Form 21 Final Inspection Certificate QLD: Why It Matters When You Buy

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Hi everybody – George Sourris, Empire Legal.

Today’s topic: Council building approvals and Queensland property. What do I need to do?

 Great question George. This is a tricky area of the law that often gets overlooked, as it’s not well understood.

Okay, so you want to renovate or add bathrooms, decks, extensions, sheds, driveways, pergola, to name a few. You apply to your local council to get permission to do the works to a property. You get permission, you do the works, and then you need the final sign off from a private certifier to ensure the works are completed in a manner that is compliant with the council approval and the building code.

You may have heard of a Form 21, Final Inspection Certificate, Form 16 or Form 12. These forms are renovators tickets to properly completing the job.

Making it to the final inspection certificate step, lodged safely with council, is the gold standard. However, it is often the case that building works may not have a final inspection ticked off. Or even worse – a record of receiving council approval to begin with. A prudent seller would ensure their property has all relevant forms submitted, to tick off the boxes and negate the possibility of issues arising when they sell.

Guess what? There’s no standard term in the REIQ contract that would allow a buyer rights of termination or compensation if they’re missing approvals or final inspections. In Queensland, it’s largely “buyer beware“. So, if a buyer has concerns about a property, such as ensuring all appropriate approvals are in place, it’s best to make sure they investigate and catch any potential issues early, i.e. before they sign a contract to sell, or while it’s within the cooling off period.

Alternatively, If a buyer has concerns about building approvals or final inspection certificates, we would strongly suggest they negotiate to include a due diligence clause in the contract. This would allow them some time after signing the contract to obtain council searches and be satisfied before they’re locked in.

For example, say you add a shed to your property, you may need to contact council to get the final inspection certificate, or Form 21.  Often, shed contractors will scope out of getting the Form 21 and leave it up to the vendor to lodge.

Searches.

A buyer can engage their solicitor to perform searches with local council for whether a property has building approvals.

Keep in mind, each local council has their own time frames and costings. For Brisbane City Council, you can obtain building approvals dating back to 1946.

There’s a standard search, which is within 10 business days after lodgement date and costs $94.15 as at the time of writing this blog.

Or fast-track search – within 3 business days after the date of lodgement at the low price of $193.40.

Just because a property does not have a final approval, doesn’t mean it cannot be obtained. If the original certifier cannot be found or has retired or liquidated their business, a new certifier will need to be engaged to inspect the works and sign off, providing the final inspection certificate.

HOT TIP – also important to note, this applies to pool safety. When selling a property, a current pool safety certificate, or notice of no pool safety certificate, must be provided by the seller. You can learn more about this in a blog we’ve done, all about pools, available here.

Wrapping up.

When it comes to building approvals and final inspection certificates, it’s often not thought about until it’s too late. If you’re a buyer who is concerned about council approvals being in place, get yourself the relevant paperwork to make sure everything’s been ticked off before you sign, or include a due diligence clause.

Otherwise, if you’re already under contract and want to ask that question later, keep in mind you are not going to have a right to terminate if any skeletons come out of the final inspection certificate closet.

Special shout out to Alec McEwan from McGrath Wynnum Manly for this blog suggestion. Like, subscribe, share. I say it every week, if you’re not liking, subscribing or sharing – do it!

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George Sourris. Empire Legal.

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Ladies and gentlemen, please keep in mind that all advice is general in nature and does not constitute legal advice. This is authorised by George Sourris, Empire Legal, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

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What is a Form 21 final inspection certificate?

A Form 21 is the final inspection certificate issued by a building certifier when building work has been completed and passes final inspection. It is the document that closes out a building approval.

Without it, the approval sits open and the work is not certified as complete, even if the builder finished and left years ago.

Why does a Form 21 matter when you buy or sell?

Because an open approval with no Form 21 is one of the most common problems we find on a title search or a council search, and it lands on whoever owns the property when it surfaces.

For a seller, it can delay or derail a sale when the buyer’s searches show building work that was approved but never finalised. For a buyer, taking the property means inheriting the obligation to close it out, which can mean opening walls to prove the work complies, or applying for a building approval after the fact.

Unapproved or unfinalised building work is also the most common title insurance claim type in Queensland, which tells you how often it happens.

How do you check whether a Form 21 was issued?

• Order a council building records search for the property, which shows approvals and whether they were finalised
• Ask the seller directly, in writing, for the approval documents and the Form 21 for any work they had done
• Match what you can see at the property against what is approved. Decks, carports, sheds, patio enclosures, bathrooms moved and garages converted are the usual suspects

Do this during your due diligence or building and pest period, not after you go unconditional.

What if building work was never approved at all?

That is a bigger problem than a missing Form 21. Options usually involve applying for a building approval retrospectively, which can require engineering certification and may mean the work has to be modified or removed if it cannot be made to comply.

If the work was done by a previous owner as an owner builder, check whether the statutory disclosure was given, and note that owner builder work is not covered by the QBCC home warranty scheme. Our guide to the QBCC home warranty scheme covers what is and is not protected.

Who is responsible for getting the Form 21, the builder or the owner?

The certifier issues it, but the practical responsibility for making sure it happens sits with the owner, because it is the owner who lives with the consequences. Builders finish and move on. If your builder has left and the approval was never finalised, it is now your problem to close out, and you may need a certifier to assess work they did not supervise.