Danny and Lisa watched from afar in Waiuku, South Auckland, as their new dream home came true 20 minutes north of their favourite holiday campground at Waipu Cove where they have relaxed for 29 years.
Danny is retired and Lisa is working from home, so they planned their new home to suit this next stage of their lives as they make their holiday destination their permanent address.
Being impressed with a friend’s Generation Home led them to the company and they loved the show home.
Tony Watkins from Generation Homes started Lisa and Danny off on their journey and recommended the Totara as a suitable plan for their section, making sure to accommodate parking for their boat.
The Generation show home highlighted the exceptional quality of the build and the elegant fittings in spaces that people can visualise in their own place. For Lisa and Danny, the show home was inspirational.
When they planned their build, the Generation Homes fixed price guarantee was a vital factor. The Mullins knew what they were paying and when, and they were able to follow progress through a timeframe provided for their build.
Danny and Lisa have now moved in and are singing the praises of the smooth Generation Homes build process they experienced.
Builders within their close family are also very complimentary about the new Mullins home.
LISA
We had a caravan at Waipu Cove for 29 years at the campground. We were told that all caravans needed to be removed by 2025. So, we decided if we can’t go there, we would look to either build or to buy. When we were looking to buy existing homes, we were in lockdown so we couldn’t get to the homes that we thought we liked online. When lockdown finally ended, there were no houses that we liked on the market. That’s when we decided that we would come and have a look and see if we could build.
DANNY
At the first show home we went to we were told we could build but we would have to find a section and we would have to do all the groundwork, you know, like basically testing the soils and all that sort of thing. We decided that was in the too-hard basket.
We’d been at our friend’s home that was a Generation Home and we were really impressed with how it all looked. So that’s what took us to the Generation show home. We’d seen they had house and land packages.
The good thing for us was that the day that we visited the show home, a section had become available. Tony took us to look at the section, and we thought this could really work for us because there’s only one neighbor on one side, and then to the back of us is a primary school playing field. We also realised our boat would fit nicely on that section.
LISA
Because it has a fixed price. Within that time, prices were going up. We knew that the price we set was exactly what it was going to be and that was a huge benefit.
DANNY
It was good. They were very helpful. They were a good team, and all worked really well together.
LISA
Considering we lived three hours away in Waiuku, the communication with (New Home Consultant) Vynka was amazing. Being able to talk, text or email with the Generation Team on certain stages of the build certainly made us feel at ease should we have any questions or requests. So, the process was good. It was nice that we could visit from time to time and were allowed access into the house to see the progress.
LISA
Yes, absolutely.
DANNY
Yes. For example, I asked to have extra timber put in for the TVs (to easily secure them on the walls). They’ve done all that for me and they sent me photos, which made it easier once we moved in for placement of TVs.
LISA
Vynka our sales consultant, the project manager, the colour consultant and the owners of the business have been amazing. I absolutely loved working with Vynka. I would build again with Generation Homes. I’m happy overall with everything that we’ve got.
LISA
We walked into the show home and we would have bought it straightaway if we could have. It was amazing.
For the land we chose, we were advised the Totara plan would be a good fit and to flip it for the sun and the size of the section. Flipping changed the location of the garage and the lounge and that worked out nicely for us. You don’t have to take the plan as it is, you can take walls out and change your plan to how you want to live. That was important to me.
Danny and Lisa altered the architectural plan to complement their needs – eliminating a wall to create an extensive open plan living area, extending the garage by one metre, lengthening the roofline to cover the porch, and adding a concrete pad for their boat. The couple matched the show home bricks, carpet and colours when they styled their place.
DANNY
It’s all about the fishing! We also have some fabulous friends living here at Marsden Cove/One Tree Point.
LISA
The best advice is to go and look at the show homes and different plans to get ideas.
Look at the furniture that’s in there and visualise what you can do. Think about how your furniture will fit in. Remember that the show homes have upgraded products, so you need to understand that it’s going to cost you extra for those. You will still get a really nice home, but it’s not going to be the same as the show home so it’s important that you think about those things. We upgraded our appliances from the standard ones.
Also, design variations cost money, so you need to plan well and limit your variations. We were especially impressed that we were able to communicate with the wardrobe and electrical contractors and to be able to pay them the difference rather than Generation Homes having to do a variation.
DANNY
It’s important to look at where all your plugs are going, your electrical things like being able to watch Sky in more than one room, and to identify where you need double plugs for charging phones. There are sensor lights that you can put down the hallway and bathroom areas if you’ve got children and grandchildren. Don’t forget to set money aside for the cost of your furniture removal and getting everything hooked up. You’ve got fibre to connect and lots of things people take for granted like paying for the loads of rubbish to get to the tip once you’ve unpacked.
LISA
Think about your wardrobes and if you need built-ins and make sure you budget for your drapes and have them done for when you move in. Plan for everything as if you think you can wait to do something later, it’s not going to happen. You’re better off to have all of those things done and completed, so get them priced up and see whether or not you can afford it.
LISA
Our son and son-in-law are builders and they visited on our first weekend and put in two decks for us in two and a half days.
DANNY
The big thing will be to get some grass growing and I’m going to build a garden shed.
