Podcast Episode #125
The Builders Ladder - Podcast Episode

How to Break Into Luxury Construction in 2025 (A Blueprint For Residential Construction Companies)

youtube-icon-flat-red-play-button-logo-vector

NEED Help Implementing the Ideas in This Episode?

Book Your Free 'Gameplan' Call Today and We'll Help You Put Together a Custom, 90-day Growth Plan

EPISODE Notes

If you’ve been curious about breaking into luxury residential construction, this episode of The Builders Ladder provides a realistic roadmap for you – from someone who’s built this path over 15+ years.

Award-winning builder Stephen Malinger shares his journey from doing decks and bathroom renovations to becoming Sydney’s leading specialist in bespoke architectural and luxury homes.

With achievements, including the 2021 HIA-CSR Australian Home of the Year, Stephen reveals how he built Mallinger Construction’s reputation in the premium market – including a recent $180,000 bathroom renovation that showcases the scope of truly high-end work.

Tune into hear about key elements that differentiate successful luxury builders, including:

  • Creating professional documentation that resonates with architects and wealthy clients
  • Building relationships with 6-15 person architectural firms for consistent premium work
  • Managing weekly payment schedules and cashflow on multi-million projects
  • Structuring contracts to protect yourself on complex, multi-year builds
  • Understanding when to use cost-plus vs fixed price models

Whether you’re currently running a standard building company looking to step up, or already operating in the premium building space but wanting to improve your systems – this episode provides practical insights for building a sustainable high-end residential construction business.

Key moments:

00:03:00 Journey from basic building to luxury projects
00:07:00 Positioning strategies for premium builders
00:12:00 Marketing approaches that work in luxury
00:21:00 Building strong architect relationships
00:26:00 Managing high-end client expectations
00:32:00 Navigating complex contract structures
00:44:00 Cashflow management in luxury projects
00:50:00 Keys to successful market transition

Listen now to learn how to transition to a high-end residential builder – while avoiding the common pitfalls that catch many builders off guard.

Subscribe to The Builder’s Ladder Podcast for weekly, actionable insights — tailored to help you grow a profitable construction business.

Follow TPB for more:
👥 FB Group – https://www.facebook.com/groups/professionalbuilder
📸 Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/theprofessionalbuilder/
🖥️ Get your business health audit + free resources (including website audit) here – https://www.theprofessionalbuilder.com

🚀 Head to https://tpb.tools/pod-call to book your FREE strategy session.
📈 Resources For Builders – https://tpb.tools/resources

Resources Mentioned

Health Audit

How healthy is your building business? Find out now.
QUIZ

287pt Checklist

Get offsite and let your team do the work
DOWNLOAD
About Your Hosts

Too many building company owners work long hours for very little profit, aren’t able to spend time with their families, and are stressed to the limit.

This is not your fault.

You can be the best builder in the world but trade school doesn’t teach you how to run a business.

This is why we created The Professional Builder.

Gaining control over your business doesn’t need to be hard.

Our proven systems have been used by 5,000+ builders from New Zealand, Australia, USA, UK, Canada, and all around the world to get back their freedom.