The drawings are done and the budget is worked out. The next question is who will build it. That choice shapes the quality of the house, whether the schedule holds, and how often you will need to step in.

This guide is for anyone building or renovating a house and choosing between a contracting company, a mandor (foreman) with a borongan crew working for a fixed price, or day labourers. It covers how to compare those options, how to check a track record, and how to write an agreement that protects both sides.

Three kinds of builder

  • A contracting company. A registered business, usually with a team, used to paperwork, and able to produce a proper written contract. It tends to cost more because of office overheads and the company’s margin. Ask for its NIB (Nomor Induk Berusaha, the business identification number) and office address.
  • A mandor with a borongan crew. A foreman leads a group of builders and takes on the house for a fixed price. This is a common choice for homes, and the quality depends heavily on the foreman.
  • Day labourers. You pay builders by the day, organise the work yourself and buy the materials. This suits small jobs, or owners who can be on site every day. For a whole house the final cost is hard to predict, because it depends on how fast the work goes.

Whichever you choose, make sure one person is clearly in charge on site and can be reached every day.

Full contract or labour-only

With a foreman or a contractor, there are two forms of borongan (fixed-price) contract.

A full borongan means the builder supplies labour and materials for one price for the agreed scope. You don’t have to buy materials, and rising material prices are generally the builder’s problem unless agreed otherwise. The weakness is the temptation to use cheaper materials. So the specification has to be clear: the brand, type and size of the main materials.

A labour-only borongan means the builder supplies only the labour for a fixed price, while you buy the materials. You control material quality more closely, but you have to manage purchasing, delivery timing and leftover stock. Materials that arrive late leave builders standing idle, and that can start disputes.

Choose based on your time and how closely you can supervise. If you can rarely get to the site, a full contract with a detailed specification is usually less stressful.

Checking the track record

Don’t choose from social media photos alone. Ask for two or three addresses of houses they have built, then visit and talk to the owners.

Ask:

  • Was the work finished on schedule and on budget?
  • Were there extra charges that weren’t agreed at the start?
  • How has the house held up after a few rainy seasons?
  • Did the builder come back to fix problems?
  • Would the owner use them again?

Look at the work yourself: the neatness of the rendering, how straight the frames are, the tile joints, and any damp stains on the ceiling. Signs of a well-built house are covered in signs of good construction.

If you can, look at a project they are working on now. A tidy site and well-stored materials tell you a lot about how they work.

Ask, too, how many projects they are running at the moment. A foreman juggling too many jobs may rarely turn up at yours.

What the written contract should say

A spoken agreement is fine for fixing a leaking roof, not for building a house. The written contract should cover:

  • The parties, with full identity details and addresses.
  • The scope of work, with the working drawings, the RAB (Rencana Anggaran Biaya, the detailed cost plan) and the specification attached.
  • The schedule, including the start date, the finish date and the main milestones.
  • The payment stages, each tied to finished work.
  • Penalties for delay, along with your own duties, such as paying on time.
  • Retention and the maintenance period, meaning the part of the price held back until the period for fixing defects has passed.
  • Extra or reduced work, which must be agreed in writing, with a price, before it is done.
  • Materials, meaning who buys what.
  • The warranty, for example on roof leaks and the structure.
  • Ending the contract, including how work already paid for will be valued.

The contract doesn’t have to be complicated. What matters is that it is clear, signed by both sides, and that every attachment is initialled.

Design changes halfway through often lead to extra bills. As far as you can, settle the design and the specification before work starts.

Paying by progress

The principle is simple: never pay ahead of the work. Give a down payment just big enough to get started, then pay each later stage once that part of the work is done and you have checked it.

Example payment stages for a full contract (illustrative numbers only):

  • 10 percent when the contract is signed.
  • 25 percent once the foundations and ground beams are finished.
  • 25 percent once the columns, beams and walls are up.
  • 20 percent once the roof is on.
  • 15 percent once the finishes are complete and the house is handed over.
  • 5 percent held back until the maintenance period ends.

Day labourers and labour-only crews are often paid weekly. Keep a record of who worked and what was finished each week, and pay against that record. Pay by bank transfer where you can, and keep a receipt for every payment.

Supervision and checking materials

A good contract still needs supervising. Visit regularly, or hire a supervisor or an architect to keep an eye on the work.

The most important moments to be there:

  • Before concrete is poured, to check the size and number of reinforcing bars.
  • While the foundations go in, including the number and length of piles.
  • Before walls are closed up, to see the routes of pipes and cables.
  • Before the roof is covered, to check the frame and its joints.

Check the materials as they arrive, too. Measure reinforcing bar with a caliper, because some bar is thinner than its stated size. Match the brand and type of cement, tiles and cable against the specification. Photograph every stage, especially the parts that will be covered up.

Keep a short daily log as well: who came, what work was done and what materials arrived. It helps if there is ever a dispute over a bill.

Red flags before you sign

  • Asking for a large down payment before work starts.
  • Refusing to work from drawings, or treating drawings as unnecessary.
  • A quote far below the others with no sensible explanation.
  • Refusing a written contract, or offering a one-page contract with no attachments.
  • Not asking about the ground, even though the foundations depend on it.
  • Pushing to start straight away because material prices are supposedly about to rise.

A quote that is too cheap can come back as extra bills or downgraded materials. How to draw up and compare a budget is covered in how to estimate the cost of building a house.

Next steps

  1. Prepare the working drawings, the RAB and the specification before asking for quotes.
  2. Get quotes from two or three builders and compare them job by job.
  3. Visit houses they have built.
  4. Sign a written contract with all attachments.
  5. Pay by progress and be on site at the key stages.

If you need design and construction supervision in one place, Vorneo has a partnership with a design and build studio in South Kalimantan.