Prospective purchasers of either domestic or commercial properties use the Property Certificate service in order to find out if any works carried out on the property have been approved and meet the statutory requirements as stipulated by Building Regulations. These requirements cover all aspects of health and safety as well as welfare for all buildings whether public, private or commercial.  As part of this service, a check is undertaken by a Building Control Surveyor to see if there are any outstanding breaches or if the Council's Building Control Department has taken or intends to take any legal action.

Submitting an Application
Property certificates are most often requested by a solicitor on the purchaser's behalf. However, as the purchaser you may also request this service yourself directly by submitting a completed application form to Building Control. As part of the application process, you will be required to submit the following information along with the required fee:

• Two copies of a site location map
• Full address of the property
• Current use of the property
• Name of vendor
• Name of present occupier
• Name of previous owners (within the past 10 years)
• Name and address of applicant

Fees
The cost of the property certificate service varies depending on your search criteria:

Specified 10 year search	£60
Follow up 10 year search	£25
Full search back to 1973	£85

Application Process
On receipt of your completed application form, your application will assessed by several Council departments including Building Control, Leisure and Community Services, Environmental Health along with the Countryside Officer. An officer within each department will be asked to complete a set of questions that relate to your application. The application process will be completed within 14 days from the date of receipt. Details which are required in order to complete the application form includes information in relation to the property held in our records over the past 10 years. For example:

• Whether an application has been received in relation to the property within the certificate period
• If there are any known breaches of building regulations
• If any legal proceedings are being considered in relation to the property
• If any relaxations of the regulations have been granted
• Confirmation of the property’s full address
• Environmental health issues such as a smoke control order

Please note that separate property certificates must be sought for separate properties or individual plots of land.

Contact: 
Building Control Department, Banbridge District Council, Civic Building, Downshire Road, Banbridge, Co. Down BT32 3JY
T: 028 4066 0603
F: 028 4066 0601
E: bc@banbridge.gov.uk