Builder moved our handover from March to July like its nothing

late-keys-91

Western Sydney volume build. Contract said March 2027 handover when we signed. Frame went up on time which felt like a miracle. Then the site supervisor casually drops that brickies are booked out and we are looking at July now. Said it like he was telling me the weather.

We are still in a rental. Lease ends Feb. Landlord already sniffing about another 6 months at the new rent which is not funny money. Builder email just says trade availability and industry wide delays. No real plan, just a new date on a PDF.

I keep seeing stuff about tradie shortages and half the builds not finishing on time and it makes me feel less crazy but also more stuck. Like ok cool everyone knows, still paying two roofs somehow.

Anyone else get a multi month slide with almost no warning? Did you push back on rent help or just eat it. And be honest - once they move the date once, did it move again.

Not trying to trash our builder specifically. Just trying to work out if this is the new normal or if we need to get louder before the next update lands in my inbox.

gumleaf_88

Yep. Ours slid twice. First was plaster waiting on a crew, second was painters. Newcastle. Original date was a joke in hindsight.

We asked about a rent contribution once in writing. Got a polite no and a line about force majeure style wording in the contract. Ate it. What helped a bit was getting the supervisor to put the dependency in the email (which trade, which week) so it wasnt just vibes when we talked to the bank about extending the rental.

davefrom-2009

QLD same story last year. Brickies vanished mid job for a bigger commercial gig then came back like nothing happened. Programme never recovered the full gap.

Pushing hard on rent usually goes nowhere on a volume contract unless you have something specific in writing. Annoying but true. What I would do earlier next time is assume +4 months on day one and set the lease that way. Sounds pessimistic. Would have saved us the panic call to the landlord.

fuzzy-muppet

JULY IS THE NEW MARCH

every builder is short crews and acting surprised when the calendar moves. rent is the real contingency now. ask for the trade name and the book-in date in writing or enjoy the shrug emails

JenW88

Adelaide build ran 5 months long. First delay was council on a stormwater detail nobody flagged early, then electrics. We did get a small gesture from the builder toward storage when the lease blew out - not rent, just a contribution. Had to ask three times and keep it polite.

Also side note cos people are jumpy after all the collapse talk in the news - we checked QBCC / licence status and the contract deposit protection when the first big delay hit. Probably overkill for a volume brand but sleep was worth it. Delays suck. Silence sucks more.

late-keys-91

OP update. Asked for the brickie book-in date in writing like fuzzy said. Got a week pencilled in October and a still-saying-July handover. Landlord wants a 6 month extension so we are signing that tomorrow. Not happy. At least its not open ended guessing.

Also checked the licence status after Jens comment. All current. Sleep slightly better. Wallet not.

late-keys-91

Western Sydney update. Brickies did show in that October window. Handover still pencilled July. Lease extension is signed so at least the landlord drama is parked.

Supervisor is better about putting trade names in emails now. Small win. Wallet still hates me.

late-keys-91

Still July on paper. Brickwork finished. Electrics rough-in next. Rent extension is just the cost of doing business now apparently.

If you are earlier, bake +3 or 4 months into the lease from day one. Wish we had.