Only the owners of residential properties, built by registered homebuilders and enrolled with the council, are entitled to the remedies under the Housing Consumers Protection Measures Act No. 95 of 1998.
When a homebuilder is registered with the NHBRC and the home is enrolled, the NHBRC will inspect the home and ensure it meets with the NHBRC technical requirements, which in turn ensures homes that are built are of a high standard and good quality.
The NHBRC will compensate a homeowner for certain types of damage if:-
- There is a major structural defect in the home as a result of the homebuilder not complying with the NHBRC technical requirements within 5 years of the date of occupation, and the housing consumer has notified the homebuilder of the defect within those 5 years; and
- The home was constructed by a registered homebuilder, the house was enrolled with the NHBRC, and was still enrolled at the date of occupation; and
- The homebuilder is in breach of the building agreement with the homeowner inasmuch as he has failed to rectify the defect, or the homebuilder no longer exists or cannot meet his obligations.