Today’s Homes and Lifestyle / advertising feature ‘We can hold someone’s hand from starting the design to getting the costing and inclusions right and then building it’
Brendan builds on success with more awards CANBERRA building company Today’s Homes and Lifestyle has won the HIA 2012 Australian Professional Medium Builder Award. This is the second time since 2009 that the company has won the national award. For the past four years, the company has also won the HIA ACT and Southern NSW Housing Awards Professional Small Builder of the Year. “It’s a totally independent opinion of what a product and a price and a design is,” says Brendan McCoullough, a principal of Today’s Homes and Lifestyle. “It’s a recognition that is awarded against your peers. It’s the strongest testimonial you can get.” Todays Homes has been in business for 10 years, growing from about five homes a year to now building 35 homes a year. Brendan is the builder and oversees the running of the business. He is involved with the client from the beginning to end. His wife Heidi takes care of marketing and compliance. “We are providing modern homes that are totally energy efficient at similar prices to a project home,” Brendan says. The typical client is a second or thirdhome buyer that is looking for a custom home priced from $250,000 to $800,000. In the past five years, Today’s Homes has seen a huge increase in the number of locals wanting to build energy-efficient homes. “We’ve got a really niche market that comes to us for that and it’s something that will obviously grow,” Brendan says. “There’s a definite push from people to move into modern, energy-efficient homes if for no other reason than it’s a cost-of-living saving. But it’s a better lifestyle – it’s a healthier lifestyle. “It’s a passion and that’s what our business is built around.” Half of the Today’s Homes business is knockdown and rebuilds in the inner suburbs and the other 50 per cent in the greenfield estates. “Australia has typically built an English model house with solid brick and small windows and it didn’t matter where it faced,” says Brendan. “They simply don’t work here and it’s
12 CityNews July 5-11
“We are providing modern homes that are totally energy efficient at similar prices to a project home,” says Brendan McCoullough.
Today’s Homes and Lifestyle principals Brendan and Heidi McCoullough collect the HIA 2012 Australian Professional Medium Builder Award, which recognises customer service, leadership, business management and financial management. a hard egg to break because that’s what people are used to.” Brendan says that a recent survey of customers shows they choose to work with Today’s Homes because of the high level of customer service, quality construction and personal contact with the builder. “We’ve got systems in place where we can hold someone’s hand from starting the design to getting the costing and inclusions right and then building it,” he says. “We also have a full-time costing estima-
tor, which is why our prices are so competitive. We price every house individually so it’s not a guess of what it’s going to be. “We also offer competitive prices on major items and that’s a big saving for the client. “Our policy is that we get the prices right from the beginning. We get all the extras done pre-starting so the client doesn’t have to dig any deeper for money.” Today’s Homes and Lifestyle. Suite 1 and 3, HIA Home Ideas Centre, 28 Collie Street, Fyshwick. Website at todayshomes.com.au