The freedom for Do It Yourself'ers to continue building and renovating their own homes has been safeguarded, but amendments to the Building Act and the creation of the Licensed Building Practitioners scheme (LBS) may limit them in the future.
The LBS scheme—which is voluntary at present—hopes to eventually encompass all trades people in the construction industry, including designers, builders, roofers, bricklayers, site supervisors, construction managers and carpenters. The scheme will become compulsory in 2010. The guidelines under which Do It Yourself (DIY) builders could operate were announced at a conference last week by Building and Construction Minister Shane Jones. Mr Jones said he wanted to ensure that the new rules did not crush the traditional Kiwi DIY spirit, but that the changes would make it easier for the industry to distinguish between a licensed builder and a 'rogue' masquerading as a DIYer.
DIY work can only be carried out if the DIYer is building their own home and is the owner of the land. Any work will be recorded on the council LIM report as being done by DIYer.
They will also be limited in terms of carrying out 'restricted building' which will have to be done by, or under the supervision of, a licensed builder. Restricted work covers elements such as managing moisture content, ensuring a robust and reliable structural framework, and the ability to contain fire from spreading.
Homeowners will be able to lodge a complaint against tradesmen with the LBS Board and the Board will have the power to investigate complaints and impose penalties, including cancelling a licence.
When the scheme was launched last November, former Housing and Construction minister, Clayton Cosgrove, said in a press release, that he was confident that 'cowboy builders' who were part of the leaky home problem would no longer be an issue.
The intention, says the ministry, is to address not only issues raised by the leaky homes syndrome but to restore the reputation and quality of housing construction in New Zealand.
But those involved in the industry maintain that council inspections are already stringent enough and pick up any shoddy work.
Hamiltonian Terry Liddle has been building for 25 years. "It wasn't DIYers that created leaky buildings. It was builders, shoddy architects, building codes that were not adequate for what was needed."
"My personal view is that anybody in New Zealand should be able to build their own house to the extent that it's looked at properly and it is a safe construction."
Building supervisor Jim Rowe said, "They can just stop you—they come in and they go 'no'. I have known guys that have had to take the roof off that they just put on because they haven't put a couple of dognails in, because the building inspector hasn't had a look at it and they have gone ahead and put the roof on. The building inspector has said, 'no', I want to see what is under it."
The ministry has given the assurance that New Zealanders "will know they have engaged a quality building professional" when they choose one licensed under the LBS scheme.
National Party Spokesman for Building & Construction Nick Smith said the LBS system is "unworkable" and will "add to the delays and costs of their other reforms".
"We favour a builder registration system recognised by Government but administered by existing builder organisations like Master Builders and Certified Builders. These would be similar to those used for Architects and Engineers," he said.
Wayne Besley, Director for Commercial Construction in Hamilton said he thought the scheme would help eliminate the "cowboys around town".
"Some people are just starting up companies, doing a bit of building work and then when it goes to custard—they close that company up and start another company. At least if they cant operate because they need to have a licence it will cut those sort of characters out of the picture. But to a certain degree, even if someone is qualified, it doesn't mean jack donkeys really—you can still be qualified person and do a dodgy job," he said.
Feeds