Your guide to preparing for a knock down rebuild project
Getting started on a knock down rebuild can feel a little overwhelming, especially if it's your first. Our experienced team is here to provide support for the entire process. We're here to answer your questions and help address any challenges along the way.
You'll have a designated knock down rebuild specialist as your main point of contact when you select your new home design and prepare your site all the way up to the beginning of the construction process. From there, our new home team becomes your main point of contact as we build your brand new home.
We’ve prepared this essential guide to the knockdown rebuild process to outline the steps you need to take when demolishing your home and planning to build a new home.
Site preparation and demolition
Step 1: Getting ready for your knock down rebuild
Doing your research at the early stage of a knock down and rebuild can help make the whole process run more smoothly. There's a lot to consider when it comes to transitioning from an established home to a clean site ready for building.
Try to find out as much information as you can about your existing property and connected services as this can help to reduce site costs later down the track.
Speak to your Local Council and Water Authority
Tell them about your intention to demolish your home, find out relevant details about your land and local council regulations.
- Check council zoning regulations and building restrictions that may apply to your block.
- Investigate the location of sewer and stormwater lines.
- Find out when sewer lines were installed in your area – this can flag potential future issues such as hidden items in the earth, septic tanks, wells, pools, pipes, etc.
- Check for any easements, heritage overlaps or environmental regulations that may impact what can be built on the property.
- If your property currently has overhead power lines, find out whether you need to convert them to underground power as part of your rebuild.
If you pinpoint these issues prior to construction, you may avoid the extra cost of removal and possible reengineering of your slab design. Keep in mind that council information can differ from what’s on site so it’s worth gathering information from several different sources for a more complete picture.
Obtain an Asset Protection Permit from your local council
An Asset Protection Permit (APP) is a permit required by local councils to protect public assets like footpaths during construction on private property. It confirms that if any council assets are damaged during the building process, the responsible party will fix them.
You typically pay a fee for the permit plus a bond to cover potential damages. An APP is required for both stages of the process - demolition and construction. The home owner will need to take out an APP for demolition. Henley will take care of the APP as part of the home build process. To save money on permit fees, you can choose to take out a single AAP for the demolition and construction. However, a bigger deposit is likely with this option.
Other permits that may be required
- Demolition permit: A permit to demolish a building or structure. This is organised by your demolition company.
- Planning permit: this may be needed if the project involves land use changes such as increasing the size of your home, changing its footprint or if your property is in a heritage or environmentally sensitive area.
- Council report and consent (if applicable): if the new home design doesn't fully comply with local building regulations such as setback requirements or overshadowing rules, you may need to apply for a Council Report and Consent. If approved, council will grand a "dispensation" - an exemption for specific parts of the project.
- Build over easement approval (if applicable): an easement is a section of your land used by another party such as the local water authority. Build over easement approval ensures the knock down rebuild won't interfere with the easement's intended use, such as utility access, drainage, or public services
- Building permit: When you get to the building stage, Henley will take care of any building permits required.
When it comes to knock down and rebuilds in Melbourne, Henley's Sarina Austin says every house, block and council area are different. "It's not a uniform process so it is important to do your research and understand the regulations and requirements of your local council," Sarina says.
"One of the biggest risks associated with a knock down rebuild is council approvals not being guaranteed. For this reason we recommend waiting for all Council approvals prior to completing the demolition."
Find a demolition company or demolition contractor
Once you have the background information together, you'll need to engage a demolition company who will assist you to organise the demolition permit and approval to remove your existing home.
The demolition process can vary between companies in terms of procedures and timeframes so it's important to ask about these things when you're getting quotes. Confirm demolition costs and any potential unexpected costs.
Your demolition company will take you through the steps required and take care of the demolition permit and demolition plans needed. You will need other documentation for this process including evidence of land ownership.
Tell your demolition company to complete the following:
- Cap sewer connection and remove line from house.
- Cap water meter and tap and remove line from house (water tap and meter to remain on site).
- Cap stormwater (legal point of discharge) and remove line from house.
Disconnecting power and gas
Henley knock down rebuild specialist Sarina Austin advises it's a good idea to allow plenty of time for utilities companies to disconnect services.
"If you’re living in the home, you need to give 60 days notice to cease services like water and power. Sometimes it can take longer for these requests to be actioned so if you're planning to rent another property, allow for this notice period to avoid paying extra in rental costs.”
Step 2: Assessing your land
Before starting a knock down and rebuild, it’s essential to assess your land to identify any factors that could affect the construction process. Properly addressing these early on will help streamline building and avoid unexpected challenges.
Water Connections
- Clay pipes: Find out if you have clay pipes on your land. Any property established prior to 1989 will generally have clay pipes. An additional item will be included in your Henley Tender if you currently have clay pipes. This is to cover the costs of converting your clay pipes to PVC connections.
- Stormwater: If your storm water discharges to the kerb, you may require a charged pump LPOD (legal point of discharge) system. This will be determined by an engineer and is site specific.
Power Connections
- Overhead power lines: If your power connection is currently overhead, you'll need to arrange for an electricity pit to be installed by an electrical contractor to enable us to run underground power connections.
- Underground pit installation: We recommend that you organise the installation of an underground pit as early as possible as it can be time consuming. If this is not installed before construction, you may have to pay more to hire a generator. To organise installation, speak to the new connections department of your power company. Let them know that you need an underground power pit installed and obtain the ‘Request for underground power’ form.
- Amps: In most cases you will require less than 100 amps.
- Single phase/three phase: If you plan to have refrigerated air conditioning in your home then you should have three phase installed, otherwise single phase is sufficient. Please discuss your specific requirements with your power company.
Site Considerations
- A leafy outlook is lovely, so if there are any trees you'd love to keep on your land, you'll need to let us know. If the house falls within the perimeter of the tree, you may need an arborist report and tree root barriers may need to be installed. This could be expensive depending on the tree and its proximity to the new home.
- If you're on the fence about your fence quality, it will probably need to be replaced, as you will only be permitted to retain your fencing if it's in good condition.
- If your garage is on the boundary, it's your responsibility to organise for the removal and re-installation of any affected fences with your neighbours.
Step three: Post demolition
Before handing the site back to Henley to complete further testing, we'll ask you to supply a demolition complete letter confirming all the relevant site preparation tasks are completed. This includes:
- Abolition of gas meter and service line
- Abolition of overhead power and installation of an underground electricity pit
- Sewer line capped at the tie point as close to the main line as possible
- Storm water service line removed and capped
- Water meter and tap remain in site, the water line from the meter to the house has been removed
- Asbestos clearance certificate supplied if applicable
- Proposed building area from of underground pipes from the existing services
As part of this process, we ask you to supply a copy of the demolition permit and photos of the site.
Re-establishment survey
We organise for a re-establishment survey to be carried out to establish the location of title boundary lines and any encroachments from existing structures or fence lines into the lot.
The reestablishment survey is completed by a licensed surveyor which means they can mark out where your title boundaries are so they can be lodged with the titles office.
A re-establishment survey is required for all knock down rebuilds as it will indicate clear title boundaries. Henley will only build from title boundaries.
Post-demolition inspections
As we move closer to construction, Henley carries out a series of post-demolition inspections:
- Pre-tender inspection completed by a supervisor
- Post demolition pre-site inspection completed by a supervisor
- OH&S post demolition and pre-site inspection completed by the Henley OH&S team, including wiring and electricals
- Soil testing including testing for asbestos residue from the demolition process
- Arborist report (if not already completed)
- Drainage inspection completed by plumbers.
Final preparation
It's time to set your sights on onsite construction, so please ensure all excess soil, rubbish and rubbish bins are cleared from the site. Remove any temporary fencing and cut the grass.
Once construction has started, you'll be introduced to an on-site team member that will be your point of contact through the construction of your new home until you move in.
Knock down rebuild homes specialist
We know that building a new home is easier and more enjoyable when you know what to expect. At Henley, we're here for you - from start to finish. Our focus is on honesty, transparency, delivery and support.
For more details about our build process, see our detailed guide Building with Us: Knockdown and Rebuild. This will step you through every stage from the first steps to the finishing touches on your new home, and beyond.
If you have any questions, visit Henley’s knock down rebuild specialist, Jane Todd at Glen Waverley, or chat to a team member in any of our Display Home locations.
