The Realistic Timeline: From Contract to Key Handover

The timeline reality for new H&L packages is one of the most important things a buyer needs to understand before signing. Most marketing materials quote 'build times', the time from slab pour to handover, which deliberately exclude the longest phases of the process.

Here's how the full timeline typically breaks down in Victoria:

Land title registration: 2 to 12 months from contract (varies enormously by estate stage and developer). You won't receive your land until it's registered with Land Use Victoria, regardless of what the sales contract says about expected dates.

Land settlement: typically 14 days from registration. This is when you own the land and your construction loan switches to a land loan.

Preliminary planning and permits: 2 to 4 months. Your builder prepares plans, engineering drawings, and a colour selection. Council building permits can take 4 to 8 weeks.

Construction: 8 to 12 months for a standard single-storey home. Multi-storey or complex designs can run 14 to 18 months. Progress payment stages (base, frame, lock-up, fixing, practical completion) drive your construction loan drawdowns.

Handover: typically 14 to 21 days after practical completion, allowing time for defect inspection and resolution.

Total: from land contract signing to key handover, allow 18 to 30 months. Budget for holding costs, rent plus land loan interest, for the entire period.