Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Oct 02, 2016 9:39 am Hi everyone Long time lurker, long overdue first time poster. Have been looking at a house that was build in early 80's (possibly 81). When originally planned (plans council have) it was a single story weatherboard house on suspended slab resting on piers on a sloping block (sloping front to back) with a garage underneath (facing back). Once it began to be built the plans were amended (councils building surveyor has signed the amended plans.) and a 2 story brick house was built with the underside (bottom story) left open for future use. In the new design the piers were gone and it has 2 load bearing walls and a large steal beam. From looking through the files the local council have supplied, they knew the underside of dwelling was going to be utilised at a later date by the owner and have ok'd the plans for the amended footings. It was inspected in 83 by council and afew defects were noted saying once rectified please contact the council for future inspection. As far as I can tell this is where the paperwork stops. Its evident that the bottom story , which now consists of 3 bedrooms, bathroom and large living area was all done by an average handyman and the council would have no idea about and i'd doubt would pass any inspection. My question is, if i bought the place, my plan is to gut the whole bottom floor and do it properly, for peace of mind should i let the council know. And before I go ahead with purchasing the place, should i have a meeting with council to find out what they actually know about the house. Who do I talk to at council? My concerns with the council not knowing would be possible problems with insurance claims if something happened to the house? Is it to late to fix the bottom and get the council to issue a building certificate? Any advice is welcome, we like the house and area (worst house in good street scenario). Thanks Tom Re: Need Advice on possibilities and problems of renovations 2Oct 02, 2016 10:57 am Hi Tomranger Good to hear you have stopped lurking and jumped in with a question The original plans probably have expired for whatever reason the owner didn't proceed, blah,blah,blah You will need to do a lot more ground work, incomplete projects & difficult builds can represent opportunity to some buyers and a nightmare for others. On difficult builds always start with the engineering->feasibility->optimisation->construction costs->profits As an engineer/contractor I can tell you sometimes it is more cost effective to pull things down than to utilise,fix and renovate..you'll need to do the math... Praemonitus praemunitus. Designer,Engineer (Civil,Const & Envir),Builder,Concrete & Masonry Contract.Struct Repairs Re: Need Advice on possibilities and problems of renovations 3Oct 02, 2016 7:34 pm It's amazing how much you can read before you need to take the plunge and ask your own questions. Unfortunately the owner didn't proceed with follow ups as he passed away at the time of the build and his wife (current owner) didn't ever see the point of following correct procedures with council. I've had two builders (one of which tried to buy the house 18months ago) look at the house who have both said its a very solid house but both openly say that the council wouldn't have seen what the owner has done with the bottom floor. That structurally it appears fine it's just the fit out. Do I need to get an engineer in to have a look? If so what type of engineer? And will they give any advice on something they weren't part of? Thanks Tom Re: Need Advice on possibilities and problems of renovations 4Oct 03, 2016 7:30 am As per what SBG says above, a structural engineer would be the best person to take a look at this place. Before you get them to do an inspection I'd see about getting as much documentation from the council as possible especially the construction drawings and any engineering details. They will have to go back into their archives for this and it will cost you a fee to do so. It may also be relevant once you have these to contact the original engineers if they are still around. A town planner at the council may be able to advise you on what the council would require regarding the non-certified fit-out work the previous owner did and one of their engineering guys is probably the best to talk to regarding the structure itself. Stewie Versaloc is a mortarless besser block system that still needs a properly engineered footing. If you just do a 400x200 footing it will fail in time. At 17m long you need it… 1 15551 I am not a brick expert, but rendering would be 1 option, it would be costly to do the entire house though.... 2 6672 Hi all, has anyone been ask to do the weeds in their property while in the middle of build? We are under the impression that they are in control of the site while they… 0 2749 |