TrendReno.Co.Za

Renovations | Project-Management | Decorative|Arts

Posting Date: 2023-02-14

Self-Managing Project Starting Point.

New homes hold the promise of worry-free home-ownership. Unfortunately, that's not always how it turns out.

For some self-builders, the roller coaster of emotions they go through during a project can make them feel alive and they just can’t wait to plan their next. Others might swear that they’ll never take on this kind of scheme again – but I think it’s fair to say that nobody embarks on a self-build or serious renovation lightly.

The general common law says that any service carried out, including building work, should be done with “reasonable care and skill”. What is “reasonable” can in some cases be a matter of opinion, but in most situations it will be obvious when building work has been carried out to a poor standard.

Problems can also arise where a builder does something different to what you wanted. You should ensure that you were clear in explaining what the job involved – for example, check your paperwork and any diagrams or drawings which were provided before the work began. If they have failed to do what you hired them for, you can ask them to fix the problem for free.

Like or loathe them, we have laws controlling planning and development for good reason. You can’t build a new home without full planning permission – and any consent is likely to come with conditions attached that must be complied with, so don’t try to bend the rules.

Just to complicate matters, there are some situations where obtaining formal planning consent or building control approval is not actually required. This can often be the case when renovating (or sometimes extending) an existing property. Note that there will still be permitted development rules to follow in these circumstances, and every project has to meet the minimum standards laid out in the Building Regulations – even if approval isn’t needed.

I would always recommend that you reserve your negotiating skills for the big-ticket items like bricks, tiles, windows and doors, where getting a decent discount can be worth hundreds or in some cases thousands of Rands. One good deal on a big item can easily negate all of the little savings on bags of screws and tins of paint.