G. J. Gardner

For most people, building a new home is the largest single investment they will make in their lives.

It can seem daunting, even stressful, but it doesn’t have to be that way, say Jake Hurford and Fiona Bouffler, directors of G.J. Gardner Homes, Orange.

“People say building is stressful, but it should be exciting,” says Jake, a builder by trade. “And that is what we aim to do… you should be able to come in, tell us what you want and then we go and build it.”

“We make it stress free,” says Fiona. “Here we have processes put in place that make it easy.”

There is little need to introduce G.J. Gardner Homes in Orange. Over the past 25 years, they have earned a reputation for building quality, customised and affordable homes well-suited to the Central West.

There are hundreds of homes in Orange and surrounding towns that stand testament to their work and it is a reputation that new directors Jake and Fiona feel privileged to uphold.

Jake, an experienced builder born and raised in Orange, joined the G.J. Gardner team in 2010. Three years later he stepped into the supervisor role.

“I actually came across working as a contract carpenter,” says Jake, “and then at the end of 2012 [previous owner] Mark Stoffels approached me about coming on and being a supervisor and then in March last year Fiona and I became directors in the business.”

But this year, Mark and wife Debbie decided to step back from the business, officially handing it over to Jake and Fiona three months ago.

“Jake and I became sole directors in July,” said Fiona, another life-long local, who had a successful career as a travel agent prior to coming onboard at G.J. Gardner nine years ago.

“We have a really good team here; we are all on the same page. Communication is key for us, both as a team and also with clients,” she said.

And clients will notice little change in the business, according to Jake and Fiona, who plan to continue doing what it is that has built them such a strong reputation

“It is a great business; it has a good reputation and it is because of how we operate. We are organised and we're pretty genuine people. We were a Product Review award winner in 2016 and 2017 and now we are rated Australia’s number one most trusted national home building brand,” said Jake.

“Our business speaks for itself. We are honest, we give people what we tell them we are going to give them. We offer fixed price contracts; there is no hidden variations or bits and pieces like that. We use local suppliers, all our trades are local, and you are dealing with a local builder.

“I think that’s the biggest thing is, as Jake said, you are dealing with a builder,” said Fiona. “If you have any questions, you can come talk to Jake. And across the board we've got a lot of qualified people here to do the job, which help us make our business what it is.

“And everything is done here in Orange. We do everything here from initial contact with our new home consultants, right through to completion — colour selections in house, all plans are done through us, everything is done here!”

Around the regions G.J. Gardner Homes Orange builds 25 to 30 new homes each year consistently, said Jake, although they may even exceed that by the end of the current year.

“This is one of our biggest years we've had for a while,” he said. “We are even looking a little bit higher than 30 builds this year, which is a good representation of how the town is going.

“We are one of the fastest growing cities in NSW; not surprising given the jobs being created in Orange at the moment. There's always work here, which obviously attracts people, but then they come here and love it! We are still getting plenty of people coming through our door!”