# Forum Contacts & Links Estimating & Quoting  Survey for subdivision

## shauck

I just wanted to ask you your opinions on the quote I got for a survey. Context - Daylesford Vic so about 1 hour from Melbourne. Rural area but in town. I've got a half acre block to subdivide. Need a shared driveway, steepish block. Will need to excavate for parking area and another for house site and quite a deep excavation, so levels will be somewhat important (although if that's what's driving the cost up, perhaps some main points at corners of cutout would do rather than every 1m?? 
Also The guy i've got doing my planning permit application reckons to do the pegs after the excavation.   
Email I got below... 
Our fee for the survey/ site analysis plan with levels and boundary re-establishment would be $1800 + GST. The re-establishment is to check fences and place on the plan only for subdivision design. Placing pegs on the ground is a requirement of the subdivision and would be done as part of that process. This can be done before hand if required and will cost an addition $300 + gst. I need a copy of title to do the work.  
Cheers for any input, Su

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## toooldforthis

comparable to Perth price - which is not a good thing, so might be a bit expensive. 
did they mention if you need a geo-tech survey? think that is the right term. steep blocks usually imply difficult soil/rock for excavating and foundations.

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## JB1

Su, I'll try to dig out my invoices when applied for my dual occ town house building permit. 
Pegs done after all planning approved just before site scrape. 
Bear in mind, after the townhouse was built, you need another survey done to mark the exact boundaries, common area etc.

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## SilentButDeadly

Works out about right for that part of the subdivision process...similar to what we paid earlier this year.  But that is only the start of it - there's a world of hurt in a Victorian subdivision after that...

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## shauck

> Su, I'll try to dig out my invoices when applied for my dual occ town house building permit. 
> Pegs done after all planning approved just before site scrape. 
> Bear in mind, after the townhouse was built, you need another survey done to mark the exact boundaries, common area etc.

  The guy doing the planning permit says to leave the pegs till after the excavation work   

> comparable to Perth price - which is not a good thing, so might be a bit expensive. 
> did they mention if you need a geo-tech survey? think that is the right term. steep blocks usually imply difficult soil/rock for excavating and foundations.

  No mention of a geo-tech survey as yet. There will be some rock but I'm already familiar with that from other work. At least it's not basalt or blue stone like some places nearby.    

> Works out about right for that part of the subdivision process...similar to what we paid earlier this year.  But that is only the start of it - there's a world of hurt in a Victorian subdivision after that...

  Would you like to elaborate SBD? I think I've got most of it sussed and what you all experience in metro areas seems OTT compared to what I've seen happen here with others. Hopefully no nasty surprises. Or not too many.  
I've set aside 50 thousand which should get me to a position of excavated house site with rock retaining walls, driveway extended and sealed with asphalt and a parking area excavated (gravel topping) and rock retaining wall to boundary, new boundary fences, power, gas, water, storm water to new house site and planning permit and all that involves. I've gotten estimates from relevant trades, utilities and looked at all the planning permit costs that I can find. The only ones I haven't are the surveyor and soil tests (not sure if soil test is part of this stage or the next (building permit).

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## JB1

> The guy doing the planning permit says to leave the pegs till after the excavation work

  I suppose in your case it may be different. 
I needed the pegs to know where to scrape and had fences etc. 
Pegs in your case may be run over by machinery etc. 
Soil test is only needed for engineering, not for planning permit. However no real harm in doing it early as it will shorten the time from approved planning permit to engineering plans.

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## SilentButDeadly

To get a block out of another in rural Victoria set us back the best part of ten grand before legals...

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## Sir Stinkalot

The price seems about right for levels and boundary re-establishment and I would be happy to approve that for a client. The additional levels being taken on site are unlikely to alter the price too much and I would rather they get the correct information the first time than to have to get them out again for any reason.

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## shauck

I asked  for a bit more clarification and and got these responses. SBD, is this part of the "world of hurt" you mention. Will have to dip into a bit of savings to cover the extras I didn't know about.  
Next email... 
To  be clear, this fee is for the initial survey and peg.  Following the  permit the subdivision will require further surveying documentation,  plan, report abstract of field records, submission to council, ect.    Third email explaining the second... 
To complete the surveying requirements for the subdivision our fee would be an additional $2000 + gst.  This includes, Plan of Subdivision and application submitted to council, consult with authorities for costs and conditions, Licensed Surveyors Report and Abstract of Field Records.  
This fee doesn't include council application fees or Lodgement of the plan at the land registry, this is usually done by a conveyancer.  
Anyone care to add to the list of costs that I may not have factored in.  
Here's my list.

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## SilentButDeadly

> I asked  for a bit more clarification and and got these responses. SBD, is this part of the "world of hurt" you mention.

  Yep...council application fees should be available from your council office (ours were less than $500?).  Plan Registry fees for us were around $1,300 but given you will be getting a new title plus an existing title modified then you might be up for more. Conveyancing fees are open ended but if you are going to do this subdivision then get them in the picture early as it will save grief further down the track. 
The other thing you may not have thought of is council rates....you may be rateable for the new title sooner rather than later. Plus your rates for the existing title will need to be altered...and you may need a re-valuation to support this alteration.

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## ringtail

Plans and engineering ?

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## shauck

> Conveyancing fees are open ended but if you are going to do this subdivision then get them in the picture early as it will save grief further down the track.

  The surveyor seems to think it's too early for conveyancer at this stage. After the initial application. Why do you think they need to be involved so early?  
All the other stuff - council fees, plan registry fees, conveyancing (not sure how much), possibly council rates, I'm expecting all that, just not sure exactly how much.  
Plans, I can do what they need for this stage between me and my planning dude and the surveyor. Engineering hasn't been brought up yet. From what I've been told by the guy doing excavation, you can't really "engineer" rock retaining walls. He's well known in this area and has done a lot of work that council has seen. Not sure what else, if anything would require an engineer.  
I do think I was a little under-prepared for some of the costs but I think we'll get there with the essentials at least. I think some of the things I wanted to be finished before the next stage  (building permit) may have to wait until more savings are made or the  original house is sold (prefer to do so before sale tho). Probably  fences, some of the less important retaining walls.

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## ringtail

Su, you mentioned an easement for sewer/ stormwater. Up here they are mostly drawn up by a lawyer and the lawyer lodges them with the lands dept. My easements cost me $ 150 ish to lodge each and would have cost a lot to draw up if my brother ( lawyer) didn't do them for me. Mine are right of way easementthough so much more complicated. Does the conveyancer draw up the easement agreement for you ?

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## SilentButDeadly

> The surveyor seems to think it's too early for conveyancer at this stage. After the initial application. Why do you think they need to be involved so early?

  Mostly so they know what to expect and also to give you the necessary advice to prevent unexpected bureaucratic and financial surprises further down the track.   
Our own subdivision experience was/is very different to yours so I'm perhaps not to be taken for gospel here but given that ours has taken the best part of two years to organise (including 11 months since signing contracts).....surprises is the last thing I would wish upon anyone in this matter.

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## shauck

> Su, you mentioned an easement for sewer/ stormwater. Up here they are mostly drawn up by a lawyer and the lawyer lodges them with the lands dept. My easements cost me $ 150 ish to lodge each and would have cost a lot to draw up if my brother ( lawyer) didn't do them for me. Mine are right of way easementthough so much more complicated. Does the conveyancer draw up the easement agreement for you ?

  Good question. Not sure at this stage who deals with easements. It may not even be required from some advise I was given but grain of salt taken with that. We have a friend who does conveyancing and other lawyerly stuff so my partner is going to word him up.  
One thing we do need is a method to share the driveway that passes next to the existing house. I believe there a couple of ways and locally, I think there is a preferred way. Battle axe block with right of way to the front property.      

> Mostly so they know what to expect and also to give you the necessary advice to prevent unexpected bureaucratic and financial surprises further down the track.   
> Our own subdivision experience was/is very different to yours so I'm perhaps not to be taken for gospel here but given that ours has taken the best part of two years to organise (including 11 months since signing contracts).....surprises is the last thing I would wish upon anyone in this matter.

  I suppose all subdivisions will vary a bit but still, I agree. I'll talk to conveyancer/lawyer very soon.  
Might have to start a fund raising sausage sizzle.

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## ringtail

Make sure you really, really nail the detail with any required easement agreements. Maintenance of, care for, responsibilities, acceptable solutions etc..... The devil is in the detail and that's why the lawyers do them with all sorts of oddball legal mumbo jumbo. Fun fun fun

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## shauck

> Make sure you really, really nail the detail with any required easement agreements. Maintenance of, care for, responsibilities, acceptable solutions etc..... The devil is in the detail and that's why the lawyers do them with all sorts of oddball legal mumbo jumbo. Fun fun fun

  That's my aim. Fair and thorough agreement.

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