Demolish & Build

Once you have made the decision to demolish your existing house, it pays to do your research on a suitable demolition contractor. Create a scope of work of what needs to be carried out at the property. This could include things such as trees and shrubs, including root matter (mark any trees you would like to retain); sheds and outbuildings; pools; old septic tanks, soakwells and disused plumbing pipes; building materials you may want to reuse, recycle or sell off yourself; and council crossovers.

It's time for you to vacate the property. This means making sure that all of your personal items including all furniture and belongings have been removed from both the inside and outside of your home, and any external items that are to be kept, such as trees or sheds, have been marked with tape.

As the owner, you are required to arrange the abolishment of services to the property prior to works commencing. In most circumstances your demolition contractor will take care of this on your behalf. When applying for the abolishment of services, the applicant is requesting the complete removal of the service distribution, companies metering and servicing assets associated with the property. Provide both your gas and electricity providers with disconnection forms. Arrange for final meter readings from both providers prior to meter removal. Note: It is important that the service is abolished, not just disconnected.

The next step is to engage the services of a pest control contractor. They will bait each room and within the ceiling space. Once this is complete, your contractor will coordinate your local government authority to complete the house inspection after baiting is finished.

At this point, your demolition contractor will organise for your sewer line to be cut and sealed by a licensed plumber. The water pipes and phone lines will be taken back to their original points and any septic tanks need to be decommissioned.

Your demolition contractor will lodge your demolition permit application with your local council. All of your service disconnection notices and the pest control report will be submitted alongside the application. Your local council authority has up to 25 working days to respond to your application - this may take longer if they request any further information.