Browse Forums Building A New House 1 Jun 14, 2012 11:30 pm I'm curious to hear how soon after an actual handover date people actually move in to their new place full time. I'm guessing a lot of the time this isn't immediate since certain councils have requirements which teh builder might not have completed before you're permitted to occupy the premises. In my case things like certificates of occupancy, letterboxes, fencing and blinds are all requirements which the builder doesn't take care of. What other things can influence this, and what dramas have people had sorting this out and actually being able to live in their new home? Building a Delta 21 at Craigieburn - http://homeofzero.blogspot.com.au/ Deposit: 26/02. Contract: 22/05. Settlement: 29/05. Site start: 18/10. Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 2Jun 14, 2012 11:46 pm We couldn't have handover, until the certificate of occupancy had been issued - I would have thought this was the case for all?? Maybe not?? Our handover was at 12.30pm on a Friday. We brought our first load of furniture (mattresses x 2 and a portacot) over at 1.30pm, fridge & dishwasher was delivered at 1.35pm......so technically we moved in 1 hour after handover!! We were living with my parents at the time......might have explained why we were keen to get into our own place! We weren't fussed in having to sleep on the floor!! We didn't have any window furnishings when we moved in....we got very creative with a combination of plastic tablecloths, bed frame pieces and boxes holding everything together to give us some privacy until we got ourselves sorted!! Letterbox went up over the first weekend. Part of our fencing took a couple of weeks to get done.....had to rig up a temp set up so that we could have our dog move in. All in all, we were keen to get in asap -particularly when you hear stories of appliances etc getting stolen, empty houses being broken into etc. Our building thread: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=51657 Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 4Jun 15, 2012 12:20 am Will be about a week for me. A week to install flooring, solar panels, some window furnishings and builder to sort out appliance supply and fit. Building with Jandson Homes - Eclipse 18. http://adgnetworks.blogspot.com/ Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 5Jun 15, 2012 1:11 am We had handover first thing on the monday morning, stared moving boxes etc into the garage that day, fencing was started on Monday, finished on Tuesday, flooring guys were here all day Tuesday and most of Wednesday (floating floorboards, so we could walk on it straight away), we moved furniture into the front half of the house while the flooring guys finished the back half. First night in this house on the Wednesday. Built the Coral Homes Hamilton 252 - moved in 20/10/2010 and loving it!! https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?t=27215 Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 6Jun 15, 2012 6:25 am You should not move in unless you have occupancy permit. That is a document that states that the dwelling is legally fit for occupation(not necessarily complying with regulations and contract) You should move in on the day of handover because this is when appliances are installed and if you don't there is a risk they will be stolen overnight (your loss) Foremost Building Expert in Australia,assisting with building problems/disputes, building stage inspections,pre-contract review advice for peace of mind 200 blogs http://www.buildingexpert.net.au/blog Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 8Jun 15, 2012 9:50 am Liliana Do cooking facilities need to be installed for the occupancy permit in Victoria or is it at the building surveyor's discretion? Neither - cooking appliances and your HWS will generally be installed on or soon after handover and the absence of them doesn't preclude obtaining an occupancy certificate AFAIK. They are big-ticket items and builders tend to hold off on installing them until the last minute as thieves aren't shy about pinching them from a locked up house - some will even do it in broad daylight around lunch time when other nearby building sites are deserted as they just look like any other tradie with a truck/van. For us we got the keys on a Friday and started moving in right away (we already had two car-loads and a packed-to-the-gills ute worth of stuff to drop off when when we collected the keys), but the appliance guys weren't booked in until the following Monday and they fixed up a bunch of other minor issues as well while they were there. Some people apparently have nothing better to do than comment on other people's sigs. Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 9Jun 15, 2012 9:58 am My builder is telling me that the plumber won't want to come back just to install our stove so, if it is not needed for the occupancy permit. we have to install it ourselves after handover. Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 10Jun 15, 2012 10:07 am Ask for a copy of the occupancy permit. I think it is granted subject to oven being installed or something similar. They have to install the oven. House - Lockup completed 23rd December 2011 - Painters are in!!! https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=37261&start=0&hilit=Blaxland Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 12Jun 15, 2012 12:10 pm For me it was about 2 weeks. We received the keys on a Thursday, spent the friday cleaning and installing redi shades. The next week I had Telstra out to trench from the street pit to house (knock down re-build in existing suburb and trenching was not part of our build contract). That had to be done first, and I couldn't have anyone else on site as they couldn't get access due to the tench and machinery. I then had 4 days of flooring and carpet installed, so that was that week! The weekend was spent moving everything out of the storage shed back in, but we still had no heat or hot water or appliances. No point in living there! The next week was the appliances and hot water. We couldn't have the fridge delivered, or the dishwasher installed until after the flooring went in (not done by the builders). TV aerial and phone point fit off happened the day after we moved in, 2 weeks after handover. So, it really depends how 'livable' your house is, and how much was not included in the build. Henley - Wilshire Mk 3 ... I love my house!! Site start: 4th Feb 09 Handover: 10th Sep 09 Blog: http://stormygirlscastle.blogspot.com/ Build Thread: viewtopic.php?t=7166 Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 13Jun 15, 2012 12:49 pm Ah, see that's an important thing I didn't know - that they don't/won't/can't(?) do handover until there's an occupancy permit. That's a bit confusing to me, because my estate guidelines say I can't get the occ.permit until it's fenced, has a letterbox and a paved drivway. The driveway the builder is doing, but I would have thought I can't do any work on the premises (letterbox, fencing) until after handover... so isn't that a catch-22? I already had the full understanding that we couldn't move in until after the fence and letterbox were done. Building a Delta 21 at Craigieburn - http://homeofzero.blogspot.com.au/ Deposit: 26/02. Contract: 22/05. Settlement: 29/05. Site start: 18/10. Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 14Jun 15, 2012 2:20 pm We had hand over last Thursday at 430pm and Moved in that night http://lindeman28.blogspot.com - Our building blog Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 15Jun 15, 2012 2:24 pm Liliana My builder is telling me that the plumber won't want to come back just to install our stove so, if it is not needed for the occupancy permit. we have to install it ourselves after handover. Are you supplying the stove? If so then you either get their plumber to do it while he is doing the other appliances or you pay for a plumber to do it yourself. If the builder is supplying the stove then it is the builder's responsibility to install it and if they want to run the risk of having it stolen by installing it well before handover instead of waiting until handover day or soon after (which I'd find strange to be honest) then that's their problem, not yours. Some people apparently have nothing better to do than comment on other people's sigs. Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 16Jun 15, 2012 2:27 pm akashra Ah, see that's an important thing I didn't know - that they don't/won't/can't(?) do handover until there's an occupancy permit. That's a bit confusing to me, because my estate guidelines say I can't get the occ.permit until it's fenced, has a letterbox and a paved drivway. The driveway the builder is doing, but I would have thought I can't do any work on the premises (letterbox, fencing) until after handover... so isn't that a catch-22? I already had the full understanding that we couldn't move in until after the fence and letterbox were done. Talk to your SS - they will be happy to accommodate a fencing contractor to do the fencing if the site clean has already been done and you're close to handover (I know mine certainly was) - same thing goes for rain water tanks as well. I find it strange for there to be a stipulation on letter boxes - you'll be lucky if you actually have a mail run initially and not everybody signs up for a turn-key package when they build. Some people apparently have nothing better to do than comment on other people's sigs. Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 17Jun 15, 2012 2:32 pm We were able to move in quickly before retaining and other things were completed by getting a "interim" occupation certificate. Basically it says you can live there but you need to finish outstanding items before getting "final" occupation certificate. This worked for us the only additional expense was you have to pay for the additional inspection roughly $300 thru the private certifier. Building McDonald Jones Bronte Manor One Contracts Signed Dec 12 DA Lodged Jan 13 DA Consent w/BAL40 Apr 13. S96 Consent w/BAL19 May 13. Slab Complete Jun 13. Frame Brick & Roof Complete Aug 13. Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 18Sep 18, 2012 11:30 pm Hi All, How long will it take to get Certificate of Occupancy from the date builder has applied. My Builder applied it two weeks back and still not yet received. Any comments pls. Thanks, Nicole Nicole1983 Re: How long after handover until you can actually live ther 20Sep 19, 2012 12:18 am Nicole1983, it would depend on a number of things I would think! Availability of the inspector would be the biggest, but I would think two weeks would be enough, and about 13 days more than it's needed to be told when they are booked to come or! The next biggest thing that comes to mind is does the premises actually comply? It is possible the builder missed something and failed the first time around! Just my 2 cents, most I've had to do with the certificates are builders chasing me to complete my works for him to get the c of o! 2 of course there are legal avenues. You've already mentioned it. Sue them. I find it odd that lawyers wouldnt be willing to take on the case, given CCT evidence and… 1 14688 yes it does, you've just not understood it. theres a difference. 4 2780 Depends what you're current inclusions are, but we're not including wardrobes and will just use second hand ones until we can save later on to get them built. Also have a… 3 8447 |