Illegal alterations are a trap for sellers as well as buyers

Rising interest rates over the past two years have prompted many homeowners to extend their existing properties rather than apply for a new home loan to upgrade to a bigger home.

"And we have also seen an increase in buyers looking for older homes that they can buy relatively cheaply and then renovate or modernise themselves," says Gerhard Kotzé, CEO of the RealNet property group.

"However, anyone planning any substantial addition or alteration to their home needs to realise how important it is to obtain formal building plan approval from their local authority before starting any excavation or construction work. This can take some time, but if they don't do it, they could be in for very lengthy - and costly - project delays."

For a start, he says, a municipal building inspector who finds that there are no approved plans for your project can issue an order to stop all building work immediately and until you do get plans drawn up and approved. "And if you decide to ignore this order and keep building while you wait for planning permission, you could face a hefty fine or even prosecution and a court order to demolish whatever has been built.

"What is more, your local authority could then refuse to approve any future plans to improve the property. This could potentially leave you with a home that you can't alter or renovate to any great extent and may even have to sell at a loss.

"Even worse, if you proceed without an approved building plan, complete your additions and alternations and then decide to sell at a later stage, you could put your whole transaction in jeopardy. In such an instance the buyer might well be able to prove that you had deliberately and fraudulently concealed the absence of approved plans for at least part of the property (a latent defect). And that would not only negate the protection of the "voetstoots" clause but also give the buyer grounds to rescind the sale contract and possibly even claim damages."    

Kotzé notes that almost all additions or alternations to a home will require the original building plans to be revised and resubmitted to the local authority for approval. "You don't need an approved plan for internal renovations which are not structural, such as removing a non-load bearing wall, replacing a bath with a shower, modernising a kitchen or changing ceilings, but you do need approval for anything at all that is structural, including putting in a pool, building a boundary wall or even creating new exterior doorways and window spaces in an existing home.  

"Any changes you make will also need to comply with all national and local regulations with regard to fire prevention and the safety certification of electrical and plumbing systems, electric fences and gas installations."   

He says the process for obtaining building plan approval is relatively simple, starting with the submission of a plan drawn up by your architect or building contractor to the municipal planning department, together with a copy of your title deed and zoning certificate. In addition, it is a good idea to submit signed statements from your neighbours that they have no objection to your planned additions or alterations.

"This plan will then be scrutinised by the town planners to ensure that it complies with the National Building Standards, all relevant regulations and any building conditions contained in your title deed. You are not allowed, for example, to build over any servitudes on your property.

"The plan may also need to be amended before being accepted and captured into the municipality's plan registry so, depending on the size and scope of your building project, it will probably take at least six weeks to get approval and you shouldn't count on being able to start any work before that."

Once a building plan has been approved, says Kotzé, it's important to obtain a certified copy and keep it with the other important documents concerning your home, as there are many cases of plans being lost, misfiled and misplaced by local authorities.

"Meanwhile from a homebuyers' point of view, we always suggest that they request to see approved plans along with a copy of the title deed before signing an offer to purchase, especially if they can see that the property has been altered or extended at some stage. And they should check carefully that the plans match the home as it currently stands.

"There are two reasons for this, the first being that they could be refused a home loan if there are no approved and current building plans for the home and the second being that the presence of any unapproved and thus illegal structures on the property could seriously impede any plans they have for their own additions or renovations. Once alerted to the presence of these structures, the local authority could make them pay a fine or even order them to demolish all the unapproved parts of the home they just purchased."