I’ve just gone through the process of doing this in West Sunshine. I started by calling the council for some information – they were pretty helpful on explaining the process. I then rang all the draftsmen I could find in the area and explained the situation, then interviewed about five of them. I eventually decided on going with one that had worked with the council before. The main reason for choosing this draftsman was his association wth a builder that seemed to understand what I was after and gave me a good estimate on the finished house. As it turned out, the draftsman was a bit of a pain to deal with (very slow), but I got there eventually, and he took care of the entire process for me (council applications etc).

I’m now just trying to decide on a builder. Can anyone recommend a good builder?? I’m already considering Nava Homes and Classic Homes.