Building control (and compliance) exists to protect people. As the proceedings Royal Commission are showing, if we are in the game of compliance we need to be accountable for our actions and to see that compliance is being followed through with.

So here we are in February already. Has it been a long month for you? Are you already looking forward to a long weekend?

During January some of our colleagues have been thinking about their training needs:

It’s that time of year where some of you are counting down the days and others are still in a mad rush to get things done “before Christmas”. Either way take a moment to stocktake your year – whether its been an ok year, the worst or your best year yet. Carry forward any of the things that brought you joy, plan to do more things in 2012 that bring you more bliss. Seek to fill those knowledge gaps and take action to bring your plans into reality!

Its time we stopped acting like children expecting someone else to tell us what to do when it comes to our training. We wait for the boss, we wait for the Government, we wait for a qualification to be developed by academics.. we wait.. Instead we need to take responsibility for ourselves.

Common excuses: “I can’t afford it, I don’t have time. I can’t be bothered.”

Builders can now get all their skills maintenance points collected in one foul swoop.

For a small fee of $50 plus GST, points will be automatically recorded against their LBP number. Personalised recommendations plus a tally up of points will be emailed straight to the builders inbox.

They will also get access to enough FREE training to get all the points they need for year 1.

Check it out for yourself HERE

Starting out in the profession of property / facilities management can be both exciting and daunting. Apart from the economics there is a lot of compliance to keep on top of. I am often contacted by graduates and new comers seeking advice and courses in building law.
The first thing I recommend is to purchase this wee book for facilies and property managers. This will give you a solid overview of all the requirements.
Visit the shop here.

We often learn more from our informal networks than our formal ones. How many times have you learned something by eavesdropping in a staff room or from a colleague over a cup of tea? How many times does the builder learn some detail, or new rule from the building inspector on-site? Some inspectors are walking encyclopedias. So lets not forget the good things that happen in the building industry. The benefit of the mateship and informal networks. Take a look at the networks I have formed to get more of this happening in the internet space.

In last week’s Sunday Star Times there was an article quoting John Church regarding tenants suddenly getting conscious of

In yesterday’s Sunday Star Times there was an article quoting John Church regarding tenants suddenly getting conscious of

Seismic state of the public buildings they occupy.

Oh where oh where is the RBW gone? Oh where oh where can it be? Restricted building work – we need to know what it is so we know what LBPs will be required to do. Council and business systems will need time to adapt to these requirements. 1 March 2012 is not that far away and we all need a good lead in time not to change systems but to retrain ourselves. And what about work that is already underway by that point. How will Councils deal with those jobs?

I am delighted to announce the launch of Building Networks training services into Australia.

Well chaps you haven’t heard from me for a bit. Head down stuff…and I have also a sense of frustration that teaching the law is just not that appealing any more. (Gosh when was it ever?) Some people don’t have time for training, some don’t have the $, and many just don’t have the inclination. Maybe we are all tired of the perceived changes to a system that just can’t seem to right itself. And yes on top of that the economic times has been hard on many of us.

I read this article “Heritage Matters To” on scoop over the weekend and I just couldn’t help but respond. Ben Schrader, urban historian, is critical of the Government’s stance on Christchurch’s heritage building demolition preferring to loose a ‘few’ lives for the sake of preserving history. I don’t support this at all. And thanks Ben because someone has challenged me enough to come forward with a few home truths. Now this may seem ironic from someone like me who has Masters degree in History (among other things) but I can’t bare to think that historic buildings should prevail over building safety.

For years building inspectors have been a much maligned group. No one rocks up to the Council to say “thank you” for an inspection or a building consent for that matter. The public, the trades, and the professionals are usually resentful, some are rude and often misinformed about the rules of the built environment.

Well folks, the revised NZS3604 has been published and is now for sale through Standards NZ.

Did anyone see Fair Go last night – an hour-long housing episode.

Big feature on building consents (in a positive way for once) – except Ali kept calling it a permit (hey they went out in 1991!).

I have bought and sold a few houses in my time. I am always interested in what the real estate agents have to say about CCCs and LIMS and other compliance matters.Most say very little about this stuff and leave it up to the parties to discuss or discover. In theory its up to the vendor to fess it up to prospective buyers. Or for the buyers to do the “due diligence” through their conveyancing law firm.

A recent encounters with mother nature.

While we may not have the ability to control all these external matters we do the ability to control how we respond to these challenges.

So, welcome to the New Year.

So I have been going with the holiday flow and it’s been a great tonic. I am usually the one who pushes or pulls to get something done. But a very wise person encouraged me to go with the flow and so I am trying something new. It’s required a bit of retraining on my part but it’s been worth it. So now my challenge is to hold onto that flow feeling whilst back in the thick of my work life☺

A colleague and I have been chatting about the state of building controls in NZ. My colleague says that the building industry just want to be told what to do, not to be mucked around and to get it right first time. If that’s true…then we need prescription not 101 options. Too many options promotes confusion. I wonder how much time has been wasted on optional options?

When were you taught about the magic triangle of building controls (Building Act, NZ Building Code, Compliance Documents hierarchy)?

Look what has sneaked up on you just in time for Christmas..

Building (Exempt Building Work) Order 2010 amends Schedule 1 of the Building Act. This takes effect from 23 December 2010 – just in time for those summer projects!

If we look at the Government’s proposals you would think to yourself: “There is no future in building controls.”

Get a copy of the Building Amendment Bill No 3 tabled in parliament this week.

I have spoken with a lot of property managers who are being ripped offand mucked around by the building industry.

They are told by tradespeople “no, you don’t need a building consent to do this work”, only to find out later that they did. Or.. they were told to upgrade their building unnecessarily.

Then the trouble starts with Council.

If you are thinking about buying or selling property in NZ you will come across something called a “CCC”.
No its not a bag of chips.. but a document called a “Code Compliance Certificate”. Simply, if the work was done under a building consent it should be finished off with the CCC issued by Council saying that building work is complete.

Homes built before 1 July 1992 won’t have a CCC unless there was building work done on the property since that date. In that case, the CCC only relates to the alteration work (eg. new bathroom, additional bedroom, ensuite, etc.)

Want to know more? Join one of my webinars about other traps which can make for lemon property investments..

http://www.bnets.co.nz/understanding-building-regulation.html

Rosemary Killip, Author and Trainer in Building Law
Building Networks NZ Ltd
www.bnets.co.nz