Get building plans approved and avoid demolition

What you'll usually need

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• A certified copy of the title deed and the survey diagram for the stand. If the stand has no title deed yet: your agreement with the council
• The council's plan approval form. In Harare it is called "Application for Approval of Plans of Building and/or Sewerage Works"
• Building plans in three sets. Harare asks for drawings signed by a registered architect: a block plan at 1:500 and working drawings at 1:100
• A structural engineer's drawings and calculations, if the building has more than one storey or is commercial
• Proof that you paid the plan scrutiny fee

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Steps

1. Check the stand before you pay. Ask the council's housing department or district office to confirm the stand is legally allocated. Do this before you buy or start building.
2. Check who owns it. If the stand has a title deed, search it at the Deeds Registry in Harare or Bulawayo. A seller who splits private land into stands needs a subdivision permit from the council first.
3. Check what you may build. To use the land for something else, such as a shop or flats on a house stand, first apply to the council's town planning section for a development permit.
4. Get your plans drawn. Harare asks for three sets signed by a registered architect, plus a structural engineer's drawings and calculations for bigger buildings.
5. Hand in your plans. Fill in the council's form, attach your documents and pay the plan scrutiny fee. In Harare, the Building Inspectorate is at Cleveland House, 92 Leopold Takawira Street. In Bulawayo, it is part of the Housing and Community Services Department.
6. Wait for approval before you build. Councils send back plans that don't meet their rules so you can correct them. Don't start work until your plans are approved.
7. Book every stage inspection. A council building inspector checks the work at set stages. Don't go on to the next stage until it passes. Keep your approved drawings on site.
8. Get your certificate of occupation. When the building is finished, ask for the final inspection and pay the fee. Don't move in until you have the certificate.
9. If you get a notice, act fast. Read what it says you must do and by when. Get legal advice straight away from a lawyer or the Legal Aid Directorate, because you usually have only one month to appeal.

Good to know

• In Harare, the council checks the work at four stages. The first is siting and foundations. The second is damp-proof course, lintel and wall-plate level. The third is roof trusses. The last is the drain test, together with the final inspection for the certificate of occupation.
• Harare says living in a building without a certificate of occupation breaks the Model Building By-laws. If people already live in your house without one, go to the Building Inspectorate at Cleveland House or your nearest district office to sort it out. Otherwise the council may add penalty charges to your rates account.
• Under section 74 of the Constitution, no one may have their home demolished without a court order. The court must consider all the circumstances first. Councils used parts of the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act to order and carry out demolitions. In February 2025 the Constitutional Court confirmed that those parts are invalid because they conflict with section 74.
• Under the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act, a council enforcement order must say what you did wrong and what you must do. It can't take effect until at least one month after it is served on you. You can appeal to the Administrative Court within one month of being served. The appeal puts the order on hold until it is decided.
• A council can also serve a prohibition order telling you to stop building work. It can take effect even while you appeal the enforcement order, so stop work if you get one.
• Keep copies of your approved plans, inspection records and receipts somewhere safe. In August 2026 Harare's mayor urged residents to show their approved building plans when council enforcement teams inspect.
• Some stands have no title deed yet, such as those held under a cession or lease agreement with the council. A deeds search won't show them, so check them with the council instead.
• Each council has its own forms, fees and inspection stages. Outside Harare and Bulawayo, start at your town council or rural district council.