BOLD Living Review 2023

Bold Living Review

Established in Brisbane in 2010, Bold Living is a midsized, boutique builder that completes around 200 homes per year. They focus on creating customizable, off-the-plan homes for clients in Brisbane and its surrounds. Bold has a range of interior design options and a modern appeal. This article is a deep dive into all things BOLD Living, so without further ado, let’s take a look at what we like and don’t like about Bold Living.

Top 5 Things We Like About Bold:

• ✅Bold has a number of display homes in Southeast Queensland. You can take virtual tours of some of these online.
• ✅They are locally based, so they understand how the community operates.
• ✅They are flexible, with many customizable options in their off-the-plan homes.
• ✅Their Evolve Design Studio has a qualified interior design team.
• ✅Clients report helpful site supervisors.

Top 5 Things we Dislike About Bold:

• ⛔️More risks associated with their relatively small size.
• ⛔️The QBCC penalised them for defective work in 2020 and 2021.
• ⛔️Some past clients have raised concerns over their communication.
• ⛔️Subcontractors are not always held accountable for mistakes.
• ⛔️Poor finishes, long build times and incomplete handovers have been reported.

What’s the Process?

We’ve done the hard work for you! Below is our experience going through the BOLD living sales process:

When you call Bold Living, their administration team ask you where you’re interested in building. You’ll be called back by a sales representative from the office closest to your preferred build site.

After making arrangements over the phone, you can visit nearby show homes or take a virtual tour remotely. You can also check out the Evolve Design Studio in Northlakes. It’s free and open 6 days a week. The studio resembles a fully staffed display house. Their interior designers will discuss any parts of the display you would like to see in your home. This will help in your decision-making.

Bear in mind that weekends are often very busy at these locations. Prepare some key questions for your sales representative to get the most out of your visit.

Deposits

Bold offers house and land packages, but both contracts are signed separately. Your sales representative may give you a free, high-level cost estimate. You will need to pay a $2,000 deposit for a fixed-price building contract.

After you pay the deposit, soil tests and contour survey reports are done. Once the results are in, Bold will provide you with a fixed price tender. This will take a minimum of 3 weeks (if you have no contract variations). Colour selections and any other changes to your off-the-plan home will prolong this period.

If you want to make “extensive” floorplan changes, there is a $2,000 drafting fee. Bear in mind that the meaning of “extensive” is determined at Bold’s discretion. Customers report paying for floorplan changes after being told they were free.

From Signing to Site

Once you’ve signed, your sales representative will hand over your build project to a site supervisor. Bold says they are facing high demand at the time of writing. It’ll take close to the 6 months maximum allowed for works to begin.

You’ll also be given access to a website called Property Pro. This allows you to communicate with Bold’s administration team and your site supervisor via social media. You will not, however, be able to communicate with subcontractors using this platform.

Meetings with your Site Supervisor

Included in your contract are at least 3 official meetings with your site supervisor. They occur during the following times of your build:

1. Pre-Build: You will confirm what was discussed with your assigned sales representative and transfer all information to your new site supervisor.
2. Frame Stage: Any big structural changes to your build and unforeseen developments will be discussed in this meeting.
3. Practical Completion: Your last meeting is at practical completion. Hopefully, there will be little to no problems to discuss at this meeting.

You can request more meetings with your site supervisor during the build.

Looking for a Builder?

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How We Can Help You

Building a home can be a daunting process. At Buildi, we work with you throughout the entire build process to avoid any pitfalls and make sure your build stays on time and on budget. Here’s how we help:

1. Free Consultation – We will sit with you to understand what you are looking to accomplish.
2. Due Diligence – We work with you to ensure you’re buying the right block of land at the right price without hidden problems.
3. Builders tender – We will take your requirements out to the market of builders and they will bid to win your business.
4. Present solutions – We will compile the top 3 options and present you with a comprehensive proposal on builders’ strengths & weaknesses along with prices and specifications.
5. Contract Signing – We will work with you and your selected builder to ensure there is full transparency in what you are entering into.
6. Building your home – We work closely with the builder to ensure all service levels are met and your project is on schedule.

We find you the right builder for your home build. Contact us today!

Bold Reviews

Bold Living has received mostly positive reviews on Google and Productreview.com.au. After reading them, we identified some commonalities in customer experiences. On the plus side, people like the control Bold gives them a wide range of colours and textures. Unfortunately, they also report confusion over what’s included in their plans, (some report lots of fine print reading and long build times). We’ve provided some examples of these reports below.

Positive Experiences

Satisfied consumers liked the flexibility and good customer service they experienced with Bold. Buyers admire the Evolve Design Studio, which is frequently mentioned by reviewers as being an enjoyable beginning to their build. The Bold team also seems to like making suggestions and discussing changes with customers. The following two reviews indicate that changes by both clients and subcontractors were handled well:

Negative Experiences

Less satisfied customers also consistently report similar shortcomings with Bold. Many reviews mention long wait times, and there are some instances of miscommunication within the business itself. Paperwork can be difficult to read and understand, as you can see in the thread below:

In the post below, a client has gone through some costly misunderstandings at the start of their build. They say their floorplan changes were offered for free. As discussed in our “What’s the Process?” section, Bold is ambiguous about a $2,000 drafting fee that may or may not apply. This is only one example of a rude awakening they experienced during this build.

Communication

Bold Living’s sales and design teams are often praised for good customer service and prompt communication early in the build process. Site supervisors also seem to communicate promptly, however, some customers have expressed concern about their punctuality late in the build process. Some have been slow to follow up on inquiries about finishes, maintenance and warranties.

Bold Living’s Range

There are 46 designs on the Bold website, a few of which you can see below. The architecture of their two-story plans tends to vary. For instance, the Ascot and Aquila Collections are on opposite ends of the design spectrum in terms of modernity.

The Aquila’s façade features bold, sharp lines and dark colours. These are typical of trendy homes that have adopted a very new, very industrial look. On the other hand, the Ascot features a humble, timeless design.

On the other hand, their single-story houses tend to have simple, cost effect façades. Colorbond steel roofs and mottled stone feature walls are common features in their range. Bold says their interior colour schemes are “Scandinavian”, so hopefully your home will feel cosy in winter.

Signature Design Characteristics

Let’s take a closer at the Athena 349 Display Home to get an idea of what Bold Living is like! Firstly, you can see in the image below that there are some impressive corner stacker doors that open to the home’s alfresco. These look nice, but there are no fly screens! Brisbane’s summer is no joke when it comes to insects. In this case, you’ll have to pay extra to keep the bugs out while fresh air flows through.

The patio is also decked with some solid-looking stone tiles. Chances are these will be a little more expensive than what’s included in your standard design. Often, home buyers underestimate how many luxury features are showcased in a display home. These extras don’t come cheap, just like the solid stone benchtop and handleless cupboards:

Finally, let’s think about the floor plan. The house has narrow hallways to save space, but these might make you feel a bit cramped. The front door also opens to a wall, which takes away from the spacious feel of the kitchen and dining areas. Moving furniture around might be tricky. Furthermore, the VJ door you see on the left is an expensive way to enter your lounge:

Inclusions and Upgrades

Bold Living offers variable inclusions that correspond with your price range. We will look at some examples of Bold’s “Smart Inclusions” threshold to form an idea of the features that will come with your home. As you will see, these are often subject to other terms and conditions. We will also have a look at what’s not included to help you avoid any unexpected charges.

What You’ll Get with Bold

The following time-related promises are made to Bold’s customers, but 4 of them are accompanied by asterixis that refers to the General Conditions:

• A guaranteed 14-week build time*
• A 25-year structural warranty*
• Full Site Clean upon Handover*
• 12 Month defect liability period*
• 1 week guaranteed site start*
• Full site clean-up on handover (no allowance for removal of excess spoils)

Bold’s General Conditions express some key statements that absolve them from liability. Here are some examples:

• This means you are legally responsible for making sure your estate covenant requirements are met before your build begins.

• This means that even if your sales representative gives you extra inclusions in person, they could be undone without your approval. Make sure the head office will contact you about changes made to any allowances.

• “Bold Living satisfaction” is a vague term that softens legal promises about commencement of work.

Smart Inclusions

Among many other components, Bold’s most basic range covers:

• An engineered slab up to ‘M’ class classification.
  • No allowance is made for slab piers. Bold’s engineer will decide if you need to pay extra for them.
• Allowance for (1) concrete pump to slab.
  • This does not include an additional pump, which may be required if slab piers are needed.
• Kitchen utilities such as bench tops and cupboards.
  • This does not include the butler’s pantry.
• Aluminium sliding doors and windows with keylocks.
• Supply and installation of 400mm x 400mm ceramic tiles from the builder’s range to all internal floor areas.
  • This excludes the garage, bedrooms, lounge area, media rooms and outdoor living area if applicable.
• A Colorbond Roof.
  • This excludes sarking under the roof.
• Single-phase underground power.
  • This does not include overhead power or 3-phase power.
• A 2450mm ceiling height throughout.
• Up to an ‘N2’ wind speed classification.
• Unless other arrangements are requested, a driveway/external concrete will be completed to match the design marked on the final plans as closely as possible.
  • This basic driveway consists only of concrete and has no exposed aggregate.

Curtains, security screens and landscaping all require extra fees under Smart Inclusions.

Not Included (unless otherwise stated in your tender):

• Temporary Power Pole if required
• Temporary Fencing if required
• Traffic Management if required
• Acoustic requirements
• Fire Rating requirements
• Allowances for overland flow/flood height if required
• Relaxation costs if required

Display Villages

Bold’s Evolve Design Studio (pictured above) is located at 49 Flinders Parade, North Lakes QLD 4504. Here are some other display home locations:

Brook Crescent, Burpengary (North Harbour) QLD 4505

Leslie Crescent, Caloundra QLD 4551

Forrestdale Street (off Foxwell Road), Coomera QLD 4209

Olive Avenue, Greenbank QLD 4124

Ridge Parade, Narangba QLD 4504

Soul Crescent, South Ripley QLD 4110

Cypress Street, Park Ridge QLD 4125

Kingfisher Street, Springfield QLD 4300

Cronin Road, Highfields QLD 4352 (The Avenue’s Estate)

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