ACT pursues building certification shake-up

It comes as the territory looks to transform the perception of the quality of new builds in the region. As Minister for Sustainable Building and Construction, Rebecca Vassarotti, noted, there had been several high-profile cases of poor development that “undermined the trust of Canberrans in the home building industry”.

But the issue is certainly not isolated, as she also noted that “dodgy development choices are estimated to have cost Canberrans more than $50 million each year”.

“When Canberrans buy or rent a home, they should be able to demand the best from those who built them,” Vassarotti said, by way of introducing the new team that will be in charge of helping catch potential defects early in the development process.

“This team will initially be focused on the more complex high rise apartment buildings, expanding out to other residential buildings over time,” Vassarotti explained.

“These reforms will support private building surveyors to identify defects as early as possible in the design and construction process, where defects can be fixed at lower costs while professionals and trades are still engaged and onsite,” she added.

The territory believes that this will also help redirect the onus of fixing defects onto developers, with issues to be resolved in the construction phase as opposed to once the buyer has taken ownership.

It’s an effort to ensure “Canberrans won’t be shafted with a dodgy house once they’ve moved into it,” according to Vassarotti.

The team will complement the ACT’s recent changes to its planning system as well as additional funding for employee positions within Access Canberra to check compliance with planning rules, including for single dwellings and audits of exempt developments.

Earlier this year, the ACT became the first Australian jurisdiction to introduce a licensing scheme for property developers, having passed a law to implement the new level of oversight in June. The government is currently working on a code of conduct for the development industry while it plans for the transition into licensing.