Meet Richard
Hello, I’m Richard Murray of R. J. Murray Builders. I really appreciate getting to know you, my clients, on a personal as well as a professional level, and the value and trust this provides for the journey of working with you. So here’s a little bit about me as a personal introduction…
Early Days In Building
I started building in the early 1980’s, after spending 6 months working at a garage trying to secure a mechanics apprenticeship, without any luck. My father was a builder and his uncle was a car dealer-turned-developer, and together they formed a large company that was buying up land around Avonhead and Ilam to develop into streets and small subdivisions. So I started my building career with their large company and was privileged to work under a group of senior carpenters who had some amazing skills.
Building On Experience
The business built a great clientele, with our team building anything from group townhouses up to high end architect houses and even blocks of factories. After so many successful building projects in Avonhead and Ilam, Hyde park opened up, so we spent a few years there before moving onto other areas of Christchurch; including a few hill-home projects from Mount Pleasant to Taylors Mistake and right over to Church Bay.
Becoming Foreman
By the mid 1990’s I was the foreman as we completed a contract to upgrade 104 rooms at a large Christchurch motel. Our business had employed a project manager who came down from Auckland to run this project, but after 6 weeks he was gone and I was put in charge, as our team was progressing so efficiently. We ended up completed the job well ahead of time, and with no budget blow outs, and that was when I decided it was time to go out on my own and form R.J. Murray Builders.
Launching R.J. Murray Builders
With the newly launched R. J. Murray Builders business I treated each build as if it was my own house, as I had done from the day I started building, and I quickly grew a good name with some amazing clients who had such faith in my abilities that they kept returning to employ me for new build projects. Over time I got to build some lovely large houses in the rural areas of Canterbury. I have been lucky enough to have had the opportunity to build some interesting projects all around the South Island, and was even asked by a repeat client to build for them on Waiheke Island. Unfortunately I had to turn that job down due to scheduling and other client needs.
Extensive Building Projects Throughout New Zealand
From being based in Prebbleton for the last 25 years, I have traveled to many wonderful places for my clients; from the point of Flea Bay past Akaroa, to Duvachelle, Pigeon Bay, Diamond Harbour through to Tai Tapu and Lincoln, and on out to Leeston, down to Ashburton, Geraldine and even Lake Ohau! We have build several beautiful homes in Lake Brunner, travelled over to Westport to build a 2-storey house, and then travelled on up to Nelson to to build a 3-storey house. We have completed house alterations and extensions right up to the Marlborough Sounds in both Waikawa Bay and Whatamango Bay, and we have even got to re-roof some of the large boat sheds up in Furneaux bay.
Challenging And Fulfilling Projects In Kaikoura
With having the use of the family batch in Kaikoura for the last 20 years, I have had the opportunity to be involved in many projects in that area; from completing the “Cornerstone Wall System” on a large block of 2-storey Motel Units, to building a block of “Bed and Breakfast Units’, a few new houses, as well as being able to work on much needed EQC repairs, house rebuilds and house re-levelling.
Grateful For Our Clients, Our Project Experience Always Looking For New Challenges
The work I have been involved in, throughout New Zealand, has been a huge privilege. Myself and my hardworking team have put heart and soul into every project and we thrive from the positive feedback of our satisfied customers, who often return to us for further build projects - the ultimate compliment. We’d like to thank all of our customers for putting their faith in us and giving us the opportunity to do what we do best. We love this industry and welcome new projects and new challenges and even the chance to offer our very in-depth experience and insight into your dreams and designs for homes, motels, batches and other building projects.