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If it's in Brisbane City Council and the land is in overland flow, then it will be hard to get approval to build underneath. You would need an overland flow report (aka hydraulic report) from a hydraulic engineer certifying that the build won't affect the upstream and downstream overland flow or...

Yep I can confirm the below from experience: If subdividing, council won't allow rubble/soakage pits as per their policy. They'll make you get a connection to the rear neighbour's stormwater line etc. If not subdividing and just building, the certifier could permit rubble/soakage pits...

Firstly you should check with council whether the land is flood prone. Sometimes this precludes building in underneath instantly so it would not be feasible. Ignore the fact that there's no dampness already, because you need to meet the building code of australia (BCA) anyway when you build...

Michael is correct. Chances are though that the existing pergola was never approved, so putting a roof on it you'd best to contact a private certifier and get it done. If it was already approved as a pergola, no one will probably notice or care if you put a roof and gutter on it though. It...

Couldn't you just make the driveway narrower on the nature strip to get the 1m clearance from the tree, then just widen it on your lot.

You would be better off going for a single DA which covers the pool and the renovation. I think it would save you money rather than doing one CDC and one DA.

I have used it many times, but be aware it is only a general guideline for if a project is eligible for complying development, but isn't completely accurate. I have been caught with my pants down before where the EHC said the project was eligible as complying development, then I did a s149...

Hi willett, Yes you can have a secondary dwelling aka granny flat in Brisbane City Council. Yes the granny flat can have a laundry and kitchen. So long as it's being used by a single household then this isn't an issue with the BCC city plan. This seems to be in line with what you're doing...

Yes, as long as you have a slope greater than 1:4 between the house and the front boundary - see this extract from the small lot code: AO8.4 Development involving car accommodation constrained by a steeply sloping site (a slope of 1 in 4 or greater between the front boundary and building...

Generally speaking, building height is measured vertically above natural ground level, which means the level of the ground before excavation. It depends on the state and council but that's the gist of it. So on a sloping block that has been excavated, the height is still measured from natural...

Actually for the ceiling height it can be min 2.2m in an attic, for at least two-thirds of the floor area of the room or space. This is contrary to the usual 2.4m ceiling height required in other habitable rooms that aren't attics. This is straight out of the BCA. Also to make it a habitable...

Check out Stylemaster Homes' website for 2 storey house plans. I reckon they're the best looking project builder out there.

Yeah you need a window in a bedroom to comply with the building code of australia. The window size needs to be min 10% of the size of the room for natural light, and the openable part of the window 5% of the room for natural ventilation. Other things to consider is that a smoke alarm needs to be...

If you build outside the mapped overland flow area then you can pretty much ignore the overland flow. if you want to do other things in the overland flow like putting a shed, pool or retaining wall and fill then it can get messy, as the intent is to not redirect overland flow to affect your...

Just to clarify for everyone... In Brisbane it is defined as 'site cover' which is the % of land you are building on. If I copy and paste the exact requirements of Brisbane: Development results in a maximum site cover of: (a) 50% where the lot is 400m2 or more; or (b) 60% where the lot...

Many certifiers will accept owner drawn plans as long as you have all the info shown i.e. if it's a timber roof you need to show all thetimber sizes and what size bolts etc. If you're going to use something like a Stratco patio then it's super easy, stratco will supply you the engineer's...

I couldn't give any recommendations but you might want to be more specific as to what you want to build. i.e. townhouses or a house reno? Do a license search through the QBCC (http://www.qbcc.qld.gov.au/) for a builder that you are looking at to see if they have any red marks on their...

That seems weird. I've heard of a few project builders who charge approx $1800 for soil tests and other preliminary stuff, and if you choose to walk away that's fine. Keep shopping around. It's also good to go to the display homes and talk to a salesperson about it. If they tell you some BS...

You'll need to think about light and ventilation, and ceiling height compliance with the BCA. You can use ventilating skylights in the space to meet the light and vent, but ceiling height is a little more complicated. In an attic it's min. 2.2m high for at least 2/3rds of the floor area of the room.

What is the ceiling height? The minimum habitable height is 2.4m in the building code of australia, but if it is under by a small amount a certifier might consider accepting it as an 'alternative solution' to the BCA. I mean something like 2.3 or 2.35m. You would need to get a building approval...