Certifiers, council and disputes in Riverstone NSW

Riverstone sits in the City of Blacktown. Council handles development applications, complying development and the rest of the planning side. The build itself runs through a principal certifier, who issues the construction certificate at the start and the occupation certificate at the end and carries out the mandatory critical stage inspections in between. That is a compliance function and it is not the same thing as an inspection engaged by you. If a dispute cannot be resolved, NSW Fair Trading offers a resolution service and NCAT hears building claims.

Blacktown City Council handles the planning approvals.

Both the construction certificate and the occupation certificate come from the principal certifier on a Riverstone build.

Critical stage inspections are compliance checks, not a defect list written for you.

NSW Fair Trading runs a dispute resolution service before a tribunal is needed.

NCAT hears residential building claims where that fails.

More about Riverstone

Written by our local inspection team from work carried out in Riverstone. Licensed building practitioners.

Guides for Riverstone owners and buyers

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Three weep holes, three different failures

Missing, too high, and off the flashing.

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Rising moisture is stopped by a layer nobody sees again.

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Insufficient ventilation, and what it costs later

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Certifiers, council and disputes in Riverstone NSW: common questions

If a certifier signed it off, why did you find defects?

Because the two jobs are different. A certifier confirms the work meets the code well enough to certify. We measure it against your contract, the code, the ABCB Housing Provisions and the Guide to Standards and Tolerances, and report everything that falls short.

Can I use your report at NCAT?

It is often the starting document, though a tribunal usually wants an expert witness report drawn to its practice note. We prepare those separately.

When should I contact Fair Trading?

After you have put the defects to the builder in writing and given a reasonable time to respond. A dated report and a dated letter are what the process runs on.