Dangerous, affected and insanitary buildings policies
About this document
Introduction
Section 131 of the Building Act 2004 (the Act) requires territorial authorities to develop policies on dangerous and insanitary buildings within their districts. As per section 132A of the Act (inserted on 28 November 2013, by section 36 of the Building Amendment Act 2013) these policies must now take into account affected buildings. Our guidance information assists territorial authorities in developing these policies.
Contents
The Act allows for territorial authorities to develop policies in consultation with their communities. Its aim is to strike a balance between the need to address the risk from dangerous, affected and insanitary buildings and any social or economic factors, such as local housing policies.
Our guidance information does not set mandatory requirements.
Although this document was written before the 'affected' legislation came into effect, it does cover affected buildings and provides information to TAs in developing their own policies, especially those with limited resources.
The main topics it covers are:
- a policy approach (eg principles, identifying dangerous and insanitary buildings, building owners, economic impact)
- priorities for action
- dealing with heritage buildings
- a template check sheet for inspections.