A purchaser was looking at buying a residential property and as part of their due diligence investigations obtained the Council records for the property. 

Upon their review of the Council’s records they discovered that the location of the bathroom had changed from the original plans. The current owner had not carried out the work; it was carried out by a previous owner.

The purchaser sought legal advice about what they could do to protect themselves and ensure the building work was safe.

When undertaking building work on a property, it is always important to check with your local Council as to whether you need a building consent and if building consent is required and granted, to apply for a Code Compliance Certificate when the work is completed. Building consents cannot be issued retrospectively, so it is important to get advice about consent requirements before beginning any work.

However, if building work has been undertaken by a vendor (or previous owner) without consent, or a code compliance certificate has not been issued, there are still steps that a prospective purchaser can take to make sure they aren’t buying into a property with faulty or dangerous building work.

Certificate of Acceptance

For unconsented building work that was completed after 1 July 1992, the Council may be able to issue a Certificate of Acceptance to show that the work complies with the current Building Code. You will need to be able to show how the building works were completed so that the Council can assess whether it is up to code.  Ideally this would include photos of the work while it was being carried out, if available. The Council may require a specialist report before deciding if a Certificate of Acceptance will be granted.  If a Certificate of Acceptance is granted, this will be put on the Council’s record for the property.

If a Certificate of Acceptance cannot be granted, the Council will issue a Notice to Fix, which will set out what  further building works are required to take place in order to meet the current Building Code and for the Certificate of Acceptance to be granted.

The Certificate of Acceptance is usually issued within 20 working days of the approval of the application.

Third Party or Safe and Sanitary reports

For building work that was completed before 1 July 1992, the Council is unable to issue a Certificate of Acceptance. The Council will generally deem the works as an existing situation unless they are made aware that the works are unsafe or unsanitary.  If they consider the works to be unsafe or unsanitary they will issue a Notice To Fix.

In the situation where the Council has deemed it an existing situation, you can seek to have a  Third Party or Safe and Sanitary report carried out to assess the condition of the works. An independent assessor will verify the condition of the work, and the report can be submitted to the Council for including with the Property’s records so that it is available on public record for the property.

No Code Compliance Certificate

Often building consents are obtained, building works completed, but then a Code Compliance Certificate is not obtained. 

If works have been completed in accordance with a building consent, then the vendor should be able to apply to the Council for a Code Compliance Certificate, which involves a final inspection.  The inspection is to check that the works have been completed in accordance with the building consent and meet the current building code. 

If changes to the building code have been made and/or the works have not been completed in accordance with the building consent, then the Council will advise that the inspection has failed and what further works will be required to obtain the Code Compliance Certificate.  A further inspection of the additional works will be required before the Code Compliance Certificate can been issued. 

Code Compliance Certificates are usually issued within 20 working days of the final inspection if the works are approved.  Therefore, this could be a quick and easy fix depending on whether further works are required or not.

Purchaser’s Options

Depending on when the works were completed, it would be recommended that a purchaser requests that the vendor obtain a Certificate of Acceptance (if post-1992) or obtain a third-party report (or do so themselves).

Purchasers should always seek advice from a builder as to whether particular works required consent as well as to check the structural integrity of the work.

Purchasers should disclose any issues with works not clearly permitted or consented to their bank and insurer.

If you are looking to buy a property which has had renovations carried out and you are unsure as to whether Council consent or a permit should have been obtained, it is important to seek legal advice to ensure that your interests are protected. A legal professional will be able to assist you through the process and advise what the appropriate steps are to ensure any building work is up to standard.

For more information on building consents please reference to our further articles:

Leading law firms committed to helping clients cost-effectively will have a range of fixed-price Initial Consultations to suit most people’s needs in quickly learning what their options are.  At Rainey Collins we have an experienced team who can answer your questions and put you on the right track.