How to Know If Your Home Is Fully Compliant (Most People Get This Wrong)

Most homeowners think that if they have a copy of their building plans, their property must be compliant. Unfortunately, that’s not how compliance works. A truly compliant property meets five conditions, and if even one is missing, you may run into problems when selling, financing, or upgrading the property.
The first component is having approved building plans — not sketches, not drafts, not HOA drawings. Officially stamped municipal plans. But even approved plans aren’t enough if they’re outdated. If you added anything to your home over the years — a carport, lapa, extension, Wendy house, patio cover — and it’s not on the plans, your property is no longer compliant.
Next is the “as-built vs approved” comparison. The house must physically match the drawings that council has on record. Even small changes can cause issues: moving a door, enclosing a patio, shifting a wall, adding a bathroom, or extending a slab.
Compliance also includes engineer sign-offs. Structures like roofs, slabs, staircases, retaining walls, and steel carports require structural certification. If these weren’t signed off at the time, you may need retrospective sign-off before plans can be updated or before an Occupation Certificate can be issued.
Then comes municipal inspection alignment. You can only obtain an Occupation Certificate if the required inspections were done, or if remedial steps are taken to certify the work afterwards. Older homes often lack inspections, which is common — but it still needs to be addressed.
Finally, the municipal file must reflect the correct information. Missing records, old approvals that were never captured digitally, or incomplete archives can all complicate the process. Without checking the official file, you won’t know what the city recognises as legal.
Most people only realise their home is non-compliant at the worst possible time — during a sale. That’s why doing a proper compliance check early is the smartest move you can make.
At We Do House Plans, we help homeowners confirm what’s approved, what’s missing, and what needs correcting. The result is a property that is safe, legal, and ready for anything — a sale, a loan, an upgrade, or simply peace of mind.