Since their three daughters left home, Chris and Katrina Pearce decided to downsize to a new, smaller home in Matamata and they’ve quickly learned the benefits of a modern home.
They opted to build a three-bedroom house in the Peakedale subdivision rather than renovate their 100-year-old bungalow.
The couple skipped living in a renovation construction zone and didn’t have to worry about the security of their treasured dog.
The Pearces were also attracted to being able to keep to their budget with their build, which wasn’t guaranteed if they’d chosen to redesign their old place as who knows what surprises would have been revealed after a century of use.
When they talk about the double glazing for winter warmth, a fully insulated and carpeted double garage, a walk-in wardrobe and ensuite plus another bathroom complete with a bath, a walk-in pantry and beautiful views – you can hear they love their new place.
Plus, there’s no more firewood chores in the winter!
“We are really rapt with our new home and we feel very lucky,” Chris says.
“I love the whole house. It’s just lovely and warm and beautiful to come home to,” Katrina says.
Katrina is a medical receptionist at the local clinic and Chris works for a small family-owned business called The Boltholder – a specialist in the supply of bolts, nuts and steel fasteners to engineering and construction companies around the country.
The couple has lived in Matamata for 27 years and brought up their daughters five minutes away from their new home, but they are originally from Auckland.
KATRINA
We are a little bit elevated with a lovely view to the Kaimai Ranges. It is a corner section, so our views won’t ever be spoiled. We are stoked.
CHRIS
The Urumaraki plan from Generation Homes we chose worked really well with the site we picked. It’s a great view and the north-facing windows are in the living area, and two of the bedrooms and the lounge, so we get all day sun. I think we got the perfect site for what we wanted so we’re very happy.
KATRINA
We pondered for a long time whether to renovate our 100-year-old bungalow or go for a new build. We decided on the new build because of the age of the house and the surprises that present when you’re renovating an old house. We didn’t want to run over our budget, which was probably the main reason why we decided to buy new. Also, I didn’t want to live in a renovation construction area for however many months it was going to take. Probably years maybe. We had to consider our pet in the house as well.
CHRIS
Plus, we downsized as we had a very large section. We were looking around and it was just the fact that we went and saw some show homes and subdivisions around Matamata. We came across the show home of Generation Homes.
CHRIS
The show home was finished very well. The sales consultant Julie was very helpful and right from the get-go she gave us a lot of information which helped us make our minds up. That show home was out of our price range, so she showed us another building in progress further up the road towards where we are now. She then showed us sections and started going through plans, and that started the ball rolling.
I asked around and there were a couple of people at work that had built previously with Generation Homes and had had no problems and spoke well of them. With a little research we saw they are quite a big company and that was reassuring as they had subdivisions all over the place. They were not a small company that might be struggling.
KATRINA
I also had a colleague at work who built with Generation Homes and she had nothing but praise about her process. We got a lot of positive feedback which helped us make our minds up.
CHRIS
The fixed price was definitely a key reason. The site and the plan that we chose we were able to get at a very good price. Looking back at the whole process, we were very fortunate in the whole thing.
The fixed timing was also very good. You hear about people going with local builders and local trades and there’s a lot of coordination to be done getting tradies there when you want them. Generation Homes had their own crews of tradesmen and that’s how they can build in a 16-week window.
KATRINA
I liked that when we did decide on a plan, the schedule was set and we were guaranteed a 16-week build. Everything went smoothly all the way through. We lived five minutes away so drove by a lot and you could guarantee what they said they were doing was what was being done that particular week.
CHRIS
Financially, we had three part-payments to make and everything was laid out at the beginning and that’s how it happened. Everything was scheduled and everything went to plan. We knew what we were in for and it went very smoothly.
KATRINA
Stress free is the first thing that comes to my mind because that’s what it was. They laid it all out for us and kept to the schedule and kept to the plan.
CHRIS
Julie made herself available and was just so good to work with – nothing was a hassle. We could communicate with her at any time and she was very prompt in replying. We feel very lucky and are happy with the process and how easy it was. We had heard all the horror stories from other companies and we were a bit worried.
KATRINA
My kitchen, my pantry, my family room! And the view from our kitchen, family room and dining room is just beautiful. The walk-in wardrobe and the ensuite are other favourites. The entrance to our house is quite a large area and that’s great, especially when my whanāu come over. There’s lots of them and plenty of room at the front when they arrive.
CHRIS
The recessed ceiling is a favourite feature for me. I love the bath which is in the second bathroom, and the insulated double garage with carpet.
KATRINA
If we get family coming home and gathering here, we can actually use the garage as another room marae-style as it’s as warm as the house. It’s an extra room pretty much.
CHRIS
It will be nice to come in on a cold winter’s day after work and be able to hop out into a nice warm garage.
KATRINA
We only had a teeny tiny garage at our last house and a carport. It wasn’t very nice and it was a tight squeeze.
CHRIS
The house is north facing, modern and warm and that adds to our liking of it. Back when our old house was built, they just plonked it on the section. They didn’t worry about what rooms were facing which way or whatever. Now if we get a sunny day then it just heats up all our living areas. I used to spend a lot of time on firewood and lighting the fire and it’s great to come home to this.
CHRIS
I think it’s very important to pick the right, affordable section and the right plan so that you don’t have to do too much. Our build with Generation was turnkey. We had all the landscaping, grass and fencing done for us and included in the basic price. I’ve had to build a garden shed out the back, but apart from that, we’re good to go.
KATRINA
It was important to me that it was fully fenced for our dog.
CHRIS
They give you a wide selection of variation in carpet and flooring and colours and tiles in the basic plan. We chose to do variations on top of that. We got some tiling done in the ensuite and a little nook. We put in extra concrete outside and an insulated garage, a large window in the lounge, and a separate laundry. We knew that was on top of the price and we had a budget for that. We didn’t originally get a retaining wall, but it was a good decision to do it even at the extra cost.
KATRINA
Keep a track of the variations so there are no surprises at the end. We had an amount in our minds that we didn’t want to go over. We managed to keep within that limit. If you do want something extra, talk to your agent at Generation Homes as they are very accommodating. Just bear in mind there’s going to be a cost to go with it.
CHRIS
We decided at a later stage to get a deck and we hired a local guy and Generation Homes worked in with that.
