In 1986 he left AV Jennings and joined GJ Gardner Homes as a consultant. He then took on a management role becoming responsible for staff training and product development. After again being promoted this time to Queensland Marketing Manager, he was instrumental in establishing GJ Gardner Homes as one of Queensland’s largest project builders with eight regional offices and completing up to 1000 homes per year. Since then GJ Gardner Homes have gone on to become one of Australia’s most successful building franchises having completed over 25,000 homes.

After leaving GJ Gardner Homes, he acted as a consultant to several project builders in South East Qld. He returned to work with AV Jennings Homes in 2003 as a member of the Queensland State Executive. He was responsible for display centres and the sale of completed land developments throughout Queensland.

After relocating to the Sunshine Coast in 2006, Rick joined forces with Rod Blandford to establish what has now become a new home building brokerage - NATIONAL BUILDING SOLUTIONS.

Rick believes that the home building industry has become far too complicated and confusing for home buyers and that by drawing on the depth of knowledge and experience of the team at National Building Solutions, buyers can avoid the stress and dramas normally associated with building a new home.

He was on building sites from the age of 10 gaining some hard earned pocket money on weekends and school holidays. It was always going to be a natural progression into the building industry.

At the end of 1974 when Rod finished high school in Nambour, he was indentured to McKinnon & Blandford to start his Carpentry Apprenticeship and his life in the building industry. One of the first valuable experiences Rod gained as a young apprentice was going to Darwin to help clean up & rebuild the town after it was devastated by Cyclone Tracy. He returned to the Sunshine Coast during 1975 where he worked for a further 5 years, successfully completing his apprenticeship and passing with honours.

When Rod learnt his trade, it was in the days when they did everything themselves. This included all their own footings & concrete slabs, drainage and septic systems, steel work, gyprocking, painting, tiling and metal roof sheeting as well as every aspect of timberwork. This has given Rod a broad & invaluable knowledge of many individual trades.
He & his wife returned to Darwin in 1981 where he ran his own successful building company for 8 years, earning industry awards for the work he did in residential housing. Rod also did work for the Northern Territory Conservation Commission helping set up the now famous Litchfield National Park.

The beginning of the 1990’s saw Rod return to the Sunshine Coast. From this time on Rod put his tools aside and for the next 11 years he worked with local building company P.J. Burns to establish and manage a project housing division. Rod’s last project with P.J. Burns was overseeing and managing the rebuild of the burnt out heritage listed Childers Backpackers Hostel in 2003.

Rod then returned to his roots developing several housing projects for himself & clients in various locations around the Sunshine Coast.

In 2005 he began work with Rick McCarthy establishing a property division securing land on the coast & in Brisbane to provide complete packages for clients with whom they had been associated for many years. In 2006 Rob Koller also joined together with Rick & Rod to establish what has now become National Building Solutions.

Madeline Horne

I bought my first property in 1977 – it was a small one bedroom unit for the princely sum of $17,200. It seems cheap NOW but at the time I was earning $38.10 per week as a Dental Nurse.  I sold this unit in 1984 for $39,800 and bought a block of Land in Mooloolaba for $25,000 and built a house for around $30,000.

At the time I was a casually employed at the Mooloolaba Hotel and had a second job 5 mornings per week at a Vet Surgery in Nambour.  I then filled the houses spare bedrooms with friends who helped pay it off for me.

I have continued to buy property and my Partner and I currently have 5 properties, we have just signed a contract after an offer from Brisbane City Council to purchase one of our Brisbane Properties that will leave us debt free with 4 properties – 3 of which produce rental income.

This situation did not happen overnight but rather it was a well thought out plan that we have actively worked at for many years.

Along the way I worked in the Building Industry as Sales Manager with AVJennings one of Australia s largest builders and in my role acquired land, selected and sited homes to suit, set up land contracts with Soil and topographical survey testing, organized finance, color selections, and guided many happy new home buyers through to ‘Move In’ day.

I have also worked for other Building and Investment companies and worked in all areas of the Property Market and I also hold a current Real Estate License.  It can be daunting when you do build or purchase a home for the first time but with the decades of experience that this team offers it can be made a reality.