| Building and Construction Law News and Articles |
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| Builders' payments - Residential restriction on security of payment law |
| In a recent case a builder failed in a claim for payment from a homeowner who was not living in the property while the work was being carried out. |
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| Mortgage trap - Stamp duty payable on vendor finance |
| Structuring a loan transaction correctly is important to avoid unnecessary stamp duty. |
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| Landholder Duty - Tax base expands |
| New state revenue laws create a new model for imposing duty on land. |
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| First Homeowner Grant - Penalties if you don't meet criteria |
| Make sure you meet the eligibility criteria to enjoy the increase in the government's first homeowner grant to $21,000. |
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| Retail Leasing - Honesty in pre-lease claims vital |
| Claims made in an effort to promote the uptake of commercial leases have to be weighed up by both tenants and landlords to avoid business troubles and potentially complex drawnout legal disputes. |
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| Land Tax - Where is the principal place of residence? |
| The most common area of dispute in land tax matters is a person's entitlement to the principal place of residence exemption. |
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| Tenders - Duty to treat all bidders fairly |
| In any contract process the authority calling the tenders has a duty to treat all bidders fairly and in good faith. |
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| Tenders - Are disclaimers effective? |
| Businesses inviting tenders for construction projects often have to decide how much information to provide about latent conditions and how much site access to allow. |
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| Forgery - Invalidating the security on a loan |
| A recent appeal case is a timely reminder to everyone with financial interests that not only should steps be taken to ensure that fraud is not perpetrated which may render a security interest unenforceable, but that care should be taken to properly describe any security interests in loan and security documents. |
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| Smoke Alarms - Warning notice required on contracts for sale of land |
| A particularly worded warning notice about smoke alarms must now be attached to every contract for sale of land, or printed in the contract. |
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| Joint Ventures |
| It is important to document carefully the exact nature and scope of a joint venture to avoid a legal battle if one partner independently pursues a profitable opportunity which arose while the relationship existed. |
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| Sub-Division |
| A vendor selling a lot in a prospective sub-division must use their best endeavours to get the plan registered within six months. If not registered within that time-frame, the purchaser, or both parties jointly, may annul the contract. |
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| Radio Waves |
| Owners and managers of properties which house radio communications towers or antennas have strict obligations to limit exposure to electromagnetic radiation by those who visit relevant parts of the premises. |
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| Land Tax, Vendor Duty And Other Duties |
| The State Revenue Legislation Amendment Act 2005 received assent on 27 June 2005 and included a number of changes to Stamp Duties, Payroll Tax and Land Tax. |
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| What happens when the real-estate brochure doesn't tell the truth. |
| Inaccurate information in a real-estate agency brochure advertising a residential property for sale thwarted the purchasers' plans to develop. But the agency was protected by its disclaimer clause. |
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| When buying land look beyond the title deeds. |
| A much-awaited ruling in the property industry has now been made, but it will bring little joy to those purchasing land. |
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| "Pink Slip" (Continued) |
| The Conveyancing (Sale of Land) Regulation 2000 is to be automatically repealed under the Subordinate Legislation Act 1989, on 1 September 2005. |
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| Pink Slips for an Asbestos-Free Home |
| It has been mooted that it should be mandatory that a type of "pink slip" for houses should be attached to a contract for sale of both residential and commercial premises. |
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| You are potentially liable for your contractors' unpaid Workers Compensation Premiums, Pay-roll Tax, and Employee Remuneration |
| A Subcontractors' Statement is required each time a payment is made for work done in connection with the contract and should cover the period of work to which the payment relates. The Subcontractor Statement must have attached to it a Certificate of Currency of the contractors workers compensation policy covering the period of the payment. |
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| Extension granted without application |
| In Abigroup v Peninsular, the NSW Court of Appeal granted a builder an extension of time (and reduced the builder's liability for liquidated damages) even though the builder had not applied for an extension. |
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| Security Of Payment Act Changes |
| Changes to the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act provide a more favourable process for contractors and sub-contractors to obtain progress payments. |
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| Building Quality Legislation |
| The NSW Parliament has enacted the Building Legislation (Quality of Construction) Amendment Act. It is designed to improve the quality of residential buildings by changing the building certification process. |
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| New Home Warranty Building Insurance Reforms |
| In the fallout of the HIH collapse and events surrounding 11 September 2001, we are increasingly aware of spiralling insurance costs. To address these problems the State Government has introduced a number of reforms to the Home Building Act 1989 (NSW). |
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| Your neighbour can not infringe your house/building's right to support |
| A recent amendment to the Conveyancing Act 1919 has replaced the common law right to support with a statutory duty of care. |
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| Beware the Construction Management Contract |
| Construction management contracts are a well-used alternative to the more straightforward principal/contractor/sub-contractor building arrangement. Rather than a principal employing one contractor as one point of reference for the carrying out of all the works (or the design and construction of the works in the case of a design and construction contract), a construction management contract has the construction manager, for a fee, acting as the principal’s agent in employing subcontractors (called trade contractors). |
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| A Reminder About Insurance |
| No matter whether you are a principal, contractor, sub-contractor, consultant or supplier to the construction industry and no matter how well you can document your relationships so as to minimise commercial risk, whether by exclusions, indemnities, directors’ guarantees, parent companies guarantees or bank guarantees, the final safeguard is insurance. |
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| Faster Payments for Building Contractors |
| Legislation regulating construction contracts is designed to significantly improve the cash flow situation for building contractors. The legislation imposes unique remedies by enforcing strict time limits for payment of invoices and providing a means of obtaining payment when the debtor may have insufficient funds. |
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| Building Easement Agreements may be a Trap for the Unwary |
| Easement agreements are necessary for any building activity that requires temporary trespass onto an adjoining property or airspace. Until legislation in the mid 1990's permitted compulsory acquisition of an easement over someone else’s property, it was too easy for the owner of an adjacent property to charge exorbitant amounts in licence fees for the intrusion onto that property by cranes or scaffolding. |
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| Who Owns Your Designs? |
| The courts have been asked to decide just who owns what when it comes to the design of a building. The decision of Clarendon Homes v Henley Arch is examined. |
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| Construction Payments to be Made More Secure |
| The Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999 (NSW) ensures all contracts, written or oral, for carrying out construction work in New South Wales are under tight regulation. |
