For new home builders, knowing what kinds of upgrades are available can be daunting.
From interior to exterior, functionality to finishes, there are a range of ways you can upgrade your new home.
Choosing these upgrades early in the building process means you can start planning before building contracts are signed.
Learning exactly what upgrades are on offer and how they can impact your budget and your home’s liveability is important as you make these critical decisions.
Claude Lucchesi, a New Homes Consultant at Homebuyers Centre Victoria, says that choosing these upgrades is part of what makes building a new home so special.
“Finishing your home to your standard is crucially important because the whole romance of building new is exactly that,” Lucchesi says.
“You’re going to be in your home for a long period of time, you want to make sure you’re happy with it.”
Structural features
Some of the first upgrades to look for are those built into the core design of your home.
One crucial upgrade that many new buyers look for is ceiling height.
The standard ceiling height in Australia is 2.4 metres but many builders also offer 2.5- and 2.7-metre options.
“Lifting the ceiling height of any home will give you the impression that the home is bigger than it actually is,” Lucchesi says.
“It’s giving you that volume, and that volume changes the look and feel of the home.”
Other internal structural upgrades include additional built-in cabinetry or shower niches.
These can help with storage or make bathroom areas feel more practical and liveable in the long term.
Outside the home can be just as important, with many builders offering premium façade options that can elevate the exterior appeal of the home.
A premium facade upgrade can increase street appeal of your new home.
Lucchesi notes that choosing between exterior and interior upgrades can be one major decision point for buyers when deciding what they want to prioritise.
“I’ve had some customers say they’d rather spend their budget on making the home look better internally,” says Lucchesi.
“Others say that street presence of their home is important to them, and they want a high-end façade that appeals to their taste.
“It is very much a personal preference.”
High-quality finishes
How you finish your home can be just as important as the core design, with elements like materials enhancing the style and liveability.
In the kitchen and laundry, this can mean upgrading to premium benchtops and surfaces.
“We have 20-millimeter Stone Ambassador countertops, which is an upgrade,” Lucchesi says.
“Some customers may want to upgrade to 40 millimetres; some may want to have a waterfall-style benchtop where the actual stone wraps around the island bench on each end.”
These upgrades can be an easy way to give the home a more luxurious feel.
Another item to consider is kitchen appliances and how upgrading to more premium options might better suit your lifestyle.
The Homebuyers Centre includes 600-millimetre stainless steel Westinghouse appliances as standard, but buyers can choose to upgrade to 900-millimetre appliances that are more suited to entertaining or larger families.
Materials and finishes, like kitchen benchtops, are an upgrade that many new home builders look for.
Functional upgrades
Some upgrades might not be immediately obvious when looking at a display home but can still have a major impact on ease of living and efficiency.
Lucchessi shares that the one to look out for is air conditioning and cooling.
“The customer has three choices they can make about their preferred method of cooling the home,” he says.
Buyers can choose between split-system air conditioning, evaporative cooling and reverse-cycle heating and cooling based on their unique needs.
“It will depend on the size of the home, the outside temperatures and your budget,” Lucchesi adds.
Other functional upgrades include LED lighting which can require less maintenance and have longer lifespans, while also giving buyers more flexibility on the design and atmosphere of their interior spaces.
LED lighting can also contribute to the energy efficiency of the home, another range of upgrades for buyers looking to lower their energy consumption and costs.
Functional upgrades, like lighting or storage, are also important to consider when building your new home.
Finding expert advice
Trusted experts like the Homebuyers Centre can help you understand which upgrades are available and how to choose the upgrades that are right for you.
Lucchesi shares that walking through a display home with an expert who can point out what inclusions and upgrades are on offer is crucial.
“We present display homes where you can easily identify what’s standard and you can easily identify what items are upgrades,” Lucchesi says.
“You can walk away and have a clear picture of just how your home is going to look.”
Experts like Lucchesi can recommend upgrade packages that suit your budget and help you make upfront decisions about what premium features are most important.
The Homebuyers Centre team is currently making choosing your upgrades even easier with their Homebuyers Boost offer.
For a limited time, buyers who choose from a range of selected home designs will have up to $25,000* worth of premium upgrades included at no extra cost.
To find out more about this offer, and to get expert advice on the premium upgrades possible for your new home, contact the Homebuyers Centre and book a consultation with one of their New Home Experts.
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