The information below relates to owner-builders who are not building work contractors. If you are a building work contractor (including a person licensed only for trade work), you must take out Building Indemnity Insurance (BII) policy for your project (where this is usually required) or seek an exemption from Consumer and Business Services (CBS). Exemptions are often granted when a building work contractor is looking to build their own home to live in. They are not generally granted where the residence is intended for sale or rental. Further information on exemptions can be obtained by contacting CBS.

Being an owner-builder means taking on responsibility for the entire building project. Owner-builders don’t need to hold formal trade qualifications to perform building work, unless they perform specialist work like plumbing, gas fitting or electrical work. Licensed builders can be contracted to do some or all stages of building. If you contract out any building work costing $20,000 or more, your tradesperson must have a written contract with you. If council approval is required for your project, they must also take out building indemnity insurance. This insurance can only be taken out by a person, business or company that holds a builder’s licence. Owner builders cannot take out building indemnity insurance.

If you are looking to build through a builder and they ask that you put yourself down as an owner-builder for the project, you should contact CBS for advice. These arrangements are often illegal and expose the customer to large risks.

A person cannot act as an owner builder to build multiple properties as a business without being licensed. Any person who sells or rents two or more buildings within five years, that they have built or improved, is considered to be a building work contractor (unless they can prove otherwise). They need to be licensed as a builder and take out BII.