Couple saves $200,000 on home construction with five-week flatpack project – realestate.com.au

Miriam Fergie and Jordan Lomas were priced out of the housing market after selling to live in the country. They opted for a flat-pack construction for their family home.

The Scenic Rim couple, aged 33 and 34, completed the main house in just five weeks and cut their construction costs by about half.

They bought their first home in Brisbane in 2024 for $750,000, using the proceeds to buy a vacant 1.11-hectare block in Dugandan for $385,000, with plans to build a family home and establish a flower farm for their two young sons.

The house frame arrived in pieces. Image: supplied

---

“We knew we wanted to get out of the city and live a slower life,” said florist Fergie. “We wanted to buy an existing house, but we couldn’t find anything we really loved, and it felt like a waste of money to demolish or renovate.

“So we found a piece of land and committed to it.”

That decision quickly collided with rising construction costs.

“We thought we had enough money to build but were soon presented with a simple cake,” Ms Fergie said.

“We spoke to two different architects to get an idea of ​​the cost and we were shocked. It was way over our budget.”

They moved to the country to establish a flower farm. Image: supplied/Instagram

---

Initial estimates say a traditional barn-style home would cost about $440,000. “And honestly, now that we’ve gone through the process, I think it could have been even more,” Ms Fergie said.

Instead, the couple opted for an owner-builder route, purchasing a kit from Australian company Shed House, inspired by the classic farm barns in the surrounding paddocks.

“A friend sent us a picture of a barn and we just clicked,” she said. “It’s that familiar silver barn you see on every working farm: tough, understated, built to handle whatever the seasons throw at it. But this one is more than a barn, it’s our home.”

Mr Lomas erected the frame single-handedly, while they outsourced the exterior cladding

---

Despite having no construction background — “I think I bought Jordan his first drill when we bought our first house,” Ms. Fergie joked — Mr. Lomas, a sales consultant with a background in the hospitality industry, assembled the frame largely solo after the slab was poured. “It felt like a giant Meccano set when it arrived, but the instructions were very comprehensive.”

Building largely in cash created additional pressure. “Once the money runs out, construction stops,” Ms Fergie said. “It’s been daunting, but going slow has been a blessing in disguise.”

The cost to achieve the lock-up, excluding interior finishes, was $218,353, with major expenses including $65,230 for the caulk and frame, $25,850 for the slab, $44,596 for plumbing and wastewater, $23,000 for roofing and cladding, and $14,244 for plans and drawings, in addition to municipal fees and service connections.

The couple bought their first home in Brisbane and worked in the hospitality industry

---

MORE NEWS

Land sale for $3 billion by the government

Mentioned: all banks that immediately increased interest rates

The big bank says the housing boom is over for half the country

Ms Fergie said the experience changed the way they thought about housing. “So many people told us, ‘You can’t do this,’ but that actually motivated us,” she said. “Thinking about what we really need as a family and not pushing beyond our means is the best thing we’ve done.”

Their approach reflects a broader shift in Queensland. New data from Shed House Australia shows the state led the country in building package inquiries at the end of last year, recording 195 building applications in November and December 2025, ahead of Victoria (166) and Western Australia (100) – an eightfold increase year-on-year.

Katie Penfold from Shed House Australia

---

“The increase from Queensland is particularly unique and is largely driven by young families becoming owner-builders with land they already own,” says Shed House director Katie Penfold.

The trend was in line with research from Great Southern Bank, which found 35 per cent of Queensland homebuyers believe there are not enough homes available, well above the national average of 27 per cent.