[RussandViv]

Hi everyone,
I have read with interest the various posts on house buying tips. There is one other area that I don't think has been covered but has caused us much frustration. This is in the area of Council permits for works done on houses.

In NZ nearly everything you do on a house needs a council permit (at cost). Examples are kitchen alterations where taps/drains moved, garden sheds (dep on size), installing a wood burner in the fireplace, replacing a hot water cylinder with a different type of cylinder, bathroom alterations, etc.

We are looking to buy a house and have done our research on the local markets, but whenever we start to dig deeper - well thats when the problems start. For example, we are interested in a house at the moment, but the council file which has the original house plans shows a plan of a house that is quite different in many ways to the actual house we viewed. Examples are - the chimney is in the center of the house on the plan. On the house its on an outside wall. There are windows on the house that are in different places than shown on the plans. Looking at the house, it seems that the changes were 'probably' made when it was built, and the plans were not updated at that time (in the 60's).

So where do we stand with this. The rules in NZ are that any structural works must have plans and permits submitted and approved by the council. However this house (and there have been many others) does not match the council records. Should we just walk away, should we accept that there will always be variations between plans and reality, should we ask the owners to get an engineers report and new plans submitted to the council, or should we just stop looking at the council information - it seldom seems to correspond with the houses!

Any advice would be gratefully received as we keep coming up against this stumbling block.

Kind regards,

Russell and Vivien

[Nick88]

I have posted some info on this in the other thread you added this to.

In short, get a survey done. The council permits are just to cover their butts in case anything goes wrong. After the leaky homes business a while ago several of the building inspection firms closed, in many cases they couldn't get insurance cover anymore. This means that the surveys they have done may or may not be currently covered by the council anyway, it can depend on the stage the paperwork was at when the brown stuff hit the fan.

Caveat emptor.

[RussandViv]

Hi Nick88, Thanks for the dual response. I wasn't sure if the other posting was prominent enough.

I did go to the local council and speak to a planner but he wasn't much help. As you said, he didn't seem to care from a council perspective but said it may be an issue for the buyer! This astonished me as they [council] are the ones who are supposed to uphold the rules.

One other thing we were not sure on is whether the permit issue affects home buildings insurance. I appreciate that this could be an issue if one has a new gas fire installed because it has to be warranted for correct installation and safety etc. Would the insurer want to see that the house has all the correct plans and permits etc for the building itself?

Kind regards,

Russell and Vivien

[Caroline and Dave]

Hi,

Check through here, this may help


http://www.consumerbuild.org.nz/publish/buyinghouse.php


Hope this helps

Dave and Caroline

[RussandViv]

Hi Caroline and Dave,

Thanks for the link. :yes

Lots of useful information that I can recommend to all house hunters. I liked the idea of a 'Certificate of Acceptance' (available since 31 march 2005) that an owner can get from the council for any work done, by current or previous owners without a building consent (http://www.consumerbuild.org.nz/publish/bact/buildingact-implement2004.php) to show that "...to the extent the council can ascertain, the work is compliant with the Building Code." (Copyright, Dept of Building and Housing and ConsumerNZ). This may be a good mid-way option for owners having difficulty selling because of buyers put-off by lack of permits, etc.

Kind Regards,

Russell and Vivien