Thanks for the replies. I have spoken to our surveyor who assures me that people most often don't realise they need planning permission or cert of compliance for renovations to their houses or they simply forget. He said that a cert of compliance takes no time at all to organise. However the vendor has made changes to the front of the house and there is no planning application lodged under the address of the house. This could take 3 months to organise if they have no planning permission for this change.
The surveyor mentioned renegotiating the sale price. This could cover any expenses incurred if we have to apply for planning permission or getting rid of the changes made to the front of the house.
I really want this house though..... we've been searching for so long!
That's not the right attitude
Salesmen love people who talk themselves into purchasing dodgy goods!
Estate agents do deals, nothing more - caveat emptor.
They give no assurances, offer no certificates and in the past possessed disclaimers so outrageous that you could not rely on anything they say.
Your surveyor is correct re the issuing of the cert, in that if the work is actually compliant then it should take as long as a visual inspection of the house on site, a planning file inspection and a time to compose and issue the document - usually less than a week if all's well.
If all is not well, its twelve weeks minimum from the date of lodgement to the date of expiry of the Appeal Period and a further week or week-and-a-half to receive the Grant of Permission.
Garage conversions are mentioned in the exempted development schedule and some local authorities consider the kind of elevations changes needed to put a window in a garage as coming under Section 4 (1) (h) of the Planning and Development Act 2000 - so why is there a problem?
If the planning authority is disposed to consider the changes under Section 4 (1) (h) of the Act, and you want a cast-iron assurance, as opposed to a certificate, you could request a section 5 Declaration to resolve this - these used to take 4 weeks and cost circa €80.
Depending on how long the works have been completed, you might be able to obtain a letter of comfort/cert of freedom from enforcement action as opposed to a certificate of compliance or exemption in relation to the planning situation.
If the work was completed more than 7 years ago and no enforcement process occurred in the intervening period [no warning letter or ENF file opened in relation to it] then it is very possible that the local authority are precluded from taking action.
In other words, although it might not have been exempted development and it didn't get permission, it may now be free from the threat of enforcement action.
Finally, don't just stop at the planning cert.
Garage conversions have to comply with the building regulations, too.
All houses done since around 1992 [I'm not sure of the exact date, but I think its all houses commenced after the 1st June 1992] should be offering Opinions of Compliance with Building Regulations
If a cert is being offered for the main house one should be offered for the additional works.
Points to look out for, especially in a garage abutting a recent house, are; -
- is there under-slab or floor insulation?
- is there wall insulation
- is there attic or roof insulation
- have any services been extended properly
- if there's a WC, are there any internal manholes covered up?
- depending on what Part L its done under, and if there's a boiler, is there adequate ventilation.
- If there were internal metering systems, how have these been accommodated in the conversion
And so on.
All houses for sale or rent now must offer BER certs AFAICR.
If this house was built since the requirements of the health and safety act came into play as part of a commercial development [as opposed to as a self build or private build for a sole domicile] then there should be a Safety file.
You should also ask for any and all commissioning certificates, warranties and guarantees that were offered to the original owner.
FWIW
ONQ