Shock news from stuff - electronic goods getting better AND cheaper!

Forums › Off topic › Shock news from stuff - electronic goods getting better AND cheaper!

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mattwnz

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#1033306 29-Apr-2014 17:55

We are still paying more for building products then ever though. For example in the US, drywall/plasterboard is about $8 per sheet, or $10 for wet area stuff. In NZ, it is over $20 for plain board, and add another $10 on top for wet area stuff. Basically very little competition, unblike in the electronics area.

vexxxboy

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#1033325 29-Apr-2014 18:58

Prices might be coming down but so is the quality

Common sense is not as common as you think.

mattwnz

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#1033326 29-Apr-2014 19:02

vexxxboy: Prices might be coming down but so is the quality

That is true for the low quality brands I have found. However some of the savings they have made is due to better design. So if they can make something out of a single piece of lightweight plastic instead of three pieces, it saves in many areas.

Fred99

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#1033369 29-Apr-2014 19:29

mattwnz: We are still paying more for building products then ever though. For example in the US, drywall/plasterboard is about $8 per sheet, or $10 for wet area stuff. In NZ, it is over $20 for plain board, and add another $10 on top for wet area stuff. Basically very little competition, unblike in the electronics area.

Yes - and they don't even use the cheap 10mm grade as standard in NZ homes. Standard grade in the US is 1/2" (~12mm).
Same for every building material I've checked - framing timber - 1/2 price, roofing materials - 1/2 price, insulation - 1/2 price...
The price gap is so large for common bulk supplies that a "scale of economies" argument just doesn't wash with me.

mattwnz

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#1033401 29-Apr-2014 20:14

Fred99:
mattwnz: We are still paying more for building products then ever though. For example in the US, drywall/plasterboard is about $8 per sheet, or $10 for wet area stuff. In NZ, it is over $20 for plain board, and add another $10 on top for wet area stuff. Basically very little competition, unblike in the electronics area.

Yes - and they don't even use the cheap 10mm grade as standard in NZ homes. Standard grade in the US is 1/2" (~12mm).
Same for every building material I've checked - framing timber - 1/2 price, roofing materials - 1/2 price, insulation - 1/2 price...
The price gap is so large for common bulk supplies that a "scale of economies" argument just doesn't wash with me.

Totally agree, just can't understand why no political party hasn't taken a hard line on building product prices. We can see it can be done with these cheap electronics, with heaps of competition but people only need so many plasma tvs, and cheap tablets, and they aren't exactly necessities of life either. The economies of scale don't wash with me either, as many of these product comapnies are overseas / ozzie owned, and they sell the same materials over there a lot cheaper, although they still aren't as cheap as in the US.

Dunnersfella

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#1033424 29-Apr-2014 20:35

In breaking news - geeks on a website complain about things they don't get / understand...

New World

Shop on-line at New World now for your groceries (affiliate link).

nathan

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#1033449 29-Apr-2014 20:51

We don't understand that it costs more to build s house in NZ than overseas?

Dynamic

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#1033561 29-Apr-2014 22:49

Fred99:
mattwnz: We are still paying more for building products then ever though. For example in the US, drywall/plasterboard is about $8 per sheet, or $10 for wet area stuff. In NZ, it is over $20 for plain board, and add another $10 on top for wet area stuff. Basically very little competition, unblike in the electronics area.

Yes - and they don't even use the cheap 10mm grade as standard in NZ homes. Standard grade in the US is 1/2" (~12mm).
Same for every building material I've checked - framing timber - 1/2 price, roofing materials - 1/2 price, insulation - 1/2 price...
The price gap is so large for common bulk supplies that a "scale of economies" argument just doesn't wash with me.

I've heard some mutterings about one of the major construction companies having a monopoly on some products coming in, contributing to our housing construction costs being at the higher end compared to the rest of the world. Related article: http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/fletcher-building-will-come-within-construction-supply-investigation-english-says-bd-131424

Also (not really related) I heard recently that in the US their external walls are 50% thicker than ours to allow for more insulation. (I have no references to back that up.) 6x2's instead of 4x2's. Sounds fairly smart for pretty minimal extra cost, and something I would look at if we ever consider building.

“Don't believe anything you read on the net. Except this. Well, including this, I suppose.” Douglas Adams

Geektastic

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#1033563 29-Apr-2014 22:52

Demeter: I honestly don't pretend to know.

ETA: Flume did a Thing with the song which I prefer to the original.

Aahhh. OK. Grrrr. Back in my day musicians had actual instruments etc etc....

(That said, The Hypnotist by Sisterlove is one of my all time fave tracks!)

Geektastic

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#1033566 29-Apr-2014 22:59

Dynamic:
Fred99:
mattwnz: We are still paying more for building products then ever though. For example in the US, drywall/plasterboard is about $8 per sheet, or $10 for wet area stuff. In NZ, it is over $20 for plain board, and add another $10 on top for wet area stuff. Basically very little competition, unblike in the electronics area.

Yes - and they don't even use the cheap 10mm grade as standard in NZ homes. Standard grade in the US is 1/2" (~12mm).
Same for every building material I've checked - framing timber - 1/2 price, roofing materials - 1/2 price, insulation - 1/2 price...
The price gap is so large for common bulk supplies that a "scale of economies" argument just doesn't wash with me.

I've heard some mutterings about one of the major construction companies having a monopoly on some products coming in, contributing to our housing construction costs being at the higher end compared to the rest of the world. Related article: http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/fletcher-building-will-come-within-construction-supply-investigation-english-says-bd-131424

Also (not really related) I heard recently that in the US their external walls are 50% thicker than ours to allow for more insulation. (I have no references to back that up.) 6x2's instead of 4x2's. Sounds fairly smart for pretty minimal extra cost, and something I would look at if we ever consider building.

I mentioned this to my brother who lives in California - there was an article in the papers somewhere this week about comparing the cost of NZ building to California. I think it referred to social housing.

The numbers were around $2500 per sq metre here and about $600 per sq metre there.

My brother, who works in construction, laughed and said that if we compared it to a mid west state instead of California, it would be half the California costs!

He's seen houses here and says we get worse windows (by miles - his have the same seals as the Space Shuttle!), worse doors and worse overall finishing but worst of all he thinks all our houses here are tiny!! He has a swimming pool and a 3 floor house with 4 bedrooms (all en suite), a basement big enough for a pool table, sofas and so on, full ducted a/c, full double glazing with sun tints, a triple car garage and about half an acre of garden - all for $400,000!

mattwnz

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#1033568 29-Apr-2014 23:00

Dynamic:

Also (not really related) I heard recently that in the US their external walls are 50% thicker than ours to allow for more insulation. (I have no references to back that up.) 6x2's instead of 4x2's. Sounds fairly smart for pretty minimal extra cost, and something I would look at if we ever consider building.

If you are building a new house in NZ, to get insulation up to a high level you need to really use 140mm thick framing, using readily available blanket insulation products.This is what I plan on doing on a new house. Most spec houses built on the cheap, are 90mm thick to the minimum NZ insulation standards. The better insulated it is, the more you will saving in heating costs in the future.

If labour get back in, under labours new kiwisaver policy, we will end up paying more for electronics, as the dollar will drop and we will have less buying power. We have had it really sweet since 2008.

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