Pre-construction services are the work done between a client’s first idea and the day a build contract is signed. On a house or renovation that means site checks, design input, cost checks and selections, so the price in the contract is one you can both stand behind.
This article uses the term for houses, extensions and renovations, not for commercial construction management. It is general information, not legal advice.
What the term means on a house job
On a residential job, pre-construction is everything a builder does to turn a rough idea into a job that can be priced and built without surprises. It happens before the building contract, and it can be paid or unpaid.
Most builders do some of it already. They walk the site, talk through the budget, price a rough scope and tell the client what they cannot see yet. The question is whether it is done in a structured way and whether anyone is paying for it.
The pre-construction services, one by one
Site assessment. Slope, access, existing services, trees, neighbours, soil. The QBCC tells homeowners the builder must provide a soil test and contour survey, unless the client already has them, to justify earthworks and footing costs, and notes reports of some builders charging excessively for those items.
Feasibility and budget check. Is the client’s budget in the same range as what they want? This is the most useful conversation of the whole job, and the one most often skipped.
Design input. A builder who looks at drawings early can flag what is hard to build, what drives cost and what could be simpler. It saves the client redrawing later.
Approvals pathway. Which permits or approvals the job needs, and who applies for them. Consumer Affairs Victoria’s builder checklist says the work should have the required building or planning permits, or the contract should state who is responsible for obtaining them. For a NSW example, see our guide to the complying development certificate.
Scope and specification. Writing down what is in the job: materials, finishes, fixtures, inclusions and exclusions. The same checklist says the work should be clearly and comprehensively described, with the client’s special requirements and finishes in the drawings and specifications.
Selections. Tiles, tapware, windows, cabinetry. Decided early, they turn allowances into real numbers.
Cost checks. Trade pricing, supplier pricing and a firm look at provisional sums. Victoria’s checklist says fixtures and fittings not yet identified or priced should be clearly stated as provisional sum or prime cost items with reasonable allowances, and that rural or steeply sloping sites need allowances for transport, excavation and access.
Program and sequencing. What happens in what order, and what could delay it. Start and finish dates, and how delays are handled, belong in the contract.
What the client has at the end
A paid early stage should leave the client holding something real, whether or not they sign with you. For example:
- A written scope and specification.
- Site information, such as a soil test or a survey.
- A cost range, then a firm price or a clear note on what is still open.
- A list of approvals needed and who handles them.
- A draft program.
- A draft contract, or a clear statement of what the contract would cover.
If the client leaves with none of that, the stage was not worth paying for. Define the deliverables before you take the fee.
Why it is paid work
Doing this properly takes hours of a builder’s time and often outside costs, such as a surveyor or an engineer. Giving all of it away for free to every enquiry means the jobs that never proceed are paid for by the jobs that do.
A fee also tells you something. A client who pays for early work is usually serious about building. A client who only wants a free number from five builders is not yet at that stage. We cover how to introduce and set the fee in charging for preliminary work.
Say what the client is buying. Western Australia’s building regulator tells people building a new home that costs paid for drawings prepared before a building contract may not be refundable if they do not go ahead, and to check who will own the drawings. A builder who answers those questions before being asked starts well.
Where it stops and the build contract starts
The paid stage ends when the client has what they need to decide. Then there are two outcomes: they sign a build contract, or they walk away with the work product.
Keep the two documents separate. The early agreement covers a defined piece of work for a fee. The build contract covers the build, and its rules are set by your state: written contract thresholds, required contents, cooling-off periods, deposit limits and insurance. Two things to know before you write either document. Some states treat early work that goes beyond a soil report as building work in its own right; Consumer Affairs Victoria, for example, says a pre-construction contract that covers design, specifications or permits is a building contract. And a fee for early work is not a deposit, so do not use one to get around a deposit limit.
The headings for the early agreement are in what goes in a preliminary agreement, and each state’s deposit limit, with the regulator’s page, is in building contract deposit limits by state. This is general information, not legal advice: check with your regulator or a solicitor for your situation.
What clients will ask you
Expect these questions, and answer them on one page before the client has to ask:
- What does the fee cover, and what will I hold at the end?
- Is it refundable, or taken off the build price if I go ahead?
- Who owns the drawings and reports?
- Are you licensed for this work? Expect them to check the register.
It is easier to sell a service you can describe than one you improvise on each job. Our pre-construction page covers how PreBuild Systems helps builders set up a paid early stage.
Common questions
What are pre-construction services?
On a house job, the work before the build contract: site checks, budget and feasibility, design input, approvals, scope, selections and cost checks.
What is the pre-construction phase?
The stretch from the first enquiry to a signed build contract. It ends when the client has what they need to decide and the price is firm.
Should a builder charge for pre-construction work?
Many do, because it takes real hours and outside costs. Define what the client receives, and tell them up front whether the fee is refundable and who owns the drawings.
What does a pre-construction manager do?
The title is common on large commercial projects. On a house job the builder or a senior estimator usually covers the same ground.