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PUBLIC AWARENESS :: The Implications of Selling, Buying, or Building a House Without Approved Plans

General notices March 23, 2026 3 min read
If you are selling your house, and don’t have approved plans, you could find yourself in a lot of troubles. And if you are buying a house, and don’t ask whether the seller has approved plans, you might end up inheriting some very expensive problems.
Legal Implications of Selling a House/ Building Structure Without Approved Plans

The National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act, (Act 103 of 1977), as amended, obligates all citizens in the Republic to have plans drawn up in a particular manner, and approved by the local authority (LA), prior to construction of their building structures.

Erecting a building structure outside the preconditions of the Act is deemed serious offense and carries the following legal implications in the selling or buying process:

Legal Implications
  • The house/ building can only be sold “Voetstoets” and at a highly negotiable lower price;
  • The building does not qualify for property insurance scheme required in the Bond approval conditions;
  • Insurance companies can refuse claims in the case of fire and similar damages if, by chance, get insured;
  • Mismatch Property Valuation report for Rates Certificate from the Local Authority (LA);
  • Responsibility for high costs, coupled with Fines, to have plans drawn up retrospectively (“As-Built”) including NHBRC late enrolment charges;
  • High risk of Bond Applications being rejected – cash deals only;
  • High risk of existing building on top of underground and over-head municipal engineering services and, therefore, “As-Built” application rejected;
  • Non-Compliance with statutory Design and Building requirements, posing the risk of structural failures and/ or collapse;
  • In most instances, (though not all), the financial institution will want to see up-to-date approved plans before finance will be granted;
  • If the plans lodged with the Local Authority (LA), do not match the house as it stands, then the sale could fall through and set the seller’s plans back for quite a length of time, together with additional costs to rectify the problem;
  • Unprotected investment – liability instead of asset;
  • In the worst-case scenario, the municipality could order that the illegally erected structure or additions be demolished;

Enquiries

Queries relating to the issues of this advertsiment may be addressed to the below contacts  during Working hours: Monday to Thursday 07:30 – 16:30 and Friday 07:30-13:30

Originally published by Emalahleni Local Municipality. View official source.

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