5 min read
21 things I wish someone had told me before I started
Short, blunt, and worth five minutes before you break ground. Read this before your first tradie meeting.
- 01
Don't start construction until you know exactly what's required to sign off each stage.
Pull the inspection schedule attached to your Construction Certificate before Stage 1, not after.
Before You Start → - 02
Your cheapest quote isn't your cheapest trade.
Price what's excluded — waste removal, scaffold, make-good — not just the headline number.
Quote Comparison sheet → - 03
A bad trade early in the build damages every trade after it.
Out-of-square framing doesn't stay a framing problem — windows, cladding and cabinetry all fight it later.
Frame stage → - 04
Never let a wall get closed up on something you haven't inspected.
Services, bracing, waterproofing membrane — once it's covered, checking it means demolition.
- 05
Photograph everything before it disappears.
Reo before the pour, services before plasterboard, membrane before tiling. A photo costs nothing today.
Document Register → - 06
Don't pay for work you haven't checked.
- 07
Get every variation in writing.
A verbal "yeah that'll be extra" is where scope disputes are born.
- 08
Your Principal Certifier is a resource, not just the person who fails you at the end.
Ask them directly, before each stage: what evidence do you actually want to see?
Before You Start → - 09
Electrical, plumbing, drainage, gasfitting and air-conditioning are not DIY under an owner-builder permit. Full stop.
No exceptions for skill or confidence — you legally need the licence.
Insurance & Legal → - 10
Wet-area waterproofing is worth paying a professional for even if you're capable.
The failure mode isn't a small fix — it's tiles and finishes coming back out.
DIY or Trade sheet → - 11
Don't leave material purchasing until the trade is standing on site waiting for it.
- 12
Don't underestimate rubbish removal and site clean-up.
It's real money and real time that rarely makes the first budget.
- 13
Your build will take longer than your first program says.
Build contingency into the schedule, not optimism.
Build Sequence Schedule → - 14
Your time has a real dollar value.
The question isn't "can I do this myself" — it's whether your time is better spent doing it, managing it, or paying someone.
DIY or Trade sheet → - 15
Don't DIY something just because you're technically capable of it.
- 16
Don't hire someone just because they call themselves a tradie.
Ask to see their actual previous work, not just a quote.
- 17
Keep every certificate, licence check and insurance currency document.
You'll need them years later — when you sell, not just at handover.
Document Register → - 18
Don't make design decisions after construction has started.
Every change ripples through every trade still to come.
- 19
Protect your cash flow.
Don't pay ahead of completed, checked work — regardless of how much you trust the trade.
- 20
The person legally responsible for this build is you.
Not your builder, not your certifier, not your trades — NSW makes the owner-builder responsible for the work.
If you only remember five things
1. Get it in writing.
2. Check the licence.
3. Never let a bad trade continue because you're afraid of losing time.
4. Photograph what you're about to cover up.
5. The build is legally your responsibility, not theirs.
General project-management principles, not a substitute for professional advice or your specific site's requirements. Where this page states an NSW rule rather than a judgement call, that rule is verified elsewhere on this site — see the linked pages.