A permit signifies that your construction project is ready to move forward and complies with all necessary regulations. Understanding the planning and building permit process in Victoria is necessary before doing home extensions. Failing to secure the appropriate permits can result in fines, forced demolition, or even legal action, which can significantly delay your project and increase costs.
What is a Planning Permit?
A planning permit is a legal document that grants permission to build or use a particular piece of land, including extensions and renovations. An application must be submitted to the council, and if the council approves the proposal, it will issue a planning permit.
What’s the difference between a planning permit vs a building permit?
A planning permit is approval from your local council that allows you to use or develop land in a specific way. A planning permit is not the same as a building permit. It includes written conditions and usually has endorsed plans that show what is to be built and how the land can be used.
In contrast, a building permit relates to the construction itself and is issued by a registered building surveyor. It declares that the proposed building work complies with building regulations, safety standards, and codes.
How to Get a Building Permit?
Obtain a Planning Permit
Before applying for a building permit, determine if you need a planning permit. This will depend on zoning laws, land use, and overlays. Contact your local council to check if your project requires one.
- Option 1: If you choose a design-and-construct builder, they can handle both the planning permit and building permit processes, along with other necessary reports (e.g., soil report).
- Option 2: If you hire an architect or draftsperson to design custom plans, they will help you navigate planning permits. You may need to consult a town planner or home extension design experts if you’re unfamiliar with local zoning and regulations.
Apply for a Building Permit
Once you have any required planning approvals, you can then apply for a building permit, which focuses on the construction side. This permit ensures that the extension design complies with building codes, safety standards, and regulations.
- Builders are usually responsible for submitting the building permit application.
- If managing the project independently, you’ll need a registered building surveyor to issue the permit.
Get Your Planning Permits with Ease – RFT Solutions for Extensions & Renovations
At the start of the building project, the scope of work and budget will be documented for your confirmation. This scope and budget serve as the foundation for developing the initial concept design.
The concept design focuses on room types, sizes, and locations, as well as setbacks and the placement of doors and windows. We continue to refine and adjust the concept design until we receive your approval, after which we proceed with preparing the planning documentation.
Early in the concept design stage, our house extension experts will do the following for you:
- Arrange a soil or foundation test and a land survey
- Gather information about neighbouring buildings, heights, setbacks, and other details required by council planners
- Obtain the title, copy plan, and property sewer information
- Once the concept design has been approved, we begin preparing the town planning drawings. This stage focuses on elevations, roof design, building heights, and the location of neighbouring houses
- We also prepare a design response report for the council
RFT Solutions Kicks Off the Working Drawings Process for You
We add further details to the drawings for the building surveyor, including a specification sheet listing the fixtures and finishes you have selected.
The team will obtain quotes from structural engineers and building surveyors. Once the working drawings are complete, the team will send them to the structural engineer for review.
After the building surveyor reviews the documentation, they will issue an assessment outlining any matters that require further attention.
RFT Solutions will coordinate with the relevant consultants to address and provide the necessary responses to the building surveyor’s assessment.
The completed documentation will then be sent out to tender to at least three builders with experience relevant to your project. If the extension builders’ quotes do not reflect a fair market price, we will seek additional quotes until you are satisfied that the best value and quality have been achieved. The building surveyor will issue a building permit once a builder has been selected and insurance has been arranged.
Secure the Best Value for Your Project with RFT Solutions
RFT Solutions simplifies the permit process to make your home renovation in Victoria progress smoothly. We handle everything from development approval, gathering quotes, to coordinating with relevant consultants. Contact our experts today and we’ll get your renovation on track immediately.
