Guides

How building actually works,
written by people who have done it.

Practical guides on the parts of running a building business that decide whether a job makes money: cost control, construction finance, scheduling, and the insurance and compliance behind residential work.

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01 / Cost control & accounts

Cost control & accounts

Keeping job costs, invoices and the books accurate and current.

The Reconstruction Tax: why builders rebuild every job

The hidden cost of rebuilding the understanding of a job at every handover, and what actually reduces it.

A guide to construction accounts payable

How AP actually works on a building company, and how to stop keying invoices by hand.

The builder purchase order workflow

From commitment to invoice match: how to run POs so cost control actually holds.

Construction WIP reporting explained

What work-in-progress reporting is, why builders get it wrong, and how to keep it current.

Job cost tracking for builders

The numbers that tell you whether a job is making money, and how to see them in time.

Construction estimating that holds to contract

Why accurate estimating is a system (process, cost database, assemblies) rather than a talent, and how to keep a price honest from takeoff to handover.

02 / Construction finance

Construction finance

Feasibility, getting paid, and the financial capacity that sets how much you can build.

Progress claims in Australia: a builder’s guide

Stage claims, variations, security of payment and getting paid on time in Australia.

Security of payment in Australia: a builder’s guide to getting paid

How payment claims, payment schedules and adjudication work, the deadlines that decide who wins by default, and when the residential owner-occupier exclusion applies.

Open Job Value: the ceiling on your building business

How home-warranty underwriting caps how much work you can build at once, and the financial management that lifts the limit.

Build cost feasibility: the layers beyond $/m²

The site, statutory, finance, time-risk and transaction layers above the construction rate, and how to keep a feasibility honest to handover.

Building through a downturn: the disciplines that decide who comes through

Why building businesses fail on cashflow rather than workload, and the variation, cost-to-complete, WIP and payment disciplines that carry a builder through a contraction.

Managing variations in a residential build

The document-price-approve-before-build rule, the “what’s the total?” moment, and how variations flow through claims, budgets and insurance.

03 / Scheduling & delivery

Scheduling & delivery

Building a programme that survives reality, and measuring real progress.

Residential construction scheduling

How to build a schedule that survives the first delay: dependencies, baselines and resequencing.

Approvals vs completions: why an approval isn’t a home

The gap between permission to proceed and a finished home, and why a building business should run on real progress, not intent.

Drawing revision control: keeping the field on the current set

Why drawing revisions go missing between the office and the field, and the propagation protocol that keeps everyone working from one current set.

04 / Insurance & compliance

Insurance & compliance

The cover, contracts and statutory obligations behind residential building work.

When you need a written building contract in Australia

When a written residential building contract is required, what it should contain, and why the detail protects the builder too.

NSW HBCF eligibility: a builder’s guide

The Certificate of Eligibility, the automated scorecard, ANTA and the builder tiers that set how much you can build at once in NSW.

Home warranty insurance: a state-by-state guide

What last-resort builder warranty cover is, when it becomes compulsory, and how the thresholds, limits and periods differ across every state.

Domestic Building Insurance in Victoria: a builder’s guide

The four last-resort triggers, the $300,000 limit, the two and six year periods, and what the Victorian scheme means for how a builder runs jobs.

Queensland Home Warranty Scheme: a builder’s guide

The QBCC scheme covering Queensland home owners, the $3,300 trigger, the standard and optional cover limits, the structural and non-structural periods, and why Queensland runs closer to first resort than the other states.

South Australian Building Indemnity Insurance: a builder’s guide

When BII becomes compulsory in South Australia, the $12,000 trigger, the last-resort death, disappearance or insolvency cover, the policy limit, and what the 2025 review proposed to change.

ACT residential building insurance and statutory warranties: a builder’s guide

The residential building insurance a builder must hold in the ACT over $12,000, the deposit cover limit, and the statutory warranties that apply under the Building Act 2004 whether or not the contract states them.

Western Australian Home Indemnity Insurance: a builder’s guide

When HII is required in Western Australia over $20,000, the last-resort cover for death, disappearance or insolvency, the six year period, the builder and permit-authority obligations, and the penalties for going without.

Tasmania home warranty and statutory warranties: a builder’s guide

Why Tasmania runs no compulsory warranty insurance product, the statutory warranties that protect owners for six years instead, and the contract, deposit and dispute rules that go with them.

NT residential building insurance and the fidelity fund certificate: a builder’s guide

The Northern Territory scheme most builders assume does not exist, the $12,000 trigger, the fidelity fund certificate needed before a permit or a payment, the triggers, and the $200,000 combined cap.

05 / Software & systems

Software & systems

Choosing, implementing and getting real value from builder software.

Choosing construction management software: an Australian builder’s guide

The vendor-neutral criteria, the checklist items that are really positioning, and the hands-on test that beats every feature comparison.

06 / More guides

More guides

Guides not yet filed into a cluster.

Quotes over allowance: protecting margin on trade packages

The accept, re-quote or value-engineer decision when a trade quote or client selection lands over the budgeted allowance, and how to see the margin impact before you commit.

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