Asking your builder for advice can at times be counter productive as their opinions, assuming they provide them will always be biased, preferencing their best interests. You may also find communication with your builder to be non-existent, that is until a stage claim is due, then suddenly they’re calling you with their hands out asking for payment in accordance with the HIA or Master Builders new homes contract. It may seem hard to believe but it’s actually very common for a builder to request the payment of a stage claim before the works have been completed, let alone inspected. Some people receive lock up claims before the roof is even installed on their home. Now helping your builder with cashflow is not a bad thing, but in the event your builder is going through hard times, financial or otherwise, the last thing you want is for your hard earned money to be paying for expenses unrelated to your build. As your home building consultant, we offer peace of mind by providing independant advice during construction, we also liaise with your builder on your behalf to obtain updates on the build, ensure stage claims are due and payable and help manage cost blow outs and critical risk factors.