Is your house heritage listed or does it have a heritage overlay?
Some houses can be heritage listed or have heritage overlays. These overlays need to be followed when renovating. The overlays control your external paint colours, as well as internal and external alterations. They also control tree removal. You can find these out from your local council.
Heritage issues can often be a surprise for renovators. People who have renovated before usually have some idea of what’s involved. Or you may have heard friends and family talk about their renovation experiences. If not, then it can be easy to underestimate how involved it can be, until you start your project.
We recommend you first search the state heritage register online. You’ll then know for sure about possible heritage issues or overlays. You can also contact your local council. Or you may have information retained from when you brought the property. Most people keep them of course, but finding them when you need them can be easier said than done.
A lot of the heritage overlays that we come across are front facades. Councils ask for the front facade to stay intact, or as much as possible. The front facade could include windows, claddings and trims. This means we need to look at older style materials to match the existing facade. So our goal is to minimise disturbances to what is currently there. How it looks at the beginning is how it should look at the end. All the extra details involved in getting this right can definitely add to your budget.
So it’s better to be clear sooner rather than later, what heritage issues you may face. By talking to us at an early stage, you’ll be clear on what heritage issues we will need to pay attention to. If there are any. You can then change your plans and budget as required. Once we go over your section 32 or other property plans with you, we’ll know whether it’s in a heritage overlay or not. If it is, we can then ask the council to specify what parts of the house are heritage and what aren’t.
As long as you have your financing pre-approved, we can help you to clarify what is doable. Within the rules and within your budget. Whatever you can’t already see on your available property documents, we can help you look into.
Our goal is always a well planned job with no surprises. Contact us if you have any questions. We can help you get started towards a fuss-free renovation, so you can avoid heritage related issues.
