Much to our clients’ delight, Construction Manager Scott Bullen is a perfectionist.

“It’s pretty simple, it’s my philosophy: if I wouldn’t have it in my house, then none of my clients is going to have it in theirs.”

Scott says clients appreciate his attention to detail, but also the way Yarrum operates. “We’re a little bit different to your standard residential builder—we actually embrace client contact and input. We want the client to be a part of it, to enjoy the ride.” Yarrum is a company made up of genuinely hard workers, yet Scott’s extraordinary work ethic stands out. His day often starts in the office before the sun rises and he often doesn’t get home until the sun has set.

As the company’s licensee, Scott plays a key role in its operation. When he joined Yarrum ten years ago, he and company founder Stephen Murray discussed their vision for the future, and Scott derives great satisfaction from the way the business has developed.

“When I started, we were building ten custom homes a year; we’re now building between 30 and 35.”

Scott and his long-term partner live at Thornton. Serendipitously for work-focused Scott, Yarrum’s new office is located just “two minutes and 37 seconds” away from home. Scott’s impressive commitment to work is not diminished in his leisure pursuits. Self-taught in the art of cabinet-making, he is currently crafting fine furniture. He also enjoys deep-sea fishing, and it is not uncommon for Scott to go alone, 50 nautical miles out to sea.

“I love it,” he says. “I sit out there, bobbing around, no phone service, no nothing, and that is my decompression.”

It is especially easy for Justin Priddis to understand his Yarrum clients: he used to be one.

Justin worked on the Huntlee development in its earliest days, and sold the first 250 blocks. His own family home was the fourth house to be built there, and he chose Yarrum to build it. During the build process, he made the move to Yarrum, and he has been Sales and Design Manager for seven years.

Justifiably proud of what he has achieved during this time, Justin says that when he started with the company, the Yarrum name was well known in the Hunter Valley but virtually unknown in Newcastle.

“It’s taken a lot of hard work to establish the brand and the name in Newcastle ” Justin explains. These days, Yarrum Designer Homes is one of the most dominant builders in Newcastle’s knock-down rebuild housing market.

“To drive around now and see all the finished houses we’ve built over the last five years—that’s what I’m most proud of.”

Justin still lives at Huntlee, with his wife, and their young daughters, who were the first children to live in the new town. They are all serious foodies, and Justin is the self-proclaimed king of the barbecue. In their time off the family loves camping, and Justin plays competitive tennis.

It’s no surprise that Yarrum’s vivacious interior designer Jacqui Reid is so popular with clients. Jacqui’s expansive knowledge of colours and materials is second to none.

After completing a Bachelor of Commerce Degree at the University of Newcastle, Jacqui enjoyed working in the financial services sector for ten years. After taking time out to have children she decided to retrain and follow her passion for interior design. Jacqui is responsible for assisting clients with all interior and exterior colour and material selections. An added bonus is Jacqui’s background in the financial services field, which enables her to

help clients make sensible – as well as spectacular – creative choices.

Yarrum Designer Homes distinguishes itself from other builders by the freedom clients enjoy in their material and appliance selections. As Jacqui says, “The world is their oyster. Our clients can completely customise their homes and choose what they like”. She relishes being out on the road with clients, visiting suppliers, being the clients’ advocate, and guiding them through the process.

The best part of the job for Jacqui is seeing her clients’ vision realised. “What makes me happy is seeing the clients happy.”

When she is not working, Jacqui enjoys Zumba, walking, yoga, reading, and spending time with her family and friends – and Peggy the borderdoodle.

Rob Waters didn’t set out to design homes. Growing up in the rural village of Nevertire, around 100km from Dubbo, Rob knew only that there was one thing he didn’t want to be: a stock and station agent.

Rob’s father had a successful stock and station agency, but this life did not appeal to young Rob, so he moved to Sydney, where he became … a stock and station agent! A few years later, Rob spotted an ad in the local paper for a salesman of steel frame homes.

“I thought, ‘Could I do that?’” Turns out he could, and Rob has worked happily in the business ever since. Initially his design skills were honed working on project homes, before moving into his preferred sphere of custom designed homes.

Rob has been with Yarrum since its inception in 2008, working in Sales and Design, and he still loves to design custom homes. “I love the freedom to be able to talk to people and to be able to give them an alternative to just buying a project box.” While he’s not sure of the exact figure, Rob has designed more than 100 homes, and he enjoys the relationships he has with the clients during the design stage.

When Rob isn’t designing houses or liaising with clients he can usually be found perfecting his golf game at The Vintage.

When Isaac Matthews first started working for Yarrum, he was subcontracting as a carpenter. Clearly he was good at his job because he is now a Construction Supervisor who has been a valued member of the Yarrum team for six years.

“It all worked out pretty well, it was just good timing really,” Isaac says. “I’d just moved down from Port Macquarie and didn’t have too many ties.”

Isaac’s current project is Catalina, a 178-lot retirement village. When he arrives on site just each morning, his first task is to do the rounds of the trades to ensure they have everything they need for the day; then he checks each unit to ensure that the quality is

up to Yarrum’s standard. Isaac is also responsible for problem solving, and he spends time in front of the computer, placing and chasing orders.

In Isaac’s early days with Yarrum—when he was still on the tools—he worked on the award-winning display home in Merewether, and it is still one of the projects he is most proud of.

These days, home for Isaac, his wife and their baby daughter is in the Maitland area, where they own an older-style house. Being from Port Macquarie originally, once a month they travel back to catch up with family. Spare time together is spent gardening, working on the house, and relaxing at the beach.

After Rob Sinclair completed a Bachelor of Design (Architecture) and a Diploma of Building Design, he worked in several sectors of the building industry, including co-owning a building design firm.

But it was his years with a major project home builder in Newcastle that cemented his desire to work on custom designed homes. When an opportunity opened up at Yarrum, he jumped at the chance to join the team. Working directly with clients was not something that was encouraged in his previous job, but it is one of the aspects he enjoys most about his current role.

“I like the collaborative approach,” Rob says. Together with Sales and Design Manager Justin Priddis, Rob works with clients on concept designing, including 3D presentations, which are invaluable for visualising what the finished home will look like.

“It’s really good to work together and bounce ideas off each other…I like to see clients enjoy the process.” Rob says this open exchange of views helps him and Justin to

clearly understand the clients’ goals.

A Maitland local, Rob lives with his wife and their much-loved dogs, Archie and Pup. In his spare time Rob loves sailing his small catamaran, (which he is hoping to upgrade to something a little bigger), and cycling.