Our team has combined experience in the building industry of over 40 years. You can learn more about us here.
Our team has combined experience in the building industry of over 40 years. You can learn more about us here.
As a custom home builder we work with you to build your home from existing plans, modifying plans to suit or designing your home from scratch. We aim to build homes that match your site, lifestyle and budget. Learn more here.
There are a variety of factors that will affect the cost of your new home build. The size, number of spaces, internal finishes & external materials are just a few things that will affect the construction cost. Understanding your overall project budget allows us to work collaboratively to build your dream home.
Yes, we can work with your existing plans and quote on the build of your new home.
Learning more about your project, budget and vision in an initial consultation is where we usually start to find out if we are the right fit for each other. We have a simple new build questionnaire that is available online for you to complete. With this questionnaire we can get an understanding of what you are looking for and learn a bit more about the site & new home build.
We have a custom home we built at Catherine Hill Bay you can request to walk through (via appointment only). You can even stay a couple of nights. Learn more here.
We’ve written a free guide here that will give you some expert information on the full custom home building process.
The budget required is dependent on a range of factors. Typically most of our homes have construction costs ranging from $550,000 – $1,500,000+. Establishing a budget early can help us work collaboratively with you to design & build a home aligned to your vision and lifestyle, but also takes into account how much it costs to build.
Before you start to build there are a range of professional fees you should take into account. These are fees you should budget for, no matter what builder you use. Things such as design fees, survey fees, engineering and council fees can vary. As a rough guide you should budget for a range of $13,000 – $20,000+.
We are based locally in Newcastle. We work all across the Hunter region covering Newcastle, Hunter Valley, Lake Macquarie and Port Stephens.
Yes, you can take a look at our recent reviews here.
You can call us directly on 1300 794 246, email us directly at sales@indieliving.com.au or fill out the contact form here.
Building a custom designed home is exciting but scary at the same time. Ben and Greg guided us through the process from start to finish. We love our amazing new home! We are so happy with the high quality and it is exactly the house we wanted. The team at Indie Living did a great job and we would highly recommend them.
Ziona Russell
Working with Indie Living to build our dream home has been an experience that was beyond our expectations. This not our first new home build so we came into process having previous experience. Ben, Greg and Kerry are the dream team! Nothing was too hard for Ben despite the complexity of our build. From always been accessible to making the process painless and smooth, we always felt they were building our home like it was their own. Zero compromises on quality, a goal for perfection and most importantly making sure we were happy throughout. We highly recommend Indie Living to everyone! We are forever grateful for their hard work. If I was to build again I would not think twice about working with Ben, Greg and the Indie Living team again.
Shehaan Fernando
Indie Living contracted to take on the restoration of our home following a house fire. The fire started in our neighbours garage and caught in our roof cavity; the air conditioning vents caused a spot fire in each room. The extensive damage was repaired, replaced and restored by the Indie Living team in a considerate, professional and expert manner. We are thrilled with the finished product and delighted to be back in our home.
Carolyn Gillard
Indie Living was recommended to us by a friend of ours. We looked at and spoke to a few people in our local area that had recently completed builds with Indie Living each spoke enthusiastically about their experience with the company. The original quote was meticulously presented and costed which allowed us to understand precisely what we were getting. We have been in our house for almost 3 months after a comprehensive renovation on our 3 bedroom federation style home. We enjoyed working with Ben and Greg and found Indie Living to be highly organised and very good communicators. The work was conducted to a high standard and came in a few thousand dollars short of what was originally quoted and within 2 weeks of the timeframe provided. We are entirely satisfied with the quality of the work and would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone interested in a new home or renovation - and indeed we have!
Laura & Luke Bailey
We have been involved with Property for over 40 years. Never have we come across a company as professional as Indie Living. Right from the get go it was an incredible partnership. When building a new home, you often have two broad choices. You build a project home that looks like everybody else’s or you employ an architect and then find a builder. One can inevitably experience conflict between architects and builders, each blaming the other if things don’t go to everyone’s expectations. This can become time consuming, costly and can take the joy out of the whole project that should be one of excitement and adventure. That’s what makes Indie Living so exceptional. The whole team is one of supreme integration. We came to Ben Barter with concept sketches that Deborah had drawn up. Their own internal architect drew up the practical plans that were council approved without any trouble. Some details she added really brought some magic to the overall design. Their incredible team of skilled craftsmen headed up by the greatest supervisor of all time, Greg, turned our dream into a reality. Their integration making possible our inspiration. At every step of the way Ben kept us positively informed of the progress and settled our minds if we had any concerns. He is a delight to work with. And even at the last moment when we changed our minds about a few things, their “can do” attitude shone through brightly. It’s natural that you will want to check out several builders. We did too. Yet if you want to build much more than just a house then go with the Indie Living team. You will see your own individuality and unique personality materialise into a beautiful family home. Everybody dreams of winning the lottery. We believe we won it the day we chose to partner with Indie Living. So will you.
Paul & Deborah Mitchell
We got Ben and the Indie Living team to renovate a place that had been in the planning for years. It took us forever to finally decide on a builder and we are over the moon with the outcome. The whole way through the build Ben and Greg were easily contactable and always willing to chat through the issues with renovating an old house on a tough slope. Greg's craftmanship and Ben's eye for detail were a great combination. They were timely and completed the job when promised (give or take a day or two). What's more since completion they have been prompt at ironing out any little issues that have cropped up. We would certainly recommend them to do the job for a "forever home".
Kahn Preece
Very happy with the quality and attention to detail of our new custom build from Indie Living. Ben quoted and delivered on budget and completed ahead of schedule. We’re receiving many compliments on the end result and it’s a lovely home. Have recommended Greg and Ben to others embarking on the same process.
A B
We had a great experience building a new house with Indie Living. Ben is detail oriented, meticulous and proactive in making sure deadlines are met and all costs are fully explained. The team was committed to quality workmanship and took initiative to work through any design or building issues and suggest solutions. Our house was on time and on budget. The whole process was pain-free and we are very happy with the end result.
HR
We couldn't be happier with our build from Indie Living. Right from the start we believed Ben had costed everything such that there would be no surprises at the end - and we were right. Greg's project management culminated in a quality product. They're a great team!
John Gillies
As this was our first time building a home we took our time finding the right fit for us. Finally making the decision to build a custom home with Indie Living. We have been so happy with the whole process from start to finish. We were very involved throughout, Ben and Greg were both excellent at keeping us up to date with any progress and any changes required. Nothing felt like it was too hard and we never felt like being there was an issue. We are over the moon with the end result and moving into our brand new home has been a dream come true. We highly recommended Indie Living to anyone looking at building a new home.
Carly Anthony
Renovations are stressful at the best of times and my husband and I decided to start ours shortly after our second baby was born. Thankfully, Ben and Greg were on-board with making the process of renovation as smooth as possible and we have a beautiful family home as a result. We would recommend Indie Living to anyone looking to renovate or build they have done a fantastic job.
Jem Burgess
Extending a house is a costly and stressful project and we are lucky to have found Indie living considering some of the stories you hear about renos gone wrong and dodgy tradies. Ben and his team were exceptional in the way they handled the extension of our property. They assisted us in making our design better, kept to schedule, communicated very well, were flexible in the way they worked with required or unforseen changes and also met all of our requests in a prompt fashion. I highly recommend them and the quality of their work is always high. We love our new house!
Martin Payne
We had Ben and the team do extensive renovations on our home which included ensuite and deck extensions and 1 year later a deck roof addition. Couldn't be happier with their professionalism and willingness to adapt to our changes. The quality of work was fantastic and even with some bad weather the timeframe didn't budge. Well priced work for a great job. Would absolutely recommend.
Neville Winter
We consider ourselves lucky to have been able to work with Ben and Greg of Indie Living. They both bent over backward to complete a large renovation on a short time schedule. Being afar whilst the reno was happening was stressful and Ben was amazing at keeping us informed and involved with phone calls and photos throughout the process. So happy with the incredible job well done!!!:)
Krista Monkhouse
I highly recommend Ben, Greg and their team at Indie living. They are a reliable and professional team and expect everyone involved to produce work of the highest quality. Our house looks amazing. They go above and beyond expectations to make the building process run smoothly.
Stephen Knipe
We've had the pleasure of working with Indie Living on a number of projects and we find them to be very professional builders. They help to ease the stress of building by assisting in any way they can, including keeping on top of Council and Private Certifier approvals on the clients behalf in order to keep the project moving forward. They are extremely knowledgeable and ensure no corners are cut so you can rest assured your new home or renovation will be very high quality.
K Jade
Building a custom designed home is exciting but scary at the same time. Ben and Greg guided us through the process from start to finish. We love our amazing new home! We are so happy with the high quality and it is exactly the house we wanted. The team at Indie Living did a great job and we would highly recommend them.
Ziona Russell
Working with Indie Living to build our dream home has been an experience that was beyond our expectations. This not our first new home build so we came into process having previous experience. Ben, Greg and Kerry are the dream team! Nothing was too hard for Ben despite the complexity of our build. From always been accessible to making the process painless and smooth, we always felt they were building our home like it was their own. Zero compromises on quality, a goal for perfection and most importantly making sure we were happy throughout. We highly recommend Indie Living to everyone! We are forever grateful for their hard work. If I was to build again I would not think twice about working with Ben, Greg and the Indie Living team again.
Shehaan Fernando
Everything you need to know about building a custom home. Packed full of helpful tips this is the first place to start when trying to decide on what steps to take when building your custom home.
We run through the entire custom home building process in detail. From concept all the way though to the build and handover.
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