Question 1

Are you an insured business and do you guarantee your work?

Accepted Answer

Yes, we are fully insured, registered with the Building Practitiones Board and a member of 'Design Matters Australia'.

Question 2

How did you decide to get into your line of work?

Accepted Answer

Many drafting offices outsource planning to planning consultants, or they work between the two to achieve the end objective. With many years experience between both complex fields, we provide cost savings to clients and can provide an initial design that will generally gain council support. This niche market is becoming increasingly desired with so many overlays, and planning schemes that trigger planning permits.

Question 3

What questions should a customer ask to hire the right service professional?

Accepted Answer

The most obvious and important three are; are you registered, are you insured, are you industry affiliated. Experience with planning applications is a must. Also ask when they would typically engage a professional planning consultant. Although this is sometimes needed, many firms engage one from the start, and we believe in a typical 2-6 lot development is seldomly needed. This would generally be outside their scope of works and may be several thousand dollars.

Question 4

What questions do customers commonly ask and how would you answer them?

Accepted Answer

Q. How long does the process take to get a planning permit?  A. Allow around 6-8 months in most cases from start to finish. Where a project is complex, controversial or there are a lot of objections received, it may take an addition 3-4 months to work through.   Q. Am I guaranteed a permit at the end of this process?   A. Unfortunately no, we cannot guarantee a permit, however we do provide you with the education and information for you to make an informed judgment on what you wish to put forward as a proposed development.  We point out the strengths and weaknesses, along with what our expected position or alternatives might be if council comes back with expected issues. This is all done at the commencement of the application, and we seldomly get expected negative issues that we had not considered in the initial phase.   Q. How large a unit/apartment/townhouse can I build?   A. Most applications follow a formula where you outline the areas needed in order of driveway and turning circles, open space and required setbacks, then whatever is left over in area is possible building footprint.  We can provide an obligation free site feasibility study for a low cost that will allow you to see how the design could or should be laid out on the site.  With this information you can then source a rough construction cost along with a rough sale price, and make an informed decision on the viability of the project. You should also consider that bigger does not always represent a better financial return, but does increase the project price, and risks associated with a proposal.   Q. What geographical areas do you work in?   A. We work across Victoria, dealing with a lot of different councils. With the information available online these days, we can look at the surrounding area, investigate council requirements look at streetscapes and typical development without leaving the office, which means you no longer need to engage a consultant close to either yourself or the proposed site. We still visit all of our sites and collect additional information, measurements and photos, however we can do this during the process of design.   Q. I have purchased a property, it hasn’t settled yet, can I put in an application?   A. Yes, however you require permission from the current owner, and you are taking the additional risk that if there is an issue with settlement that you have engaged this office and other contractors to do work. However the interest saved by a long settlement and the application proceeding early, particularly with a vacant or tenant free site can be substantial.   Q. When should I get a quote from my builder?    A. This is not an easy question to answer. On one hand, as a client you want to put together all the costs associated with the development to assist you with the development plan. From the builders’ perspective, if there is any doubt, they will either remove an item from a quote, or usually put in a generous amount to cover these costs. At the end, you could pay a substantial amount more to cover the unknowns for the builder. We recommend getting the planning permit, address the conditions, get the building permit, engineering, soil report, energy report and at least a general specification so that you can provide this to a few alternative builders to get a competitive quote you can compare apples for apples.  We can assist you with this complete process, and have a few builders we deal with on a regular basis that may be keen to provide a quotation.   Q. I have used another designer and they took nearly two years, the application went to VCAT, and was refused, can you help?   A. Yes, we can have a look at the application that was put forward, the comments from objectors, council and VCAT and see if we think we can address the design issues raised. We will not take on a project that we feel has a low chance or if the client has unrealistic expectations – or at least warn them as such. We have seen a few applications in the past with critical issues that appear as obvious design restraints that we know council will not support prior to submission. All parties need to be comfortable with design and chances prior to proceeding otherwise you tend to throw good money after bad, which is not good for our clients or our reputation.   Q. How often do you get an application refused at council or VCAT?   A. Andrew Ferris Drafting and Design P/L prepare around 60 applications per year. In a typical year we might have 3-4 end up at council meetings and/or objector meetings. Of those we tend to get 1-2 over the line, with council support.  We might be left with 1-2 that then are referred to VCAT, either with council support but objectors, or with no council support and objectors. Of those, we then might have a 60% chance at VCAT depending on the issues at hand. In nearly every circumstance, the path that has led to VCAT however has been the client has paid “too much for the block and needs the return”, has desired a more controversial project, is a pioneer in the street (being the first for a proposed development), or has ignored the advice of this office or other consultants engaged. We work hard to keep particularly smaller unit or townhouse developments out of VCAT, and try to address any issues with objectors or council prior to the officers report being written.   Q. Another design firm has quoted for the planning report to be prepared by a planner, or has itemized this as an exclusion , why don’t you use a planner ?   A. We provide all of our own planning reports and include our meetings and negotiations within our pricing structure. This can save our client thousands of dollars in consultant fees.  We get our clients to engage a professional planner when all avenues are essentially exhausted and the application is looking at a refusal. We attempt to bring in a planner for a mediation in some cases, or where a refusal is given, prepare the VCAT representation and application. Due to the low ratio of occurring, this is not essential on all applications.   Q. Do you do larger developments?   A. Yes, we have worked on retirement or holiday villages, or subdivision sites that may have anywhere between 12-200 units. Please contact this office for a unique pricing structure and direction as this style of application is handled differently on many levels.  Larger developments are assessed under a separate Clause 56 at council, and have issues such as sewer and stormwater

Question 5

What makes you the most reliable and trustworthy person for the job?

Accepted Answer

We provide clients with around 60 permit applications per year, with a success rate of around 96%. We are direct and realistic in our advice, as applications which do not provide you with a sucessful outcome will only mean you will not do another development, or use another firm. Our success depends on your success !!

Question 6

Why should a customer hire you over another service provider?

Accepted Answer

It is scary to know that you do not have to be a registered building practitioner to lodge planning documentation, which means when you get to preparing the building permit application stage, you may find that you need to go back and lodge an amended planning permit to address issues that should have been dealt with in the initial process. This can cost hundreds of dollars in fees and revised work, not to mention the possible thousands in interest lost in the months with no progress in your application. Andrew Ferris is insured, registered and industry affiliated, and can prepare the final building permit documentation.

Question 7

What are the typical things that you need to know before you can provide a quote to a customer?

Accepted Answer

As much information as possible will assist in determining what the best solution for the site might be, - section 32, title, copies of sewer, stormwater etc will all help us to help you get a better understanding of what might be possible.

Question 8

How can a customer save money before you start the work? Please give 3 tips

Accepted Answer

* Get a site feasibility study done to assess what might be possible. We offer this service from $150 * Ensure you get a full feature and level (to AHD) survey done - if you don't you might have big issues during the design phase and you need all this done as part of drainage and subdivision anyway - so get it right first !! * Once we have advised you what might be possible, talk to your accountant - getting finance and the correct structure to do a project is essential. Talk to a real estate agent to see what you proposed building might sell for - there is no point pursuing a project that is unviable.

Question 9

What makes your pricing competitive?

Accepted Answer

We provide a competitive quotation, however our focus is providing the best quality of work and accuracy in our documentation. A small thing like setting floor levels correctly may cost or save potentially thousands of dollars, so we strive to pay for ourselves in value in a professional service.

Question 10

How do you normally charge for your service?

Accepted Answer

We prepare specific and detailed quotations for all of our clients with a list of inclusions and exclusions. We also can provide a detailed booklet outlining the process and other costs which might be involved outside our scope of works.

Question 11

Is there a particular aspect of your trade or industry that you specialise in?

Accepted Answer

Planning applications for single dwellings, multi-unit sites, apartments and even retirement villages. Many firms state they have no issue with dealing with planning. We also assist other firms in planning applications!!!

Question 12

What experience, skills, qualifications or training do you have to make you the right person for the job?

Accepted Answer

Houses  I want to get a site specific house designed for me...  We will sit down with you and try to get an idea on how you live and what may make your life easier. Each person or family is unique and has different needs. While the big builders may provide value for money in a package, changes and alterations are expensive and their designs are suitable for stable soil, flat sites and allow no site specific response. You want sun on your washing, shade from the hot afternoon sun, good light in your back yard, privacy from neighbours, obtain views where desirable, or block out views to the undesirable.  With many new council planning controls, many houses need to obtain planning consent prior to a building permit. This may be due to an overlay like vegetation controls, flood, height or setback, open space or site coverage etc. Andrew Ferris Drafting and Design P/L specializes in these types of projects and is familiar with the process involved in getting over these hurdles.  At present we do not submit permit applications for small renovations, decks, pergolas, verandahs and garages. We can certainly refer you to a company that may assist.      Multi Units and Apartments   I am thinking of developing my backyard or have a site I want to develop...  Andrew Ferris Drafting and Design P/L specialize in this aspect of the building industry. From modern, high yield apartments, to low density developments, Andrew Ferris Drafting and Design P/L can tailor a site specific, unique solution for your design needs. Contact us via the phone or email, and we will be able to tell you what is realistic for your site. For a small fee a site investigation report can be prepared giving you an initial indication of what may be possible including a planning report and information on overlays and footprint design.  The next step after accepting the quotation is to engage a land surveyor to establish the boundaries (how far are the fences off the title), levels (to Australian Height Datum), and site features including large vegetation. We may source an arborist report to consider what vegetation to keep or remove, and what tree protection measures will be put in place when construction takes place. Along with sewer, storm water, title and planning information, we develop a design response suitable for your site.  Andrew Ferris Drafting and Design P/L works with clients who have planning projects all over Victoria, however most of our work is in the Frankston, Mornington, Casey, Knox, Bayside, Whitehorse, Boorondara, Stonington, Dandenong, Monash, Cardinia, Maroondah, Stonnington, and Glen Eira councils.

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Frequently asked questions

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Andrew Ferris Building Design