FAQs

Tenfold Homes is a Perth custom home builder based in Victoria Park, designing and building premium, energy-smart homes for families across the metro area. We specialise in custom new builds, multigenerational homes, granny flats and knockdown-rebuilds, delivered through a transparent design-to-build process that keeps you informed at every step.

1. Designing Your Custom Home in Perth

Why build a custom home?
A custom home gives you the freedom to create something truly yours. Instead of fitting into a standard plan, you’ll have a design that reflects your lifestyle, priorities and sense of style. Working with a Perth custom home builder, you’ll enjoy the flexibility to shape spaces that feel personal, comfortable and lasting. At Tenfold Homes, our design-and-build process means your home is created to suit your family, your site and your vision.

What makes a home “custom”?
A custom home starts with a blank page. Every detail is shaped around your block, your lifestyle and your budget, rather than a pre-set plan. The design responds to your site conditions, while your routines and priorities guide how spaces are arranged and flow together. With cost feedback provided throughout, you stay in control of where to invest and where to simplify — creating a home that is uniquely yours.

Custom builder vs volume builder — what’s the difference?
Volume builders deliver speed and scale using a fixed library of plans with limited flexibility. Prices can look low at first yet often exclude siteworks, engineering impacts and many selections. A custom builder like Tenfold designs from scratch for your land and lifestyle, documents every inclusion, aims for fixed pricing before you sign and caps each site manager’s workload so your home receives the attention it deserves. Volume delivers repetition. Tenfold delivers individuality, craftsmanship and accountability.

What makes Tenfold different?
Tenfold pairs builder-led design with thorough site investigations so your concept is beautiful, practical and cost-true from the start. You’ll receive a detailed 30-page quote and a guided walkthrough of every inclusion with WunderBuild portal transparency during construction. We keep supervisor workloads capped, work with premium long-term trades and prefer high-performance, lightweight construction for comfort and efficiency. The combination is simple: fewer homes at once, more care in every detail and a smoother journey from brief to handover. Learn more about us.

Where do you build?
We are based in Victoria Park and build across the Perth metro area north and south of the river with a focus on inner and near-city suburbs where our designer–builder process adds the most value. We frequently work in Vic Park, South Perth, Kensington and Como. We also take on select regional projects where the brief and logistics make sense. If a project sits outside our usual radius we will be upfront about travel, supervision and trade availability during planning so your allowances stay realistic.

What services do you provide?
Tenfold is a full design and build partner for custom new homes, substantial extensions and renovations, knockdown-rebuilds and select commercial fit-outs when our craftsmanship and systems suit the brief. We also design and build multigenerational homes and granny flats. From feasibility and concept design through selections.

2. Custom Home Costs in Perth – Clarity from Tenfold

How much will a custom home cost?
Cost depends on size, complexity, selections and site conditions. What sets Tenfold apart is transparency. We issue a detailed quote with allowances tied to Perth market rates and siteworks based on proper investigations. We walk you through each line so you understand what is covered, what is provisional and why. Wherever practical we lock in a fixed price before contract so you have clarity and control — see our process.

Can I just get a square-metre ($/m²) rate?
A $/m² rate is a rough average that ignores the very things that make a home custom. We prefer to price your design on your site with your inclusions so you receive a number you can rely on rather than a marketing yardstick.

What is included in my Tenfold quote?
Your quote is comprehensive and project specific. It covers structure, roof, windows and doors, insulation, internal linings, waterproofing and tiling, finishes, joinery and benchtops, plumbing and electrical, realistic siteworks, engineering, energy compliance, permits, supervision and clean-down. Items commonly outside a builder’s scope like landscaping, pools, boundary fencing or major authority upgrades are identified early so there are no grey areas. If something matters to you we either include it or make it a clearly priced allowance.

Variations, Prime Costs (PC) and Provisional Sums (PS) — how do they work?
In building contracts you’ll often hear about variations, Prime Costs (PCs) and Provisional Sums (PSs). A variation is any change after the contract is signed, with cost and time impacts documented and approved before work proceeds. A PC is an allowance for an unselected item, usually covering supply only, while a PS is an allowance for work that can’t be fully priced upfront, such as siteworks, and includes both supply and installation. At Tenfold we keep PCs and PSs realistic and to a minimum, and ensure all variations are communicated clearly, so your budget stays predictable and you remain in control.

3. The Tenfold Process – How We Design and Build Homes in Perth

What’s the Tenfold Homes process in a nutshell?
We keep the journey simple and predictable. It starts with a free phone consult to talk through your block, budget and ideas. The Concept Design Agreement (CDA) turns that brief into tailored concepts with early cost checks. The Preliminary Building Agreement (PBA) completes surveys, engineering, energy compliance and selections, then produces a fixed-price proposal and a confirmed build slot. We sign a standard HIA building contract, build with milestone walk-throughs and weekly updates, then hand over your home and stay with you through scheduled aftercare. Each step removes grey areas and protects your time and budget, the way a Perth custom home builder should operate. Learn more on our process.

What is a Concept Design Agreement (CDA)?
The CDA is where ideas become a workable plan. We explore layouts that suit your block and lifestyle, refine until the concept feels right and provide a preliminary cost estimate. Site constraints like orientation, overshadowing, views and services are resolved early so the design performs well and approvals run smoothly. You retain ownership of the concept drawings which means no traps, just clarity and confidence. Learn more about design.

I have drawings from another building company. Can you build them?
Often we can, but only if you hold the right to use those drawings. If you do, we can progress them through PBA to confirm engineering, energy compliance, siteworks and a fixed-price proposal.

What is a Preliminary Building Agreement (PBA)?
The PBA takes you from concept to build ready. We complete feature and contour surveys, soil testing and service checks, then finalise structure, energy compliance, drainage and any planning conditions. Selections are locked with realistic allowances and we provide 3D visuals so you can see what you are approving. From there we issue a fixed-price construction proposal and confirm your construction timeline.

Which approvals and reports will I need?
Most projects require a feature and contour survey, soil testing and site classification, structural engineering, an energy assessment to the current NCC, stormwater or drainage design and a building permit. Some sites also require planning approval due to setbacks, height, heritage or streetscape controls. Soil testing and classification are particularly important in Perth where conditions range from sand to reactive clays. We manage the lot for you during PBA and handle lodgements end to end.

What’s in the Building Contract?
We use HIA contracts because they are clear and industry standard. Your contract sets the plans and specifications, confirms the price and payment schedule and outlines start and completion targets with the rules for extensions of time. It explains how variations are handled, what insurances apply, how defects are managed and what happens if a dispute arises. We walk you through every page so you know exactly what you are signing.

4. Building Your New Home in Perth with Confidence

How long does construction take?
Once approvals are complete most Tenfold homes are delivered within six to twelve months depending on size, complexity and selections. Your schedule is visible in your Wunderbuild client portal and updated weekly so you can plan with confidence. More on our process.

Why does Tenfold recommend lightweight construction?
For Perth conditions modern lightweight construction offers speed, superior thermal performance and design flexibility for custom homes. It shortens build times and makes it easier to insulate and air-seal which means cooler summers and warmer winters with lower running costs. It is also kinder to the environment due to less material and transport. If double brick is your preference we build that too and will explain the performance trade-offs so you can choose the system that best suits your goals.

How energy-efficient will my home be?
Energy performance starts at the sketch stage. We plan passive solar orientation, shading and ventilation, specify the right insulation and air-sealing strategy and choose glazing that balances light, views and heat control. Efficient services — hot water, heating and cooling, lighting and appliance selections — complete the picture, alongside solar and battery readiness. We design to meet or exceed current NCC energy requirements and our lightweight-first approach makes it easier to achieve stable year-round comfort with lower running costs.

How will we stay in touch during the build?
Communication is simple and proactive. You will have access to our WunderBuild client portal for schedules, updates, photos and messages. We send a weekly note that explains what was completed, what is coming next and any decisions due. We meet you on site at key milestones like slab, lock-up and pre-handover and your site manager is always a phone call away for urgent matters. You will never be left wondering what is happening.

How do you manage quality on site?
Quality is a system not a slogan. A dedicated site manager oversees your home with a capped workload so attention is not stretched. Each stage is checked against a structured checklist and signed off before the next trade starts. We use long-term trades who meet Tenfold standards for workmanship and safety, and we welcome independent inspections because good work stands up to scrutiny. Director oversight at key stages keeps standards consistent.

How do you choose trades and suppliers?
We partner with specialists we know and trust. Selection is based on proven workmanship, availability, safe and respectful conduct on site, transparent pricing and strong warranty support. That consistency is a major reason our quality stays high.

5. Practical Completion, Handover and Aftercare in Perth

What is Practical Completion (PC) and a Practical Completion Inspection (PCI)?
Practical Completion (PC) is the stage where your home is considered finished under the contract, with only minor defects or omissions remaining. At this point your builder confirms the home is ready for a Practical Completion Inspection (PCI). The PCI is your opportunity to walk through the property, note any issues and have them scheduled for rectification before handover. In short, PC signals the home is ready to inspect, while handover happens once any agreed items are resolved and the home is ready for you to occupy. At Tenfold we make this process clear and thorough so you can move in with confidence.

What happens at handover?
Handover follows practical completion when the home is ready for you to occupy. We complete a joint inspection to note any small items for touch up and schedule them promptly. You receive keys, a thorough orientation to services and systems and a handover pack with manuals and warranties. It is a celebration of your new Tenfold custom home.

What aftercare and warranties do I get?
Aftercare is built into our process. We check in at six weeks and again at six months so you can log any items once you have lived in the home. Any defects are managed via your Wunderbuild portal so nothing is lost and urgent issues can always be raised by phone.

Next steps: Explore Custom Homes, Extensions, Knockdown-Rebuilds, Multigenerational Homes, learn more about our Design and Process, or book your free initial consult.