Portfolio: Custom Homes

Jessica Tynan

First of all a big thank you to the entire team at Calm Living Homes for the end result of our renovation we just love the house now.
We have already forgotten about the 7.01am tap on the door to start the day during the main demo and construction phase.
We engaged Anton and his team to build a new bedroom and demolish/rebuild our existing bathroom so as to integrate with the existing part of our federation style house. My initial meeting with Anton and Steven the project manager left me with the confidence that they could easily achieve the result we wanted and I was hoping that the price they came back with was reasonable.
In fact the price was better than the builders that just quoted of drawings and a kerb side so we signed them up and had them on site within a month.
The suggestion by Anton to include heated flooring in the bathroom was brilliant as we just love stepping onto a warm floor on a cold night. Our neighbours had no complaints during the process as the guys were very mindful not to cause unnecessary disruption which is no easy feat with 8 metre wide blocks, even getting them back to hang mirrors and hooks after the final finish has not been hard work. We have no hesitation in recommending Calm Living Homes and will definitely use them again on our next building project.

Douglas Weller
The extension to our home was an upstairs extension with an extra bedroom, an outside landing, a small living area and a bathroom. The reason we chose Anton was because Anton listened to what we had to say, he had been recommended by our friends, and it was clear after our first meeting that he was the right person for the job. I was very concerned about doing a renovation because I had heard many horror stories. I was concerned about the process, but it was made clear to us that there would be minimal disruption to our lives and the running of our home. Everybody involved did everything they possibly could to ensure that we were not disrupted in any significant way. In fact, the whole process was structured so that the majority of the building took place before any of the work had to move inside. So, we could operate normally. Our lives continued pretty much normally until the last part of the build, when they came inside to open up the house to the new extension. The attitude of management was very good. The phone calls were returned, we were encouraged to ask about any issues that we had, and we were encouraged to raise any concerns that we had. Every time that we had an issue that we needed to discuss, it was discussed thoroughly. It was an easy and interesting process. The employees were terrific. They were very helpful, attentive, and courteous. They were a nice bunch of people. They were all guys, but they were all very nice. Communication was also very good. It rolls back into the attitude of management. Every time we needed to communicate with anybody about anything, calls were returned and questions were answered. Attention to detail was also very good. I’m quite pedantic and there were certain things that I wanted done. Also, there were things that my partner wanted done. The quality of the finish is very much along the lines of attention to detail. Because there was a lot of attention to detail, the quality of the finish is terrific. Many people have commented on the quality of the floor, because it has added a lot to our home. It’s a very comfortable floor and it’s been well laid with enormous attention to detail. We’re very happy with the finish of not only the floor, which was a major job, but also the extensions. If we were wondering when something was going to be done, you’d have a chat about it, you were given a timeline, and it was either done or completed before the timeline. The project was completed before the quoted time. We couldn’t believe how quickly it was done. The supervision of the whole project was excellent. There was of course Anton supervising the whole project, but the employees and contractors he had were very switched-on people. They were very courteous, they were very able, and they needed minimal direction from what I could see. The liveability and quality of the home is excellent. We have recommended Anton to neighbours at no 7 and friends in St Kilda, they have used him, and they’re also very happy. We would not hesitate to recommend Anton to anybody. In fact, Anton would be the first person that we would call if we needed building done in the future. If we had to wait for him, we would certainly wait for him before we moved on with anybody else.

Leonie Adams.
My builder Anton from Calm Living Homes built a home based on green principles and the needs of an extended family including elderly parents. It was built in Barrack in Victoria. I chose my builder because I particularly wanted a house built on green principles. There aren’t a great deal of builders out there that really understand that, but Anton did. He understood what sort of construction would meet those requirements so that it would last and would have very low maintenance, because as I get older I don’t want to have to be painting and do all those tasks that you don’t want to spend money or time on. He also understood how to make it very energy efficient and comfortable to live in so energy and costs would be low. The building process with Anton went really, really well because we spent a lot of time at the beginning going through what my requirements were and developing the plans with his architects. Everything was explained really clearly, particularly in relation to what things could be put into the home to make it liveable and were good value for your money. The appearance and the aesthetics to make sure it fit in to the environment and with the other homes in the area were secondary and weren’t as important for me. During the construction there weren’t many issues at all, because most things had been talked about beforehand. Everything went very smoothly. Anton was always very approachable in all areas of the build. Nothing was ever an imposition, and if ever I had a question it was always an instant response. I’d always hear back from him that day and explanations would be given so that I could understand why he was giving that answer. He had a very good attitude. The employees were fantastic. They were very friendly, very efficient, and very good at their work. Communicating with Anton and his workers was very easy. I had all of their phone numbers and could contact Anton 7 days a week. Communication was not an issue, and they were always available at any time. The quality of the finish is very good. What was done is excellent for the price that I paid. The responsiveness was excellent as well. If there were any issues at all, like the flow of water on the land, that was rectified very quickly and responded to within an appropriate amount of time. It took about six months to build because of the size of the home – it’s about 22 squares with the garage – and because it’s an unusual build. I think it actually was a reasonably quick build. With regards to time the build was completed in good time with no set finish date. The supervisor was Anton. His main builder Ron did the main carpentry on the build. Ron certainly picked up anything that wasn’t done correctly and notified Anton to make sure that things were rectified. During the build I was recommending Anton to other people because he listened, was very good, and had a lot of knowledge in that area. I was very nervous building, because of so many bad stories out there, but it went very, very smoothly. I certainly would use Anton again in the future, if I was to build again. For anyone considering Anton – you need someone you can trust, and I certainly had that trust from the very beginning. He was recommended to me by other people as he always did good work. He’s a very trustworthy person. He will always be thorough in what he does, because he cares about the quality of the building and the effects it has on the environment. If you want a home for the long term, I would definitely recommend Anton.