Episode 2 : Renovating Your Landed Property

Continuing on from Episode 1....

I am only going to talk about getting approvals from the local authority, in this case MPSJ (Majlis Perbandaran Subang Jaya) because the said property is in USJ which comes under MPSJ. I think other local councils in Selangor and DBKL (KL City Hall) all have roughly the same conditions.

Many home owners don't bother with getting approvals. They prefer to proceed with the renovation and then pay a fine when they get caught. But I don't think I want to take this risk because:

1. If you're in the middle of renovating and people complain about the noise, the mess or generally about how your house is going to contravene the local by-laws, they can ask you to stop work

2. After the job is completed, the local council can order you to demolish the renovations

So, as a prudent investor.... follow the law...

Most contractors will do all this for you without hassle and they will charge you about RM5,000 for a double storey link house but you can typically get it done for half that cost. The 1st thing to do is to visit the MPSJ and get the forms. You can start to submit the forms before the property is handed over or transferred to your name and normally it takes some time to compile all the documents needed. If you are messy like me, several weeks is needed... Typically, one will need to submit the following:

1. The renovation form - obtained free of charge from MPSJ

2. Approval from both sides neighbours - this took me over a month to obtain as I had a very difficult neighbour (you might need to support this with a land search to prove that the signatories are indeed your neighbours)

3. Latest receipt for MPSJ Assessment rates or local council rates paid

4. Land title in your name or if not yet your property, the signed and stamped SPA

5. Architectural drawings - you will need to engage an architect or a draughtsman for this and if there are structural changes to the house, an Engineer's endorsement is required (normally the architect can arrange this)

6. The original or latest Certificate of Fitness (CF) or now known as CCC

The architect normally charge about RM2,000 to RM2,500 for the drawings, depending on the extent of the renovations and obtaining engineer's endorsement. I actually spoke to a few people and tried to negotiate but it seems they have a cartel... everyone seems to be charging this same price and refused to budge.

Then there are other fees... and a RM1,000 deposit from Alam Flora for rubbish and debris disposal (RM500 for each floor you want to renovate). It is best to get your contractor to dispose the debris so that you will only incur a one time RM270 rubbish dump cost. If not, that will be RM270 for each time Alam Flora collects a full dump. This will be deducted from the deposit. Then there are the "renovation plan processing fees" which include for example:

Ground floor RM70
1st floor RM60
Storage of construction material at your site RM180
Sanitary fittings RM5 for each bath/toilet
A sticket to put on your gate RM10
"Government fees", whatever this is RM375

and bla bla bla.... the details are all in the MPSJ forms.

Upon submission, it takes typically a week to get an approval provided there is no query or rejection of your plans. In my case, I wanted to do a few things that won't comply with the local by-laws. The architect suggested that I submit a compliant plan but just go off and do something else.... apparently, as long as there is no huge variance from the approved plans, I won't get any hassles from MPSJ. However, the draw back is, I won't get a CCC so this will be complicated when I want to sell the house in the future. So, I decided I should just follow the plan....