Add a bedroom to an apartment

A friend of mine wants to add a bedroom to her apartment in Melbourne, does she need to apply for a permit from the council?
Thanks

 

Will she be adding parking too to meet the council requirements? How about adjusting the unit entitlement so she pays a higher amount of water usage/services consumed by the occupants?

 

Add a study with a storage solution like a cupboard for your filing needs. No issue with Lot entitlement/liability and no issue with parking. Still may require body corp per motion for the works noise etc. if they can keep dollars below whatever the trigger is then no permit requirement, works are unlikely to be structural but if they are permit is necessary regardless.

 

Probably her her Strata Committee (or equivalent) would have a lot to say about it, so she should start with them.

 

possibly they may need to keep in mind a window/natural light if they want to be able to call a proper bedroom??

 

You will need a building permit and some plans drawn up to make it legal (otherwise in the event something happens, insurance will not cover any buildings that was not approved)
I have done this many many times in the late 2000s in Melbourne apartments.

If it is a structural wall - be prepared to pay more due to the steel beams, engineering reports and get owners corporation approval. there is also a apartment design standard that came up so a lot of things may not be allowed anymore

if it is non-load bearing walls - it would be pretty simple - as below

 

@melbournian - I don't have much faith in the props holding up the ceiling. Well outside of the slenderness ratio required. Two pieces of timber nailed together as well!



@bob shovel / @Brian84 / @Tools - any shonky builders out there?

 

Non-load bearing walls obviously can easily removed as opposed to load bearing walls.
well this was me haha in one my earlier rookie attempts in mid to late 2000s (I'm no carpenter with the proper props) - I did the initial demo to save a bit and then got a builder to do the walls.

 

With props like that, the whole ceiling was liable to fall pulling down any services, cabling, and causing all sorts of damage. You're lucky.

 

well it sort of did parts of the ceiling (had to replaster anyway). i did take the electrical out though prior to demo (as it was going to be rewired).in some ways felt good to demo and release frustrations.

 

Yea I'm pretty shonky so how can I help or hinderance. And I'm not a licenced builder but that doesn't matter. Does it ???

 

I don't think that anyone who's licensed can stuff up so expertly.

 

That's awesome! ..... i especially like the construction joint for extra length

Acro props are about $3/day, now i know that's a bit steep in "property investor land" but it will be tax deductable if erected correctly

 

Nup, apparently not.

 

They don't add any value as you can't see them after the work's complete so why bother (just like footing repairs/underpinning, drainage, insulation, rewiring or the architect's fees vs drafty).

 

If it doesn't make me money then I'm not using it. Won't see it from my house.

 

So can I change the internal layout of my apartment if I get building approval? Do I have to also get approval from the body corporate or check the by laws?

 

Friends of mine reordered their apartment to make two smaller bedrooms out of one. One key thing was altering smoke detector and sprinklers.

 

Don't bet on it. Hubby is a licensed electrician. Tried to cut his finger off with a belt sander. Grrrr.

 

Andrew was cutting corners (again).