Making the block usable
Normanhurst is a quiet, established suburb on the northern line, with the deep blocks and heavy tree cover that come with this stretch of Sydney. A lot of those blocks have fall, awkward shapes, or a rear section that has never really been used for anything because nobody worked out how to make it level.
That is a landscaping problem before it is a building one, and it is usually the difference between a property you enjoy and a house with a slope behind it.
Retaining, levels and drainage are the whole game
Turning an unusable back yard into somewhere you actually spend time comes down to three unglamorous things: how much you excavate, how you retain what is left, and where the water goes. Get those right and you gain a flat lawn, a terrace, somewhere for a pool and a proper connection from the living areas out to the garden.
Get them wrong and you spend a lot of money on walls holding back a problem that the design never solved.
Refined Group started in 2005 as a landscape construction business, and this is precisely the work it started with. It is still done by our own team rather than subcontracted, which is why we would rather hold the house and the ground it sits on under one contract.
What we build in Normanhurst
Retaining, terracing and levels
The structural landscaping that makes a sloping or awkward block usable. Built by our own team, under the same contract as the house. Gardens, retaining and outdoor rooms.
Pools
On a falling block a pool is an engineering and access problem before it is a design one. Resolved early it settles into the garden as though the land was always that shape. See how we design and build concrete pools.
Knockdown rebuilds
Replacing an ageing house on a good block. Demolition, site preparation, construction and the landscaping that finishes the property, managed by one team.
Custom homes
New homes designed around the fall of the land rather than against it, so the levels inside relate to the levels outside instead of being solved separately.
Our work nearby
Our Pennant Hills pool is minutes away, and is a good illustration of thinking about access first: the pool shell went in before the house was built because getting machinery to the rear afterwards would not have been possible.
For terracing on a falling block, the Westleigh home shows it plainly. Five metres of fall front to back, a house stepped across three levels to follow it, and terraced retaining holding a level lawn that did not exist before we started.
How a build works with us
Start with a conversation. An intro call, then a site visit. We look at your block, listen to the brief and give you a straight early read on scope and budget.
Design and approvals. We do not draw the plans or lodge the approvals, but we stay involved through that stage so what comes out of it is something we can actually build to budget.
A detailed, fixed quote. Inclusions spelt out line by line. We price what is documented and flag the gaps other builders price around, so the number you sign is the number you build to.
The build. Our director runs the site from start to handover, and you deal with him throughout. We limit how many projects we take on each year, which is why we can promise that.
Why a director led boutique builder?
- The person who quoted your project is the person running the site
- Home, pool and landscaping under one contract, one point of responsibility
- HIA NSW Finalists 2018, 2019 & 2023
- 20+ years building across Sydney, with a 5 star Google rating
Common questions
How long does the whole process take?
The front end depends on design and approvals. We do not draw the plans or lodge the approvals, but we stay involved through that stage so what comes out of it is something we can actually build to budget. Once there are approved plans you get a construction program with the quote, and we tell you early if something starts tracking off it rather than at the end.
Do you take on landscaping on its own?
Yes. Structural landscaping is where this business began and we still take it on as its own project, particularly retaining, levels, terracing and outdoor living rather than planting alone.
Can you make a sloping back yard usable?
Usually, and it is the work this business grew out of. It comes down to excavation, retaining and drainage, and how much of each depends on the fall and the access. It is worth looking at the block before anyone designs for it, because the answer often changes where the house should sit.
Get in touch
Call 02 8014 8962 or email enquiry@refinedgroup.com.au. Or start with a no pressure intro call with our director.
