Single Storey VS Two Storey NZ: What Your Dunedin Section Tells You

House orientation NZ guide for Otago: which way your house should face, what north-facing really means, and how to catch winter sun on a Dunedin section.

Most families start with a picture in their minds of how they envision their homes to be. Morning light in the kitchen. Perhaps a lawn big enough for a trampoline. And everyone has a place around the table at Christmas.

You have a section, or a house that needs more room, and someone has told you to get plans drawn. They mean well, but you end up more confused than before.

Your plans are ready. Your builder has a start date locked in. But between your plan and the completion of that building project that you’ve thought about for a long time, stands a council decision that you really don’t know anything about.

Some say that it only takes 20 working days to secure a building consent Dunedin Council issues. But when you ask a neighbour who has been through it, they swear that it took them almost three months. Let’s find out.

Compare bespoke design and design-and-build in Dunedin, including differences in cost, control, contracts and the design process.

Explore house building costs in Dunedin and Otago, including regional rates, site expenses and budgeting tips for your new build.

Your complete guide to the site, sun, and budget decisions that shape new builds in Dunedin.

Somewhere between buying the section and booking a first meeting, almost everyone planning a build in New Zealand hits the same question.

Walk through your home on its real contours before you lodge, and the consent stops being a guessing game.