Overview
Building a home comes with its own language. Within the first few conversations you can hear about geotechs, PIMs, CCCs, piles, draughtsmen and two different kinds of building consent, sometimes in the same sentence. None of it is complicated once it is explained, but the jargon can make an exciting project feel more daunting than it needs to.
This transportable home glossary NZ buyers can keep open alongside their plans explains the terms you are most likely to come across, in plain English. We have grouped them in roughly the order you will meet them, from your first enquiry through to the day you collect your keys, and where a topic deserves more detail we point you to a guide that covers it in full.
The Basics
Transportable Home
A complete home built away from your section, in our case in our Rotorua yard, then transported to your land, placed on permanent foundations and connected to services. Once installed, it is a permanent dwelling and must meet the same Building Code and planning rules as any other house.
Prefab Home
Short for prefabricated. It is a broad term for a home where most of the construction happens in a yard or factory before it reaches the site. A transportable home is a type of prefab home that arrives fully finished, with the kitchen, bathrooms, flooring and painting already complete.
Off Site Construction
Building a home somewhere other than its final location, often written as offsite construction. The benefits are consistent quality control, no downtime between trades, fewer weather delays and far less disruption on your land, because the work on your section is limited to site works, delivery and connections.
On Site Build
A traditional build where the home is constructed on your section from the ground up. When access, finance or design means a transportable home is not practical, Exeter can bring the same systems and quality controls to an on site build within reach of our yard.
Tiny House on Wheels
A small home on a trailer that can, in some circumstances, be treated as a vehicle rather than a building. A transportable home is different. Once it is fixed to foundations and connected to services, it is a building under the Building Act, with all the obligations that come with that.
Turnkey
A service where the builder manages everything needed to hand you a finished home, including consents, site works, delivery, placement and connections. You simply turn the key and move in. When people search for turnkey prefab homes, this is the service they are looking for, and it is how Exeter works. A true turnkey price adds together the home, transport, foundations, site and civil works, consents and reports, service connections and any finishing work on site. Our transportable home price guide shows how those costs stack up.
Plans, Pricing and Contracts
Standard Plan
A design that has already been drawn, engineered and priced, like the homes in our full range of plans. Standard plans are the most cost effective option, and in our Essence and Executive ranges they can still be modified.
Custom Design
A home designed from a blank page around your section and your brief. It offers the most freedom but takes longer and costs more to design. Our guide to standard design versus custom build explains the trade offs.
Ballpark Estimate
The early, realistic price range we give you after your first meeting, before your site has been fully investigated. It helps you decide whether a project is worth pursuing before you spend money on reports.
Concept Design
The stage where your home takes shape, from the layout and materials through to the finer details. It is also when your geotechnical report is arranged and when we provide a tailored, site specific price.
Preliminary Building Contract
The stage that removes the unknowns. Engineering, surveying and council discussions confirm exactly what can be built on your site, so the project can be fully and accurately priced with no assumptions or grey areas.
Fixed Price Building Contract
A contract that sets out the agreed scope, cost and timeline of your build, right down to the colour of your toilet roll holder. It provides a clear framework for understanding what is included in your build and the terms agreed with your builder.
Variation
A change to the agreed scope after a contract has been signed. Variations usually add both cost and time, which is why it pays to finalise your decisions before the contract stage.
Your Section and Site Investigations
Section
The everyday New Zealand word for a plot of land, whether it is an urban lot or a rural lifestyle block.
Site Visit
An in person or virtual check of your land to confirm a home can be delivered and positioned on it. We look at road access for the transport vehicles, the slope and terrain, and where existing services are located.
Geotechnical Report
Usually shortened to geotech, this is an investigation into the soil on your section, carried out by an engineering or local planning company. It identifies hazards such as fault lines or flood risk, and tells you whether the ground is soft, hard or somewhere in between. The geotech decides what foundations your home needs, and most councils require one with your building consent.
Stormwater Assessment
A report prepared by a civil engineer that explains how rainwater will be managed on your site and whether you need on site soakage. It is often completed at the same time as the geotech, although not every council requires one.
On-site Soakage
A system, such as a soak pit, that lets stormwater drain into the ground on your property rather than flowing into a council network.
Boundary Pegs and Title Boundary Survey
Boundary pegs mark the corners of your section. If you cannot find them, a surveyor can carry out a title boundary survey to confirm exactly where your boundaries sit.
Marking Out the House Footprint
Pegging the exact position of your new home on the section, usually done by a surveyor measuring from your boundaries. It matters, because if a home is placed in the wrong spot your council may require it to be moved.
Site Plan
A drawing that shows where your home, driveway and any other structures will sit on your land, along with boundaries, access and service connections. It forms a key part of your consent application.
Engineering Plan
A plan, usually prepared with your draughtsman or planning company, that shows how power, water, drainage and telecommunications will be laid out across your site.
Consents, Rules and Approvals
New Zealand Building Code
The national rules every new building must meet, covering structure, durability, fire safety, moisture, energy efficiency and more. Every Exeter home is built to full Building Code compliance.
Building Consent
Written approval from a building consent authority, confirming that planned building work will meet the Building Code. For a closer look at how this works for a transportable home, read our guide to council consents for transportable homes.
Yard Building Consent
The consent that allows a home to be built in a builder’s yard. Exeter holds this consent for the homes we build in Rotorua, so construction is inspected before your home ever leaves the yard.
Local Building Consent
The consent from your own council to place the home on your section and connect it to services. It covers the foundations, the position of the home and how it meets your local rules. Councils usually need at least 20 working days to process an application.
Draughtsman
The professional who prepares the drawings for your Local Building Consent, showing where the home will sit and how it connects to services. A draughtsman who knows your local council can make the process noticeably smoother.
Request for Further Information
Often shortened to RFI, this is a formal request from council for more detail while your consent is being processed. An RFI pauses the processing clock until the information is supplied, which is why a complete, well prepared application saves time.
Resource Consent
Permission from council for a use of land that falls outside the rules of your district plan, such as adding a dwelling where density or setback limits would otherwise be exceeded. It is separate from building consent, and some projects need both.
District Plan and Zoning
Your council’s rulebook for how land can be used. Your zone sets limits such as site coverage, height, setbacks and the number of dwellings allowed on a property.
Project Information Memorandum
Usually called a PIM, this is a report from council that sets out information relevant to your site, such as natural hazards, available services and any other approvals you may need. Under the granny flat exemption, a PIM must be issued before any building work starts.
Granny Flat or Minor Dwelling
A small, self contained home, usually built as a second dwelling on a property. Since 15 January 2026, a new, standalone, single storey dwelling of up to 70 square metres can be built without a building consent if every exemption condition is met. Our guide to the NZ granny flat rules explains what counts as a minor dwelling and the conditions that apply.
MDRS
Short for the Medium Density Residential Standards. Where a council applies them, they allow up to three homes of up to three storeys on many residential sites without the lengthy resource consent process that used to be required. Our article on what the medium density rules mean for transportable homes explains the opportunity.
Development Contributions
Fees some councils charge when a new dwelling adds demand on local roads, water and wastewater networks. They can apply even to an exempt granny flat, so it is worth checking with your council early.
Licensed Building Practitioner
Known as an LBP, this is a builder or designer licensed by the government to carry out or supervise restricted building work, which covers the critical structural and weathertightness parts of a home.
Registered Master Builder
A builder who is a member of Registered Master Builders, the industry association that sets standards its members are expected to meet. Exeter Homes is a registered Master Builder, and you can read more about the people behind our builds on our about us page.
Healthy Homes Standards
Our homes are built to meet the Healthy Homes Standards from day one, including requirements for heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture and drainage, and draught stopping. This helps provide a warm, dry and comfortable living environment for tenants.
Specification Terms
Double Glazed Joinery
Windows and doors with two panes of glass separated by a sealed gap, which reduces heat loss and outside noise. All Exeter homes include aluminium double glazed joinery.
Thermally Broken Joinery
Aluminium joinery with an insulating barrier built into the frame, so less heat escapes through the metal and less condensation forms on cold mornings.
Rigid Air Barrier
A sheet material fixed behind the cladding to stop wind driven air and moisture moving into the wall. Our Essence range uses an IBS rigid air barrier for stronger, healthier wall construction.
Ducted Heating, Cooling and Ventilation
A central system that delivers warm or cool air through ducts to every room for quiet, whole home comfort.
Delivery, Connection and Handover
Piles and Foundations
The structure your home sits on. On straightforward sites, this is usually standard timber piles designed to NZS 3604, the New Zealand Standard for timber-framed buildings. Sloping sites or soft ground may need engineered foundations designed by a structural engineer.
Site Works and Civil Works
The preparation of your land, including earthworks, driveways, retaining, drainage and the trenching for services. With a turnkey build, these run at the same time as your home is being built in our yard.
Delivery and Placement
The day your home leaves the yard. It is transported to your section, lifted onto its foundations, positioned exactly where it was marked out and secured in place. Transport costs depend largely on the route and your site access, and our primary delivery area runs from the Bombay Hills through to the Wellington region.
Service Connections
Connecting your home to power, water, drainage and telecommunications. Exeter homes arrive with plumbing and electrical ready for connection, and local trades complete the final links once the home is in place.
Meter Box
The point where your home’s electrical wiring meets the power supply. Our homes are wired through to the meter box, and an electrician connects it to the network.
Drainlayer
A licensed tradesperson who installs the pipes that carry wastewater and stormwater away from your home, either to the council network or to an on site system.
Code Compliance Certificate
Known as a CCC, this is the certificate council issues to confirm building work was completed in line with the consent and the Building Code. A transportable home typically has two, one for the build in our yard and one for the installation on your section once the foundations and connections are signed off.
Finishing Touches
The final items after placement, such as entrance steps, decking, landscaping, window coverings and any extra heating you choose to add. If you are planning an elaborate deck, include it in your consent application from the start.
Still Unsure About a Term?
You should never feel you have to nod along. If something in a quote, a contract or a council letter does not make sense, ask, we will explain it in plain English. Our FAQs page covers many of these topics in more detail, and our process page shows where each one fits in the journey from first enquiry to handover.
Call us on 0800 613 213, email sales@exeterhomes.co.nz, or get in touch through our contact page. We are always happy to talk it through.
