Planning Your Dream Lifestyle Building – 5 Things To Think About

It all starts with an idea – the inspiration to finally create that dream space that you’ve been contemplating for years.

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J+A Sharpe Partners Shed, Hamilton

Whether it’s a workshop for your business with a house attached; a stable for your prized horses; or a shed for your cherished classic car collection, you’ve come to the right place!

Depending on your interests, occupation, the size of your property, and of course your personal tastes, there’s no doubt your building design wish list will be one-of-a-kind.

But before you get ahead of yourself, take some time to put your thoughts to paper and make your first contact with Coresteel really count.

Where will you build?

If you’re thinking of building on your current residential property, or a property you already own, that’s great. This gives us a site location which means geographical information can be calculated such as wind speeds, seismic conditions and snow loads, so you’ll be getting an accurate quote for the engineering portion of your build.

If you’re unsure of the location of your build, this will make quoting less accurate due to the number of variables.

Either way, depending on the size and location of the property, there may be specific council consents which you must obtain in order to build. Council laws may also restrict the height of your building, its proximity to neighbouring properties and, depending on the zoning, whether you can run a business from it. It pays to investigate these things early on, to avoid disappointment and extra costs.

Design and layout ideas

Have you seen buildings on the Coresteel website, or elsewhere which are similar to the type of design or layout you would like? Take photos of those you spot while out and about or keep note of names and URL links to those you have seen online and where possible, include these in your enquiry. You can find all Coresteel lifestyle buildings and sheds here.

 

Size

The key dimensions needed for an initial quote is a length, a width and a height. Think about what size space you need. If your classic car collection includes vehicles that are 5m long, you’ll want your building to be at least a few metres longer. If you have a tractor to store, what height will the doors need to be to allow easy storage? Thinking about your exact use will mean fewer changes will be needed further along the design process.

Also, as mentioned already, the council may have rules around the placement of your building and may restrict your initial plans. Research the rules early in the process.

Budget

If you haven’t yet considered your budget, now is the time to do so. Having a clear budget from the start will help us to establish whether what you want to achieve is possible for the dollars you have available. And if your dreams exceed your bank balance, we’ll be in a great position to work out how we can tick as many boxes as possible while still keeping you on budget.

Timeline

It’s important to have a realistic idea of how long it takes to design, manufacture and erect a building, plus gain any necessary council consents. Providing ideal start and completion dates when you first make your enquiry will give us an indication of your understanding of the process and we can let you know right from the start the timeline that could be expected. As a bonus, compared to our competitors, Coresteel benefits from a generally shorter process. This process can be shortened due to the design/pricing software, in-house design team, in-house manufacturing, and fully-bolted structural steel systems used. Read more about the Coresteel process.

 

Ready to start your next project?