Owner Building in the Australian Capital Territory
Owner Builders' Responsibilities Owner Builders have several professional responsibilities for construction and overseeing building work.
Licensing You must be licensed to carry out owner-builder work. Insurance You do not need warranty insurance. However, as a supervisor of building work, an owner-builder needs to be aware of insurance requirements, in particular, workers’ compensation for any workers that are involved in the project. Owner-builders can check with their insurance provider for advice on insurance needs, including public liability and increasing the house insurance to cover any additions.Standards and legislation The standards and legislation that apply to owner-builders’ work are: Building Act 2004; Building (general) regulations 2008; Environment ACT requirements about noise and water pollution. Construction Occupations (Licensing) Act 2004; Construction Occupations (Licensing) Regulations 2004; ACT WorkCover construction rules; Building Code of Australia, all sections (volume two Housing Provisions); and any relevant Australian Standards where the work relates to it, such as AS 2870 Residential slabs and footings-Construction-1996 and AS 3740 Waterproofing of wet areas within residential buildings-2004. As an owner-builder, you take on the same responsibilities as a licensed builder to: · supervise building work; · ensure the building work complies with the Building Act 2004; · ensure the work is done in a proper and skilful way; and · ensure the work is done in accordance with approved plans. You are responsible for up to 10 years for any building work you do. Within that time you may be issued with a rectification order to fix non-compliant work, even if the property has been sold.
Before you apply Before you apply, you should determine whether you need development approval or if your project has exemptions from development and/or building approval. You should understand your owner-builder responsibilities, which include having building approval issued for the work before the owner-builder licence can be issued. Once you have an owner-builder licence, you need to get a commencement notice to begin building.What you can build You can build or renovate your residence or build ancillary structures around the residence, such as decks, pergolas or carports provided the building work is on your main home or ancillary to it. You may not be able to install a swimming pool, demolish a building, handle asbestos (other than stable asbestos) or perform work on a commercial building.Eligibility Only an individual can apply for an owner-builder licence. You must own the land to be developed. Where there is more than one owner, all owners must consent to the application. It is recommended that the owner with the most appropriate skills to carry out the proposed work should be put forward as the primary applicant.There is also a restriction on the number of owner-builder licences that can be issued. To be eligible for an owner-builder licence, you must not have been granted an owner-builder licence in relation to other land in the previous five years. There is no restriction on the number of owner-builder licences for work on the same site.