Blog articles

Outbuildings not requiring a building permit

November 2023

There are a number of permit exemptions within the planning scheme of local councils. Generally, a planning permit for an outbuilding is not required when all the following are met:

• The floor area is less than 100 square metres.

• The outbuilding is not used for accommodation.

• The outbuilding is ancillary to a dwelling located on the land.

• Please confirm details with your local council before undertaking any building work.

What does 'Good ground' mean?

June 2021

‘Good ground’ is typically soil or rock that has an ultimate bearing pressure of not less than 300 kPa. ‘Good ground’ ensures buildings are supported adequately by the ground to avoid differential settlement when one part of a building sinks more than another which can lead to uneven or cracked floors/walls.

Determining ‘Good ground’:

1.     The initial assessment for determining good ground is observing that:

• Neighbouring buildings show no sign of settlement.

• There is no evidence of erosion, landslides or ground creep either on the site or adjacent sites.

• Excavation reveals no evidence of buried services or fill material.

• Excavation does not reveal organic soil, soft or expansive clay, or peat.

Other investigations include referring to the project information memorandum and other territorial authority records such as local history of the site and published geological data.

2.     Testing ground bearing capacity

A scala penetrometer (aka dynamic cone penetrometer) test is commonly used to establish the ground’s ultimate bearing capacity of 300kPa. A hand-held calibrated rod is driven into the ground (commonly 2-5m depth) at various locations by dropping a weight of 9 kg a height of 0.51m and recording the penetration achieved.

The number of blows required to achieve a particular depth of penetration into the ground establishes the ground’s bearing capacity. The bearing capacity of the soil can be determined by correlating the scala penetrometer penetration rates (mm/blow) to ultimate bearing pressure. A factor of safety of 3 is applied when calculating the safe bearing capacity of foundations (i.e. the ultimate bearing capacity >= 3 x bearing pressure). Where testing shows the ground does not meet the ultimate bearing capacity required, the foundation of the proposed building will need specific engineering design (SED).

3.     A supporting geotechnical report 

If the ground does not pass reasonable enquiry or meet the bearing pressure from a penetrometer test the ground condition must be assessed by a geotechnical engineer.

What is my property planning zone and what does it mean?

November 2022

What is a property planning zone?

A property’s planning zone identifies the activities and land uses that are permitted on a property. The rules differ depending on what zone a property is in and identify what you can do as of right (permitted activities) and what you’ll need a resource consent to do.

Common planning zones include;

• Residential

• Commercial

• Industrial

• Rural

• Recreational, future urban, city centre etc etc

Each zone has rules* specifying:

• what you can build

• how high you can build

• how close to the boundary you can build

• how you can use the land

• what sort of activities you can use buildings or land for (housing, business, offices, industry, farming etc)

• whether or not you can subdivide a property

*There are also overlays or district-wide planning rules that may also apply and/or future uses which may also affect a property’s use or planned use.

How do I check the zone and rules for a specific property?

1.  You can view the local District Plan to search for a specific property address to identify the zone and rules that apply. 

2.  Contact a local council planner who can answer any questions you have about the zone and rules for a specific property address (a physical address or legal description of the property is required).

American Barn Design

October 2020

American Barn Design

An American barn is a traditional barn design with a raised centre bay with a gable roof and lean-to structures on either side. 

Standard Dimensions

The width is approx. 12-15m across the front and the overall length approx. 10-15m long (front to back). However, dimensions can be customised to suit your requirements. The height and pitch for the centre bay or side lean-tos can also be changed to accommodate large roller doors for vehicles, boats, campervans, caravans, tractors, trucks, buses or horse floats etc.

Things to consider:

• Doors. Choose the quantity, size, location and style of access doors (roller doors, personnel access doors, steel security doors or sliding doors). See some typical door sizes (m) below:

  • • Pedestrian Doors 1.98-2.08Hx0.81-0.91W or sliding doors 2.0Hx1.8-2.4W

    • Cars/SUV’s 2.2Hx2.4W (Single), 2.2Hx4.8W (Double)

    • Boats 3.6Hx3.6W to 4.2Hx4.0W

    • Horse floats 3.6Hx3.6W

    • RV/Caravan 4.2Hx3.6W

    • Tractors 3.0-4.2Hx3.0x4.4W

    • Trucks/Buses 3.6-4.7Hx3.6-4.4W

• Natural light. Add natural lighting by adding windows, sliding doors and/or translucent sheets to the roof and/or walls.

• A mezzanine floor to the centre bay can be used for extra storage or an additional workspace. A mezzanine floor can also be added at a later stage, allowing you to get what you need now and expand as required. If you want to start with just one lean-to, a second can be added at a later date.

• Carport or verandah. You could turn one of the lean-to sides into an open carport or verandah for the perfect entertainment area.

• Office space? Convert a lean-to into an office space with sliding doors and windows.

• Animal shelters? The bay structure allows for customised animal stables in the lean-to sides. Horse stalls are typically 3.6m x 3.6m up to 4.2m x 4.2m for larger horses.

• Good ventilation. If you’re operating machinery or storing chemicals there are a range of passive ventilation products available including ridge vents, wall vents and wind driven roof vents.