Working with Brittin Builders to bring your vision to life

Since 1967, more and more homes by Brittin Builders have been added to the Hawke’s Bay landscape. Started by Roger Brittin, the family company is now led by Roger’s son, Jason – with a team of more than 20 full-time staff part of the team, an on-site joinery workshop and painting services now also provided.

When a client considers engagement with Brittin Builders for a potential project, all they need to have in the first instance is a vision, an idea of what they want and, ideally, a realistic budget. 

“We will happily have an initial consultation with clients to talk through their ideas and help them decide the best plan to achieve their vision while also discussing value for money and whether they may risk over-capitalising on the property,” says Emily Brittin, co-owner at Brittin Builders. 

“We will also cover if any consent will be required and any other preparation that may be needed so clients are fully informed and therefore able to decide if they would like to proceed, make some changes or need more time to prepare. All of this is done at no cost whether we end up doing the project for them or not. It is a core value of ours – to build and maintain relationships regardless of the outcome.”

Renovations

​​Heritage restorations require a high degree of skill to produce a flawless finish while ensuring the building structure is repaired to withstand the next 100 years and beyond.

“The budget must be managed carefully to help clients make good decisions to balance structural integrity and beautiful finishes and functions,” says Brittin. 

When quoting for a renovation or heritage restoration project, many potential challenges may not always be immediately obvious, but having an experienced team on board can help mitigate issues later on.

“With a heritage restoration you’re working from the outside in so there could be a lot of potential surprises. Therefore, experience is a must in order to quote as accurately as possible.”

New builds

Unlike a heritage restoration, a new build is working from the ground up – there's a clean slate.

“A new build is a much easier process to manage as there are minimal unknowns and any variations are usually due to the architectural design not being expressed in clear detail creating a misunderstanding of how things will function and look aesthetically,” says Brittin.

“The client may only understand a part of the design as some people do struggle with visualising things as a whole so occasionally, they may require a variation to meet their individual taste once they have more of an understanding or visualisation of what was agreed to within the initial design.”

Initial consultations and quotes

Whether you decide to renovate or start fresh, the process of working with Brittin Builders starts with the team gathering as much information as possible and passing this on to director Jason Brittin. 

“Jason will then meet with the clients and have the initial consultation to discuss the project in great detail, as well as inspect the site to gain further knowledge to be able to decide which sub-trades or organisations may need to be involved. Jason and our operations manager will contact various sub-trades and organise to meet on site, ideally with the client present so indications of plumbing fixtures and fittings, electrical specifications etc. can be discussed so sub-trades can supply an accurate quote and we don’t have any extra surprises down the track.

“Once we have received all necessary quotes from sub-trades, we will produce a detailed quote for the client to consider – this should be delivered within a month of the initial consult providing all information required has been received, if not, a realistic ‘PC’ sum will be included,” says Brittin. 

Starting the job

Once the quote has been accepted, a starting date will be organised with everyone involved. Before the work starts, the clients will also meet the foreman who will be running the job. The foreman will be on-site at all times to answer any questions, with clients also given the contact details for Brittin Builders’ operations manager and accounts manager, plus Jason and Emily should they need to contact anyone urgently or after hours. 

“We will always aim to have the optimum number of staff on site to ensure the job is run on time and on budget. Our management team will attend the site regularly to ensure all sub-trades and staff are working to the high standard of workmanship we hold and ensure any potential issues are dealt with in a timely manner to keep the project on track.”

In the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle in February 2023, Brittin Builders’ impressive teamwork was demonstrated when they were made aware of a property with severe damage due to an enormous Pin oak crashing through the house. 

“As our yard and property is located in the next street, we also had no power or water and we were trying to overcome staff being unable to get to work and severe flooding,” says Brittin. “Despite this, our small team got straight to work to check on our existing clients and work sites and then to secure the damaged property with tarpaulins to prevent further damage. Within a couple of days, we had organised a meeting with the owners, the council, the engineer and the insurance company to aid the owners of the building in navigating the professionals with differing objectives and to help them feel as though they had a voice and some autonomy in a very difficult time. This also allowed the owners to gain clarity on the best course of action for the repair work. All of this pre-work, which was unprecedented due to this situation, was carried out at no charge to the client or any other organisation.”

Over the next 12 months, the highly skilled team achieved a total restoration of the architecturally designed John Scott home. 

“This was achieved on budget with an exceptionally high standard of workmanship, including a completely new hand-crafted staircase and native timbers used to reinstate original fixtures and fittings. The property went from red-stickered to completely restored and the owners are extremely pleased with the result and happy to be back home where they have finally found some refreshing normality again.”

Overall, Brittin Builders believes that having a reliable and skilled team that effectively manages timeframes and takes pride in their work to ensure the delivery of beautiful homes is key to any successful project. “Our team understands and upholds our values system, creating a great environment for all involved and making the build process for clients that much more pleasant,” says Brittin. 

“Making, building and maintaining positive relationships is key to a successful project. With any building projects you undertake, it is inevitable that there may be some aspects you can’t control – for example, the weather may delay you digging foundations therefore potentially pushing your estimated timeline out, or staff illnesses whether that be your own staff or those of sub-trades can slow things down, in addition to waiting on council inspections, materials etc. If we have excellent communication, this allows us to manage a client’s expectations and therefore manage and even strengthen their relationship with us as a company. It is also critical to us that we have a solution-focused approach and are adaptable to meet any challenges that may arise while still focusing on budgets and timeframes.

“We understand the building process can be very overwhelming for clients as there is a lot to consider, therefore we aim to lighten that load as much as possible so our clients have a positive experience bringing their vision to life!”

If you’re looking for a builder in the Hawke’s Bay region, get in touch with Brittin Builders to learn more about their process and bring your dream home to life.