So what is the deal with building a granny flat in Brisbane? What can you do and what can't you do?

Building laws (as at 02/11/17) regarding Granny Flats are pretty straight forward. Basically, this is the law from the Dwelling House Code in the Brisbane City Plan 2014:

- "Development comprises not more than one dwelling house and one secondary dwelling (granny flat) occupied by one household."
- "A maximum of 80m2 in gross floor area."
- "Located within 20m of the dwelling house."
- "Occupied by 1 or more members of the same household as the dwelling house."
-  "1 car parking space for the dwelling house; 1 car parking space for any secondary dwelling on the same site"

Household is defined in the Brisbane City Plan 2014 as:
"Means 1 or more individuals who-
(a) live in a dwelling with the intent of living together on a long-term basis; and
(b) make common provision for food and other essentials for living"

The dwelling house code further defines a "household" as comprising:
"(a) 1 person maintaining a household; or 
(b) 2 more more persons related by blood, marriage or adoption; or
(c) not more than 5 persons, not necessarily related by blood, marriage or adoption; or
(d) not more than 5 persons under the age of 18 and not necessarily related by blood, marriage or adoption, together with 1 or 2 adult persons who have care or control of them."

So who is a granny flat suited to? There are a few possible reasons for wanting to build a granny flat:
- Aging parents are needing extra care,
- Separate living space for a family member, 
- Extra space for a growing family,
- Renting out a dwelling room by room under one tenancy agreement

If you are thinking of building a granny flat to rent out to a separate tenant, think again. Granny flats are NOT multi-unit dwellings.  Multi-unit dwellings are very different in type and construction. Especially with regard to fire separation.  (See the Dual Occupancy Code in the Brisbane City Plan 2014)

A granny flat is generally designed to have one tenancy agreement between all members living in the main and secondary dwelling, one letterbox, one metered water & electricity supply etc. If a granny flat was being used in a Dual Occupancy situation and there was a fire, or similar emergency issue and someone was hurt, the owners could be liable for big dollars if their insurance refuses to cover the owners based on the definitions of a 'household' in the City Plan.

For any family, building a Granny Flat in Brisbane is a fantastic addition to your home. It creates a separate living area and creates more space and freedom within the family.

Let us help you design a Granny Flat that suits your family's requirements, or a Dual Occupancy dwelling that meets all the current regulations.

Sam
​QDH Director

Renovating your existing home is something most homeowners plan to do at some point in the future. Dreaming of what will go where, what your master bedroom with walk-in-robe & ensuite will look like, how you'd love to do the kids rooms, how great it will be to finally build that big deck. Planning your renovation is a very exciting adventure for your family.

But where do you start? And, how much work is actually involved? How much will it cost? Below, we have put together a few resources and great references for starting to plan your renovation from start to finish.

yourhome.gov.au - This government commisioned informative website starts from planning your renovation and seeing if what you want to do is actually feasible for your home, to working with your designer, to working with your builder and making it happen.

homeimprovementpages.com.au - You will need to find builder or contractor to carry out the work. hipages is a great place to start your search. The 'Browse Articles' section contains huge resources and vast amounts of information on every possible individual aspect of your renovation from air conditioning to sheds and water tanks.

Your local council website - By checking under the building and renovating section of your local council's website, you can see whether your proposed building work is possible in your area. Various local plans come into play with each individual area, and sometimes what is okay to do in Mackay, may not be possible or legal to do in Mt Isa. Find you local council using this interactive map here: http://www.qldcouncils.com.au/web/guest/find-your-council

Considering whether if it is worth your while looking into sustainable housing? The Environmental and Heritage Protection website provides a great starters guide and insight into sustainable housing and considers many of the possible ways that you can make your home more energy efficiency and eco-friendly. http://www.ehp.qld.gov.au/sustainability/sustainable_housing.html

By doing your research before you begin renovating, you will save yourself a ton of headache, heartache and confusion. Remember, you can always let your building designer do the thinking and research for you too. That's what we're here for. To make planning your renovation as smooth and as stress-free as possible.

Sam
QDH Director

Maybe you just bought your dream home, only to find out the downstairs area was never approved! Or maybe you put that carport on the side of your house years ago, only to get a letter from council saying you need to get it approved, or pull it down!  This can be an overwhelming experience, especially if you don't know where to start. But never fear! In this blog post, we'll walk you through how to jump through all the right 'hoops' to get it approved.

The processes we will be talking about below are specifically aimed at Brisbane and Queensland based home owners. However the steps are mostly the same, wherever you are. Check with your local council.

Step 1: Get a knowledgeable person to have a look at it...
You may think that it looks like it would stand up to a cyclone, and that it's not overhanging the boundary so it should meet all regulations. Unfortunately, this isn't the way council sees things. No one expects you to know the building codes inside and out as a home owner. That's why it is important to have a knowledgeable person to come out and have a look. Someone that can look at it and tell you what regulations it does or does not meet.

Why is this a key step? Well, the facts are, a lot of unapproved building work can be prohibitively expensive to bring up to regulations outlined in the National Construction Code (NCC), the Timber Framing Code (AS1684), and your local council's requirements. 

By having someone there to walk around it with you, they will be able to give you a good idea of your options. This also will help you consider the possible costs that you might be looking at to bring it up to meet the current building regulations. This is something that we can help you with! Get in touch to arrange a site visit from us. Others that may be able to help could be a builder, engineer or a private certifier.

Decided that you want to go down the road of getting it approved? In Step 2, we will move on to the 'hoops' of getting it approved. We will also discuss the following consultants you will need:

• Building Designer
• Engineer
• Private Certifier

Just a note that this really is a bit of a specialised field, as only a handful of consultants will touch unapproved building works.


Step 2: Have a Building Designer draw up your plans
The first action to take in the commencing the process of getting you building work approved is to have a Building Designer (such as QDH) develop a full set of building design plans outlining the existing building before the work was done, as well as the proposed final plans (plans showing how the building works need to be in order to get your building approval). These will be submitted, (along with the engineering drawings), to your private certifier to get the final nod of approval.


​Step 3: Have an Engineer develop any engineering plans required
The second consultant to engage is a Structural Engineer. You will give the building design plans to him so that he can develop his drawings and conduct any necessary site inspections to examine the existing footings, slab or structural members, connections & tie-down details. 

He will most likely issue some plans along with his approval of the structural adequacy of the structure, or he will outline the changes that need to be made for the structure to be made structurally adequate for approval. Get in touch with us to access our exclusive network of great consultants we work with here in Brisbane.


Step 4: Submit all of this to a Private Certifier
So you've got all your plans, now what? You will then have to submit all of these to a Private Certifier. At the end of the day, the Private Certifier is the one that signs off on your building approval, and issues your final approval, so be nice to him (or her)!

With an undertaking such as this, it is good for the Private Certifier to be involved from the start. They are the final authority on getting your work approved, so the more involved they are from the start, the better the chance we have of dotting all our structural 'i's', and crossing all our regulatory 't's'.


Step 5: Enjoy peace of mind...
By getting all unapproved building work approved, you will be able to rest easy knowing that you and your family are safe, no one will ask you to pull down parts of your house, your insurances will cover you in the event of a disaster, and when you come to sell your house, you will probably get more $ for it than you would have otherwise! That's a pretty good incentive if nothing else.

For more information or to ask a question specific to your project, feel free to flick us an email.

Sam,
​Director

What a disaster January 2011 brought to Brisbane residents. Not just then, but any of the lesser floods that followed. Especially devastated were those that owned homes in the flooded areas. As the unaffected members of Brisbane move on with they're lives,  you are still trying to recover from the emotional and physical damage it has left in it's wake.

You are now faced with the devastating damage, and the question: Do I repair? Or do I tear down and build a new home? Turn it into an investment property? Or just sell up all together. Whatever conclusion you come to, there is some things you need to know.

For all of the following suggestions, you can definitely make use of a Brisbane FloodWise Property report. Go to FloodWise Property Reports put in your address, and get your report. This will show you your block's relationship to the flood levels and minimum habitable floor levels for new work.

Repair:
If things are not damaged as much as you thought and your home is able to be repaired, that is fantastic. Now is a great time to consider:

• Raising your house. If possible, raising your timber home on stumps will give you added peace of mind in preparation for the possibility of another inundation. It may not be the prettiest solution, but it may save you having to deal with the turmoil of what you have just gone through.
• Complete renovation. Many Brisbane flood victims have used the opportunity to look at it in a 'glass half full' way. Many consider it a 'fast-tracked, forced renovation.' Now is the time to consider fully renovating to give your home a new, fresh look. Even to build that deck you have wanted for so long.

New Home:
Some homes are so damaged that there is no going back, and demolition is the only solution. Other homes may be repairable, but the cost would be similar to building a new home on the block.  Building a new home can be a very rewarding experience. You can design a home that can withstand future floods, and better yet, it's your own design.

Turn it into an investment property:
How can something bad, turn into something good? It may be that your block is particularly promising to return a bit of your cash outlay to you. How so? Well, if you're block is suited to it, why not build some units or apartments? 

Most Brisbane blocks can fit 2 or more units on the one block. This is certainly something to consider if the property that got flooded was an investment property anyway.

Sell up?
In the end, if all options have been considered and it seems the only option is to sell to try and recoup some of your losses, then this may be your solution. We encourage you though, to consider making the most of what you have. Although it may be difficult, try not to be overwhelmed with the thought of renovating or building a new home. Although these are not the easiest solution, it may be much more rewarding than leaving your block, with your head hung low in flooded out defeat.

Whatever you decide to do, there is no right or wrong decision. You must decide what is best for your circumstances and which will offer the most returns for your money. 

We can offer you assistance in the way of advice on council restrictions and requirements for building on flood-prone properties, and of course, all your design and drafting needs.

Sam,
QDH Director

So you're looking to build a new house in Brisbane? Congratulations, you've reached the right place. So where do you start? Below are a few helpful tips to building a new home in Brisbane.

1. Talk to a building designer. Yep, sales pitch for sure. But it is necessary to understand that building a new home is not as simple as just 'having a crack at it.' Employ the right people, get the right results. Have a building designer help you design a house that suits your family's requirements, and get the best out of your block.

2. Think energy smart. With energy costs rising, now is the time to think of how you want to power your home with the basics. Electricity, heating and cooling, water storage, hot water systems, insulation, window and door placement towards prevailing winds of the area etc. Check out our range of helpful blog posts discussing how to design smart: Sustainable Living

3. Find out all local council requirements. You don't want to send the plans in to council, and then have them reject it simply because you didn't know about certain requirements. We will obviously help you with this, but it is important to know all you can before commencing the design and construction drawings. For Brisbane residents, you can use PDOnline. Brisbane's property details enquiry engine here: PDOnline 


You will be able to see all of your property's details like your property lot and RP number, Parish, Ward, Area, if there are any development or building applications on your property currently, Zoning, Local Plans that are applicable to your property and they even have a satellite mapping system.

4. Consider what consultants will you need to employ the services of. It is important to know who you will need to employ and for what. Usually, you will need:

• a building designer of course to design and detail the new home, 
• engineer (for all of your concrete and steel detailing), 
• an energy efficiency consultant (for an energy rating assessment certificate for habitable rooms), 
• possibly a surveyor if the block has certain site features that need to be known accurately in order to complete the design, 
• a private certifier to submit the plans to. Alternatively your builder can submit them to council directly and use council's certifiers, but a private certifier is usually a better choice as you only deal with one person, and you usually get your building approval through faster.

5. Brainstorm your new dream home! Immerse yourself in thoughts of your new home. Immerse your family in thoughts of your new home. Your needs, your wants and desires. Photos of houses you like, materials you want to use and what you want your new place to 'feel' like too. All of this is super important because in the end, you have to live there. 

Bring everything to your designer (us... hint hint...) and throw them all on the table and have a brainstorm together and yo will reach a design that is yours. Your new home!

Sam,
QDH Director

​Motion Sensor Lighting
A heavy consumer of energy in a home is it's lighting. If you have a family, no matter how many times you tell your children to turn the lights off when they leave the room, they will inevitably leave the lights on!

Clipsal's Infrascan motion sensor lighting negates the need to remember to turn the lights off when you leave a room. The system will turn the lights on when motion is detected in the room, and turn off after a certain pre-set timed period of inactivity in the room.

Renovating or extending your Brisbane home is sometimes a tricky route to navigate. Especially if your home is within a Demolition Control Precinct, or falls under the Character Housing sectors. But with the right fore-knowledge of the rules and guidelines that Brisbane town planners will assess your project with, you can make it a relatively pain-free experience. 

Most post-war-built Brisbane homes will be extended or renovated at some point in the future. Maybe your family is expanding and you need the extra space, or you are renovating in order to resell at a profit. Council knows this and has provided some guidelines that you should understand BEFORE you begin designing your extension.
​
Check out council's helpful guidelines for Altering Character Houses & Buildings page here:
http://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/planning-building/do-i-need-approval/restoring-and-researching-heritage-properties/fact-sheets/altering-character-houses-buildings/index.htm

Designing & drafting Brisbane houses is a huge part of us here at Q-RAD. We can help your design go though council unscathed and keep you safe from the bitter taste of having your proposed additions knocked back by council on the first go. Ask us for a quote on your Brisbane renovation or extension.

Sam,
QDH Director