Understanding building covenants

Building a house involves countless decisions about fixtures, finishes and fabrications, but owners need to ensure a new home follows the rules set out in its covenant.

What is a building covenant?

Covenants – referred to as ‘building covenants’ in housing estates – they place boundaries on how a home owner can use or alter their property.

Covenants are put in place to create a desired “look and feel” in a housing estate or neighbourhood and is prepared by the developer to assist Buyers with achieving consistently high standards of design within the built environment.  Covenants cover a vast range of property characteristics, from front fences, building set-backs, building heights and even materials.

Most Building Covenants will apply on the re-sale of the completed home, so it’s imperative potential buyers read and understand  the covenants.  The Building Covenants that are put in place in an estate aim to achieve a beneficial outcome for the new home owner, future home owner and the developer and have  have been created to benefit residents in the long term. All homes built in accordance with the covenants will not only enhance the appearance of the estate but  also add to its value. 

So if your new home is to be built in an estate where there building covenants, rest assured they are in place to protect your investment today and into the future.