Do I apply for building consent or Safe and Sanitary Report

[enjoyingnz]

We just bought a big 70's house in west Auckland which has a huge basement. The previous owner's had put up a bathroom (before 1991) and two bedrooms (half way finish). We are planning to finish the bedrooms and update the bathroom, also we have to water proof the block basement wall which have to take the gib board off and seal the block. The bathroom can have a safe and sanitary report.According to new buliding act, adding extra wall don't need buliding consent.So should we get safe and sanitary report and carry on the work? Or since we pull everything off it is the best time to make everything right,should we apply for building consent for all the basement development. Is it necessery to spend extra thousands and go through the process?

What are your suggestions? Do you have good plumber in the west to recommend ?

[WGN ex-property manager]

If the bathroom and the walls for the bedrooms are "in place" and were there before 1991 (or at least it's impossible to prove they weren't), then you can "rennovate" them with no issues.

Getting a "Safe and Sanitary" will help with resale.

[enjoyingnz]

If the bathroom and the walls for the bedrooms are "in place" and were there before 1991 (or at least it's impossible to prove they weren't), then you can "rennovate" them with no issues.

Getting a "Safe and Sanitary" will help with resale.

Thanks Robin, how much a CCC will help with resale compared with S&S? Can the "bedrooms" (without CCC) be rent out as bedrooms?

[Traff]

Safe and sanitary

I just got an illegal 5 bedroom house in West Harbour signed off for S and S that had 20 issues we we got down to 4 with reasoning on site with the plumbing and building inspector but that is not normally the case. My advice is to meet with council on site and find out exactly what they want and then go about sorting the issues. Do you have an open file or any old paperwork from them at all ?

if you want help with this process we can do that - can also do your plumbing or any other work - PM me if you want me to take a look or go to our website - what evre you do dont try to shortcut or go around council if you get caught they will make you rip everything out and put it back as befoe and permit everything and start agin. I have seen this many times...
PM me if like anytime happy to take a look
check our maintenance or renovation sites for more help - come to our west Auckland seminar for free on June 21st if you like its all about renovating.

https://www.maintaintoprofit.co.nz

regards

Mark

[WGN ex-property manager]

Thanks Robin, how much a CCC will help with resale compared with S&S? Can the "bedrooms" (without CCC) be rent out as bedrooms?

This is really an issue for your insurance company.

If you can insure the building, then you're OK.

Be very careful with what you tell them. Tell them its a 5 bedroom house built in <date> with additions to the basement done sometime before 1991.
DON'T say that the basement has no CCC, because there was no such thing as a CCC before 1991, so you're just shooting yourself in the foot.

Say "I'm not aware of any outstanding compliance issues with the building".

For Re-sale its all about perception. A Safe and Sanitary is the best you can do for work pre 1991 anyway, so anyone wanting buy a house older than that really has to accept it at face value. Will you be renovating the physical structure up to a level where a building report would "find no issues"? If so then there shouldn't be a problem.

There are 4 separate problems you have to manage here:

1. Will the council make me rip it out again. They almost never do this unless the whole house has been built without resource consent, so this is a non issue.
2. Is it going to be an ongoing maintenance nightmare. Your call, talk to your builder.
3. Can I sell it (see above)
3. Can I insure it? As long as there is no outstanding CCC then the insurance company should be fine. Don't give detail they don't ask for, as the call centre agents selling you a policy have to work to a very narrow script anda re easily de-railed.

A conversation I had with Tower insuring a 1927 Home and income bungalow in Wellington"
Agent : Has it been re piled?
Me (fresh off the boat from the UK): Ummm... what's a pile?
---------------
Next phone call

Agent: Has it been rewired?
Me: I don't know, I'm not an electrician
--------------------
Next phone call - now I'm wising up

Agent: Has it been re-piled?
Me : The piles appear to be concrete... so I guess someone must have at some stage
Agent: Has it been rewired
Me : The switches and light fittings appear to be younger than 1927, so I guess so.
Agent: Has it been re-plumbed?
Me: The taps and shower appear to be younger than 1927 so I guess so.
Agent: Does it have any Scrum?
Me: Ummm what?
Agent: Scrum
Me: Can you spell that?
Agent : S C R I M
Me: Ah... kiwi accent... OK... so what is Scrim?
Agent : its and old style wall lining that's very flammable
Me : OK, my builders report here says that the house is lined with Plasterboard. Does that help?
Agent: Yes, you can now have insurance with us.