FAQ's

We specialise in building: Passivhaus homes and Custom homes.

As principal contractors, we'll take care of everything. We start with an initial meeting, followed by:

• Site measure up/survey
• Collaborating with your architect to finalise construction details
• Engaging professional subcontractors and suppliers
• A detailed quote
• A fixed price contract
• Managing and coordinating the full construction process
• Independent building inspections
• Passivhaus certification
• Commissioning and handover of your home
• Measuring how your house performs with independent airtightness testing
• Making sure you’re satisfied
• Following up at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months to ensure your home is defect free

If you haven’t already commissioned a design, we would encourage you to come direct to us. We partner with Scotland’s leading architects to create the best homes, based on our client's brief and budget.

We recommend you work with an architect who collaborates with builders in the design phase to ensure cost visibility from the start.

This simple but fundamental difference saves money and time. It turns the relationship between builders and architects into a positive alliance, which fosters not only creative collaboration, but most importantly, budget control.

The architect manages the creative design, and the builder and architect work together on construction science and costs. When construction costs are monitored and tracked in the design phase, the risk of budget blowouts decreases.

It’s also an opportunity to identify any construction related challenges early on. With practical input from the builder, potential issues can be ‘designed out’ before leaving the architect’s desk, saving time on rework at a later (and more costly) stage.

As principal contractors, we are accountable for driving and coordinating the entire construction process - which means you can leave the project management to us. In doing so, you'll benefit from our established links with trusted suppliers and specialist craftspeople.

We build homes in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire. If you have a project which is further afield, we are happy to discuss.

Each home we build is unique. Therefore, the size of your home, specification and site conditions will determine the duration of the build. The construction period will be defined in your building contract and you will receive a login to our client app which allows you to track progress of your build in real time. You can view construction schedules, progress photos, site reports, and make selections to customise your new home.

A written contract, signed by both parties, ensures the price is fixed, unless changes are made to the scope of the work.

We don’t offer a plot search, as that’s a specialist service. But we can recommend companies that can help. If you’re thinking of buying a site, we can do a free site assessment.

Yes. Our joiners and builders have completed specialist Passivhaus training and our director, Ross Booth, is a certified Passivhaus contractor. It makes us one of the only building contractors in Scotland with a qualified and committed workforce in Passivhaus construction. Learn more about Passivhaus.

Developed in Germany, Passivhaus (or Passive House in English) is the world’s leading building standard, which guarantees affordable, energy-efficient homes with amazing levels of comfort.

Homes built to the standard are so well designed, constructed, insulated and ventilated, they avoid the need for heating, maintaining an almost constant temperature. Cool in the summer and warm in the depths of a chilly Scottish winter.

For people with allergies and asthma, Passivhaus homes are the world’s healthiest to live in. There are no draughts, no cold spots, no mould, no condensation and no excessive overheating. Fresh clean air is constantly supplied to the home and this happens with minimal energy use.

In fact, Passivhaus homes use around 75% less energy than the average UK new build. It might sound like magic, but the Passivhaus Standard is based on sound science. 30 years of studies, testing and intensive monitoring have proved Passivhaus delivers what it promises – sustainable, healthy, comfortable, high-performance and easy to heat homes with lasting quality. Learn more about Passivhaus.

Unless agreed otherwise, we will supply all fit-out items, for which we make a small charge to cover the cost of administration, specification, delivery, storage, suitability and installation. This means we take full responsibility for ensuring everything is correct and has appeared at the right time, in full working order. It’s necessary for us to maintain control over this aspect of the work, in order to provide you with fixed costs and time schedules for completion.

We are happy to arrange viewings of our previous and current projects to demonstrate our consistently high standards. We can also put you in touch with past and current clients.

We have regular site meetings to ensure that your project is being built exactly the way you imagined. At any stage, you are welcome to make changes if time permits and the changes don’t affect the structural integrity of your build. We understand the need for flexibility during the construction phase, so we are happy to assist.

You will communicate directly with company director, Ross Booth. He will be your project manager throughout the construction phase and will provide ongoing support once you have moved into your home.

We're always happy to consider any new projects, but we specialise in Passivhaus homes and Custom homes.

Landscaping isn’t part of what we do, but it’s worth getting right. We can suggest experts who can help with this.

Coldwells Build passed an independent inspection and met strict criteria to become members of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) in 2017. As FMB members, we have committed to abide by a stringent Code of Conduct for building quality.

We are also:
Trustmark registered – the only government endorsed quality scheme for builders.
Members of the Association of Professional Builders - a global best practices organisation for the construction industry.
Members of the Passivhaus Trust - an independent industry leading organisation that promotes the adoption of Passivhaus in the UK.

All new build homes in the UK are zero rated for VAT under current government rules.