and realise that up to athird of West Australian’s cannotafford one at all”, he added.According to Sue Marshall,Brand Manager for Go Homes,Government assistance in theform of changes in lendingcriteria, subsidies and interestrate concessions would go along way.“We primarily deal with the‘battler’ end of the first homeowner market, and the currentclimate is not conducive to homeownership. If you consider thatthe average gross weekly salaryfor a West Australian couplewith no dependants is around$706, and our market generallydeals with a below averagesalary, then our clients, who theFirst Home Owners Grant wasprimarily designed for, are reallybeing priced out of the market,”said Ms Marshall.Paul Arndt, ExecutiveGeneral Manager of J– Corpsupported Mr Kinder’s viewsabout affordability, alsoexpressing further concernregarding the fact that largerblocks are fast disappearing,whilst the desire for larger homesremains as strong as ever.“Inner city and metro blocksare being dissected at an amazingrate, and as a result, homebuilders who want individualparcels of land, ie not ‘housebehind house’, are being forcedinto the outlying suburbs.Everyone wants a larger house,and they are being squashedonto smaller blocks, with theresult being a compromise ontheir ‘dream home’ design.“In addition to this, thecurrent boom in home buildingis causing delays in titles and inbrick availability. As a result ofthese delays, clients have to seekalternative accommodation forlonger periods, also priceincreases occur due to ‘supplyversus demand’ and as theseincreases cannot be passed ontocustomers, profitability is furtherdepleted,” he added.4
Go HomesThe DAD office crew.DAD National expands operations in record years of growthGo Homes would like tocongratulate Darren Clarke whoachieved Go’s top Sales Rep ofthe year for 2003, Darren hasworked for Go Homes for threeand half years and is a constantperformer.We also congratulate SymiaHopkinson for achieving Go’sTop Qualifier of the Year 2003.Symia’s enthusiasm andenjoyment for what she does isevident by her results.Sue MarshallBrand ManagerThe past two years have been bumper years for DAD (Design and Development) National, BGC Residential’scountry operation.According to General Manager, Kevin Blackwood, the award winning company has grown by 100 per cent inthe past two consecutive years, suggesting a bright future for the fledgling business.Established in Bunbury in 1999, the housing company’s operations extend as far south as Augusta, north as faras Dawesville and east to Collie. Drawing from over 500 designs, the company specialises in creating homes forboth rural and traditional town lots properties, taking into account the special requirements that home buildersencounter on these lots.Winner of the MYOB Southwest Small Business of the Year in 2003, and a finalist in the state awards for thepast two years, the company is comprised of DAD Australia – the parent operation, DAD Realty and DADNational.The company also was the south west representative for the West Australian Regional Business Awards in 2004.“As a result of this rapid expansion, we have outgrown our initial office space and have moved to a largerpremises in the Old Silos Markets in the centre of town,” said Mr Blackwood.“Our new homes division has 23 employees and although we only have two display homes at the moment, weare opening another three within the first quarter of this year.“We are rapidly becoming a force to contend with in rural WA. Our future plans not only include theexpansion of our core business, but also the introduction of an exciting new building and design operation in 2004,which will concentrate on providing our rural market with a product designed, operated and represented by localpeople with strong local knowledge,” he added.Brand Manager Sue Marshal and Darren Clarke.AGI Insulation – upping the ante for energy-efficient housingWith minimum energy ratings for new homes now being a mandatory requirement and not just a desirable option, ‘energy efficient sustainability’ havebecome the new buzzwords in home building.Over recent years, the BCA (Building Code of Australia) has been pushing for improved energy efficiencies in new homes. As a result, effective from July2003 builders are required by the Building Code of Australia to construct homes that meet an energy efficiency rating. Effectively this new mandate hasresulted in the compulsory requirement for the installation of insulation in all new homes.AGI Insulation, in partnership with many local builders, has led this quest and currently supplies a large part of the WA residential building market withits insulation batts. The new mandatory regulations have given insulation a new found respect, and coupled with many educational programs such as theHIA Greensmart principals, housing energy sustainability will be words used more and more over the coming years.According to General Manager of AGI, Frank di Costa, the true value of insulation has finally been realized. “AGI Insulation, by virtue of regulation, isleading the industry in energy efficiencies, however I believe this is only the start of what will be an industry reform. The industry is identifying anddeveloping clear mandates that will support energy efficiencies in homes, reducing the impact on our environment.“We have proactively embarked on a builders education campaign to assist our clients with understanding what the BCA codes mean, and how it impactson them. “The responsibility of housing sustainability goes beyond the consumer, as designers, builders, manufacturers and suppliers must all undertake thiseducational process. Insulation is one of the most cost-effective ways to achieve energy-efficient sustainability and should become standard practice for allhome owners – new and old,” he added.Put simply, if your home is not insulated you could well lose up to 35% of your home’s heat through the ceiling in winter, resulting in higher energyusage. Conversely, without insulation heat is easily transferred through the ceiling in summer. Insulation is measured by R values – the measure of resistanceto heat flow. The higher the R value the greater the resistance to heat flow. Typically, ceilings will have R2.5 value and wall insulation a R1.5.For more information on how insulation can save you money, please contact AGI on 9334 4551.B U I L D I N G S U C C E S S 5
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BGC Construction helps build innovative university partnership

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