We had been planning our build of a luxury sleep out here in Marahau for years, and were excited to finally get started after Queenstown- based architects Kerr Ritchie deigned us a bespoke, triangle- shaped, building. It was a rather unique design with some interesting angles and thus called for meticulous, exacting work.

We already knew Chris and Swantje as friends, and to be honest, were hesitant to employ an acquaintance to do the job, in case anything went wrong. We are so relieved that we didn't let this initial hesitation stand in our way, as we have been extremely satisfied with the whole service that Chris Butler Builders has provided.

From the first day works began, we felt as though the project was being carefully 'held' by Chris, who we feel is a methodical, knowledgeable, capable builder with very high standards for his, and his other workers, craftsmanship. He was friendly and personable throughout the job, and always very professional. He was very patient with our indecisiveness in several areas of the build and we felt he had a lot to offer in terms of different options of moving forward. We never once doubted the quality of work being done, the steps being followed, or that we would be wholly satisfied with the finished project.

We also found Swantje great to deal with from the admin side of the business. She organised the Contract Works insurance for us, provided clear and itemised invoices, was easy to talk any queries through with, and like Chris, was always friendly, approachable and professional.

One more mention in favour of choosing Chris was that he had a great relationship with his sub trade workers. We thought highly of every worker he brought on site, from the painter to plumbers to electrician. I think this is pretty important to the job, as well as to the owners peace of mind throughout the job process.

We have already engaged Chris to lead a renovation planned in the near future for our house in Nelson, and would not hesitate to use him for any projects we might have in the future.

Thank you Chris and Swantje, we have been very pleased with your work! Feel free to use this reference as you desire, and feel free to pass on our contact details if any of your potential clients ever want to ask us any questions.

Tim And Brittany Norman

Marahau

 We are very pleased we chose Chris Butler as builder for our new home. It has been a positive experience throughout, and we are delighted with the outcome.

Chris combined excellent technical competence with an easy and respectful rapport with us as clients, his team, and the subcontracted trades involved in the build. We were living in temporary accommodation adjacent to the site and had plenty of opportunity to see and experience the way Chris and his team worked.

We appreciated Chris’s communication with us throughout. He was thoughtful in checking our needs and preferences and in suggesting practical options. He worked with a non-standard design from our architect and brought it to life for us. He demonstrated both project management skills and a commitment to quality in the work of both his own team and subcontractors. Chris’s choice of subcontractors and products for the build proved to be very good. Chris acted with personal integrity and professionalism throughout.

At every point we enjoyed and admired the way in which Chris B., Jesse and Chris L. worked together and the pride they each took in their work. Behind the scenes, the handling of administrative and financial matters by Swantje was both efficient and friendly.

We have no hesitation in thanking Chris Butler and his team for a job well done, and in recommending their services to others. We consider ourselves very lucky to have chosen Chris to build our home.

Graeme and Barbara Nicholas

 Having known Chris Butler and his family for many years, we had no hesitation in using him to build our house at the Braemar Eco Village.
Being an expert in home energy efficiency and design myself, I needed a builder who was happy to work on something that was quite a bit beyond building code minimum performance levels. By the time we moved into our house, Chris had exceeded our expectations in many different ways.

His knowledge and expertise more than made up for the eventual shortcomings of the plans we had drawn up. Details of the build that wouldn’t have passed inspection had they been done exactly to plan or needed a bit more thinking through than what was done initially proved no issue to Chris and his team.

Chris and his team also had significant input into many non-structural areas of the build where their interesting solutions went on to become some of the best features of the house which still attract a lot of positive comments from visitors and guests.
The attention to detail that is needed when building a super-insulated eco-house, particularly around insulation, air-tightness and moisture control, also proved to be no problem for Chris. We also quickly realised that the other builders that worked for Chris all met the same high standards he applies to himself. If Chris needed to be away from our job site, we had complete confidence in the rest of his team to carry on getting the job done properly.

Finally, Chris was happy to provide input to the construction process to help us meet our budget constraints. Given how small our house is, and the difficult nature of the site (both of which add to expense), Chris did remarkably well getting our house constructed for the eventual end cost. Perhaps the best comment we can make about Chris Butler building our house for us is that we now have a very well built, warm, efficient home that we love living in.

Andrew Smith

 I've worked with Chris over 8 years on various building projects, most significantly was the complete rebuild of a large family home we live in. This property includes two completely self-contained apartments and a large family home above it. The project was immense (for us) and required a complete rebuild to new building standards, including all new walls, insulation, roofing, not to mention interior layout and all amenities redone. It was a rundown late 1970s property where little work had been done to it since it was built and we transformed it into a modern, beautiful and spacious home with high end accommodation options for booking.

Over the years we staged this work and Chris employed a small team and we worked together with nothing but a draftsman and trade specialists as required. The finished project was a large investment for us but I found Chris to be diligent, trustworthy, reliable and there was no rework needed at any step and the valuation result reflects the effort invested. I did not expect for a minute that we were wasting funds nor compromising on the finished result as we bounced ideas and incorporated the ideas I wanted with the views Chris had.
Chris and his team were professional and I felt comfortable having them in my home and around my children as we completed the work. If you're thinking of employing Chris, you'll be getting a trustworthy and professional builder who can apply his own common sense, help guide you to a great result and can see the whole project through to a high standard of completion without unnecessary waste. I have no hesitation in recommending him fully.

Zoe Dryden

 To whom it may concern

We have known Chris Butler for the past 6 years and during this time he has built 3 constructions, a extension ,a cellar and the last being a large capital outlay construction in excess of $250,000.

In all these projects, we have found Chris to have the qualities we search for in a builder,

• Quality workmanship 

• Intelligence

• Speed (not at the expense of quality)

• Good communication skills

  the last factor is the most important for us ,especially with complicated projects, Chris is able to listen and come up with solutions that are workable and satisfy our demands.

  We have no hesitation in recommending him to others and he will be our first choice in any future work for us.

Yours

Rob and Barbara Knowles