step by step guide for inter terrace

[peachpeach 2]

hi am new to this forum, need some expert inputs to help me along the process.

from purchase to TOP. what is required and what needs to be done.

1600 sqft 3 storey in a 3 storey zone build 2550

 

thanks

 

[snoozee 98]

What are you planning to do to the house after the completion of purchase? Tear down to rebuilt, major A&A or minor A&A? 

[peachpeach 2]

i am trying to avoid a total rebuild and want to do major AA since under budget. 

also how do i check whats the max i can rebuilt up to? 

[snoozee 98]

first, confirm if your house is a 2.5 storey house or a 3 storey house. some layman would think that a 2.5 storey house is a 3 storey house as they look similar from outside but are classified differently.

second, check if your house is in what kind of zone. easiest way is to look at the neighbours house to see how many storeys the highest one you see have. the more accurate method is to check URA's landed housing master plan.

Assuming that your house is actually a 2.5 storey house is a 2 storey landed housing zone, then you can't built your house upwards anymore. but if your existing house has not been built to it's allowed boundaries, then you could extend your house at the rear and maybe the front (depending on existing house footprint).

if your house is a 3 storey house in a 3 storey landed housing zone, then you can add on another attic storey to the house. BUT this is depending on whether the existing house's total height as URA's envelope control only allows a maximum of 15.5m building height for 3 storey landed houses which is lower than the previous 17.7m height for 3 storey houses. so if your existing house already is near or exceed 15.5m, it is unlikely you will be able to add another attic storey above it.

if you had already exercised your OTP, you can arrange with the current owners to allow you to engage a surveyor to do a topo survey of the house. this will come out with a proper plan of the existing house as well as the property's boundaries so you can see how much you can build your house to. for inter terrace houses, there is a 2m rear set back and a 7.5m front set back. unless URA has special planning permissions for your estate/area, then the set back might be different.

if the seller has the existing house's plans, get a copy from them. else try to see if they are willing to authorise you to purchase a set of building plans from BCA. ONLY building owners or their authorised personnel is allowed to purchase from BCA. even if you had exercised the OTP, you are not the legal owner yet until the completion of sale and purchase so you can't do it now.

go to PUB website and purchase a set of DIP and SIP for your house. this will let you know if your house is subjected to drainage reserves and/or whether there is a public sewer line running though your land. drainage reserves will affect your building's setback. if there is a sewer line running through your house, then you cannot build anything near or over the sewer line unless you build an RC trench to protect the sewer. depending on how deep and length of the sewer, this can add a few ten thousands or up to more than 100k for the RC trench.

Assuming that you can build another storey, then you may need to perform a soil investigation to check on the existing soil conditions. This will allow the professional engineer to determine whether the house's columns and beams need to be enlarged/strengthened to cater to the additional storey.

of cos you will need to find an architect and/or PE to work on your house's submissions. URA only accept submissions from registered architect or PE.

then you will also need to find a builder/contractor to build your house.

some builders offer all-in-one service but it's up to you to accept this or not. normally they will just get an architect or PE to do the submissions for a small fee. but of cos if anything happens, it's just you against the builder compared to when you engage an architect or PE directly, you have another party to project manage and protect your interest.

anyway, above should cover the basic steps needed before starting on the reconstruction. do note that there are quite a number of fees that need to be paid to authorities and such so do buffer at least 20k cash for all the fees.

[peachpeach 2]

wow! thanks snoozee that is incredibly helpful. exactly what i need to know.. thanks so much

1. it is a 3 storey currently in a 3 storey landed zone. so seems like an extension makes more sense than a total rebuilt? dont want to tear down if its jus adding another 200-500sq ft?

2. how do i check the current height of the plc ? is it available on floorplan or ura website? 

3. re soil investigation, i have contacted the neighbour builder, said the soil is in ok condition. do i still need to re- engage a PE to do it? or i need to hire a PE anyway and this is part of his job ? 

 

[snoozee 98]

from the building plan, it should show the current house's height. again need to get authorisation from owner if need to buy from BCA.

don't think BCA will accept neighbour's soil investigation report. but if direct next door, maybe can try your luck. PE don't do soil investigation. it is done by a sub-contractor. the PE will then interpret the data and determine the building's structure requirements. however chicken and egg issue here. normally PE will give the requirements for soil investigation. so if you don't engage a PE, you can get this done by the SI company. but before you can engage a PE, you need to decide whether you want to go the direct builder route or go through an architect/PE. I don't know if PEs are willing to do direct for house owners as they usually do through architect or builders. so this part you need to sort out first then can get the PE involved and do the soil investigation. 

[petetherock 13]

5 hours ago, peachpeach said:

wow! thanks snoozee that is incredibly helpful. exactly what i need to know.. thanks so much

1. it is a 3 storey currently in a 3 storey landed zone. so seems like an extension makes more sense than a total rebuilt? dont want to tear down if its jus adding another 200-500sq ft?

2. how do i check the current height of the plc ? is it available on floorplan or ura website? 

3. re soil investigation, i have contacted the neighbour builder, said the soil is in ok condition. do i still need to re- engage a PE to do it? or i need to hire a PE anyway and this is part of his job ? 

 

There's a whole world to explore in doing up your new place, so I suggest you talk to a builder that you can trust on this. bro snoozee has set you on the right path, but you really need to sit down with a professional that you feel comfortable with to plan this. All the best.

 

[peachpeach 2]

snoozee.. so to be accurate, the only way i can know the height of the house is through buying the building plan from BCA right?

- would height really matter if i dont intend to build a roof terrace? since its a major aa and not a rebuilt and i am just doing around the current existing structure? (my impression is height only matters if i want to add another level if its below 15.5m, but since i am not adding another level, height should not matter?)

- is it possible to buy DIP and SIP before OTP since im not the owner?

- if i am just doing lateral extension and not adding another storey, is soil investigation necessary? or it is better to do so regardless given that its an old structure of 30+ years?

 

[AWS 6]

Either a Design & Build contractor or engage an architect/PE, personally I prefer the architect/PE route. The architect/PE must act in your interest and cross check the builder. The best is of course all are independent parties i.e. different architect, PE, builder, RTO etc.

Edited December 11, 2019 by AWS

[snoozee 98]

to get the most accurate building height, you will need to engage a surveyor to perform a site survey. this means someone would need to climb up to the roof or below the roof with an instrument where another person can use a laser level to determine the height difference between the roof and know points on the ground. of cos the other alternative is just buy from BCA as the building plans will contain this information since after the house is build, as-built drawings need to be submitted to BCA.

if you are not intending to add another attic level on top of your existing 3rd storey, then height doesn't really matter. but I guess a survey would still be done by the contractors on the existing building itself

DIP and SIP can be purchased now. no need to be owner to buy. one tip for others is that DIP and SIP should be purchased before signing of OTP so that you can decide not to buy the house in the event that the house is affected by drainage reserves and/or has a sewer running through it. cos one you sign the OTP, you would lose your deposit if you decide to back out of the purchase.

lateral extension may also require soil investigation, especially on the area where the extension is to be done. however this is determined by the risk appetite of your PE. It is better to pay about 3k for the soil investigation rather than be sorry later when the foundation for the extension fails/sinks due to the lack of soil data for a proper foundation design.

 

[yoongf 11]

Hmm.. TS... u mention abt budget constraints. What is your budget for these A&A works?

if talking abt micro piling, just to get a few hundred sqft.. will be costly. If hse built in late 80s onwards, the structure usually very strong already. 

 

 

[snoozee 98]

5 minutes ago, AWS said:

Either a Design & Build contractor or engage an architect/PE, personally I prefer the architect/PE route. The architect/PE must act in your interest and cross check the builder. The best is of course all are independent parties i.e. different architect, PE, builder, RTO etc.

usually architect would have some preferred PE to work with. the PE still not that bad as they need to sign on the drawings and their professional practice is at stake. builder and RTO should be independent since RTO is supposed to check on builder's works. however nowadays BCA limits the number of projects a RTO can handle so quite hard to find part time RTOs now.

[peachpeach 2]

thanks snoozee.. will buy the DIP and SIP before going into OTP phase. 

any other background work i definitely need to do before going into OTP?

eg checking illegal structures etc

[snoozee 98]

checking of illegal structures would be good. but if you do not know the rules and regulations, then it's hard for you to catch/see illegal structures. don't rely on your property agent to do so for you as most of them would not have an idea of the regulations.

if you want to know more, go to URA website and look for the residential handbook and read through it. it is a guide for professionals on what can or cannot be done for a housing development.

the basic things to look out for are these

1. illegal extensions. some owners extend or cover up open areas like balconies to create additional interior space. even if a balcony is not fully enclosed, some canopies which fully shelter the balcony is illegal as well.

2. mezzanine floors or loft inside the house. there is a limit on the loft size allowed. if you see any, check if they have been declared or submitted to BCA for approval

3. enclosed car porch roof terrace. similar to 1 above, it is illegal to fully enclose or have a full canopy for the car porch roof terrace

4. illegal canopies. roof canopies can only be extended up to 1m from the boundary line. so for the rear of the house, if you see the canopy all the way to the boundary, chances is it is illegal. but some estates allow the building to be all the way to the boundary so look at the neighbours to see how their houses are built.

again as mentioned, you will need someone familiar with the rules and regulations to catch all these. else make sure your OTP has a clause which allows you to back out if illegal structures are found or you can request for the owner to rectify them before the completion.

[petetherock 13]

I think TS you really need to work with a builder .. there’s only so much a forum can help ..