Should You Supply Your Own Appliances When Building?

Is it better for homeowners to supply their own appliances in the building process?

Generally speaking, it's best for the builder to handle everything they can, actually make sure that it's a nice, streamlined process like customers may. Hey, guys, welcome to the Builder's Edge. I'm Norm Wales from Norm Wales Constructions. Now, for me, the whole purpose of this podcast here is to bring a little bit more awareness around the construction industry. I've been feeling for many, many years that there's not enough helpful information out there to support you guys to make the right choice. Now, we are a smaller family independent building company, and we're not here to build everybody's home, but we would definitely love to be able to work with you to facilitate your dream home. But if we don't build your new home, we want you to be able to make the right decision in choosing the right builder for you. So hopefully the information that I'm able to provide through this podcast can be informative and helpful that you can now create your dream home. So I hope you enjoy and thanks for watching.

So, Norm, is it better for homeowners to supply their own appliances in the building process, or is it better to just go 100% through the builder?

Look, when it comes down to customers supplying certain, you know, products and materials there, generally speaking, you know, as a whole, it's best for the builder to handle everything. You know, by allowing the builder to handle all the products and the materials that go into your home, they can actually make sure that it's a nice, streamlined process. Like, customers may supply appliances and, you know, maybe a letterbox or, you know, a pendant light or something like that there. But that's about the extent that I, you know, normally go to, like, generally speaking, builders are going to be able to purchase things there at a far better rate than the customers can. And, you know, good builders and like ourselves, we pass on, you know, those discounts and out there to our customers. But you may come across very few and far between that, you know, one of the appliance mobs there having a big flash sale, you know, Black Friday sale, something like that there, you may be able to purchase, let's say, your appliances there for, you know, 20 or 30 less, you know, at best. So, you know, obviously there's different pricing structures and that through the construction industry there. And as a whole, you know, we're generally able to provide these sorts of products to our customers at a fantastic pricing point. But I guess when it comes down to customers supplying certain products there ourselves are very flexible to work with them, because we want our customers to get the best, you know, result they possibly can. If we can help them going down that path, we will. But as soon as something is supplied, you know, directly from the customer, that warranty now is between themselves and the manufacturer or who they purchase it from. And in the event that there is a problem with that product, us as a builder haven't had that engagement with that supplier, and we're actually not able to help facilitate, you know, that concern. So that can become a little bit more problematic for the customer, you know, which is, you know, a bit disheartening for us because we like to stand by our product and support our customers in the after sales and that as well. And our suppliers and out there, you know, offer fantastic service. But I guess if it's outside of our scope, it unfortunately becomes, you know, a bit more of a problem to the customer.

Have you got any horror stories of people supplying appliances to you guys and just things going downhill?

Yeah, look, it's, you know, customers supplied a few bits and pieces over the time, but, yeah, we, we have had some there in the past that, you know, they might have only supplied parts of the appliances. That's a dishwasher, for example, you know, I mean, and that's been stored in storage there, and it's been given to us at the time of requirement there. And, you know, yeah, open the door up there and there's vermin that have been nesting in there and leaving behind all the wonderful things that they do. And, you know, then it becomes down to like, well, one, do you just throw this thing in the bin? You know, I mean, like, and for the. The little difference of what the. The cost would have been to purchase something new to begin with, or, you know, do you spend four or five hours there cleaning this thing and trying to make it as good as you possibly can. So, you know, we often do find that people will go to supply other stuff. You know, it could be mirrors or pendant lights and bits and pieces and same thing. They've had them in storage and they've been damaged or the delivery people have, you know, delivered them and they're. They're broken. And for us, we obviously can't install that. But then it becomes a problem then for the customer to try and get reimbursed for that aspect of things there. And, you know, like, it's just really hard for us, I guess, to be able to help the customer when we haven't been engaged in that process there. Like, we're always there to Support them where we can, but we don't have any power or ability to go back to that supplier.

Is it a thing where perhaps homeowners or families are thinking, well, maybe the builders just aren't getting the highest, sourcing the highest quality products. I'll go out and get the best quality products and give it to them. You know, I guess the question would be there, like, how do you guys, as a builder, as builders, ensure that you guys are sourcing the best possible appliances?

Yeah, look, I don't think it's the matter of people thinking we're not sourcing the right products there. I believe it's more customers always trying to save a dollar where they can, which I, you know, fully, I'm on board with. And we, we do our utmost best to help facilitate that same thing. But sometimes spending a little bit more up front at the beginning can actually save you a lot down the line. You know, like people purchasing stuff online or from interstate, sometimes overseas, what they think they're getting isn't always what they end up with. So if you have purchased tapware, you know, for example there, and you think you've, you've saved yourself hundreds or thousands of dollars difference from what your local supplier could have provided that for, and then you actually get that and it doesn't have a watermark symbol on it, for example, we can't install that, you know, so customers have in the past purchased stuff without, you know, people knowing what's been done and there's been stuff that hasn't been able to be used, generally find it's because people think they can buy something cheaper. You know, it's all about saving a dollar generally, you know, But I think the real message out there for that is that if you're looking at going down that path and supplying a product, talk to your builder first just to make sure that you're going to be on the right path.

Yeah, because on that I suppose their mindset is in the right place. Right. They're trying to do good by themselves, they're trying to work within their budget. But perhaps the problem is their approach to it in terms of not perhaps not consulting you as the builder and helping getting your guys advice in, in making the best decision for them.

That's right. But you know, unfortunately, you know, for themselves, like they don't know what they don't know. But sometimes we've found that people have actually purchased stuff before they've even bought their block of land or even designed a home. They've just seen something that's Grabbed their eye, which look, I guess we all can be guilty of doing there. But sometimes that rush of blood and that first instinct isn't necessarily going to save them money down the line. So really the message is not to sort of jump ahead and want to put the icing on the cake before the cake's actually baked. So, you know, like if you're starting to purchase, you know, appliances or pendant lights and mirrors and things like that, as an example, like your appliances, if you purchase them now, but you haven't even designed your home, then you got to think, okay, what's the timeframe of drawing your plans, building the home, when are you actually going to be in your home? You know, that could be 6 months, 12 months, 2 years depending on when you start the process. So then you go to put your appliances in, something doesn't work, but then realize that your two year warranty just ran out. Yeah. So it's not warranted. So then you're chasing a supplier that they're not going to give you anything on because the warranties ran out. The builder can't do anything there to help you because they haven't supplied it. So then you're up for another product.

Yeah.

So you've just got to be really careful with that aspect of things there.

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, with the amount of inquiries that you guys get or I suppose, amount of bills that you guys do per year, how often is it that people would like in just in your experience, how often do you find that families or homeowners are coming to you with their own supplies or with their own appliances?

Look, we'd find, you know, people are often, you know, trying to do that there, but I guess once they've had a conversation, you know, with myself or my team there and they giving the pros and the cons of that there, I would say most of them still choose not to go down that path. And, and we just handle everything there for them. At least then you got your full warranties. Everything's all above board there. You know, they've got all that support and you know, they've got nothing to lose. But unfortunately there still are some people that, against our better advice, I guess they still choose to go down that path. And look, we're happy to support that as well if that's the path I want to go. It doesn't always end in a horror story, but more often than not there seems to be a missing part or a fault or a defect or something to it that when then unable to help them with Yeah, I mean, what's.

The, what's the biggest objection that you'd get? I'm sure you'd sit down with them and you'd advise them against it. And, you know, what you guys think is best practice? And what do you feel is perhaps the most common objection that you come up against?

Look, it would normally come down to cost, you know, of stuff there. Now, if it comes down to, you know, a letter box or, you know, a closed line, a sort of pendant light, or, you know, potentially supplying the appliances, there very, very few and far between times that customers will actually purchase them better than what we can purchase it for. But they are just some real basic examples of things. What they potentially might be able to purchase them more economically than us if they get that big flash sale that comes on board, but for the, the difference of a couple of dollars, you know, between things there. Is it really worth that risk that you're running that, you know, of being able to have to stand by that product yourself and not have a warranty or actually then have a product that's not going to work, it's missing parts or it's damaged, you know, and then you have to stand by yourself up against that supplier. Whereas if it was, we handled everything, the relationships we have with our suppliers and that, they're everything sorted out, no problem. Customer gets a brand new product.

Yep. So if you're thinking about supplying your own materials, your own appliances, best practice, consult your builder, listen to their advice and go from there.

Yeah, definitely consult a builder, have a good chat around things there. And, you know, there might be some things you can do, but yeah, more often than not, it's best to lay out the building company to handle it.

Love it. Well, on that note, Norm, I'm gonna transition over to our get to know your Norm jar. I'm going to wrap up this episode. Alrighty. Thank you. Let's see what the question of the day is. Okay, Norm, if you could visit any place in the world, real or fictional, where would you go and what would you do there?

I guess I'd probably put it down to more of a bucket list thing for myself. And I believe the area, Africa, like Kenya area.

Nice.

Get up into the mountains there. I believe where the silverbacks.

Yeah.

So I think it'd be quite a moment to be able to get yourself in amongst all that there. And yeah, hike up there and just experience the silverbacks up close and personal. So I'd be. Yeah, definitely something that's highly on my to do list.

Yeah, love that. Love that.

All right.

Well, as always, Norm, thank you so much.

Thanks, mate.