Title Insurance

[Sove18a]

I'm looking at a property that has a deck (unroofed) and I queried with the vendor via the agent whether a building permit was issued for it. The response was that no, one wasn't required as it is not attached to the house (I assume because there is no roof) and a building permit was not required.

I informed the conveyancer of this and they advised me to "definitely check with council about the deck. The law requires the Vendor to advise all the permits they DID get in the last 7 years not the ones they should have got!"

"The alternative to checking (what would you do if they should have got one and didn't?) is to take out title insurance http://www.stewartau.com/public// or http://www.firsttitle.com.au/home. If you go down this track don't investigate the building situation as you have to disclose any known risks."

So I have two choices here - I can either contact the council to check if a building permit is required or just take out title insurance.

Has anyone taken out title insurance? Is it worth the protection and how much does it cost?

Thanks!
Sue

 

[Terry_w]

I doubt title insurance would cover you for this in the event that you already know the structure has no approval.

Best to seek legal advice

 

[Sove18a]

Thanks. I remembered my sisters partner is an engineer so I showed him a photo of the deck and he confirmed that the deck does not need are it as it looks more like a 'floor covering' and is not a structural element. He did say if I want to put a roof over it then I will need a building permit which I plan to get anyway. So I'm satisfied that I won't need title insurance.

Cheers
Sue