Cost of works
Cost of works is the estimated value of building work declared on an application; it sets permit and levy fees, licensing and insurance thresholds, and warranty triggers.
Ask Chalkline about this →Cost of works is the estimated value of the building work you declare on a building or development application. It sounds like a formality, but it is the number that drives a chain of fees and thresholds: the permit fee, statutory levies (such as the building and construction industry levy), and often the trigger points for licensing class, insurance, and home-warranty obligations.
It usually means the genuine market cost to carry out the work, including labour and materials (and in some jurisdictions, things like demolition and professional fees), whether or not you are doing parts of it yourself. It is not just the contract price for the bits you are subbing out, and it is not the land value.
Why it matters so much: many thresholds are pegged to it. Cross a value threshold and you may need a higher licence class, mandatory home-warranty insurance, or a different approval pathway. Levies are commonly a percentage of the declared cost, so the number feeds straight into the fees payable across the WA, Victorian, and SA application processes.
The common trap is under-declaring to save on fees or to duck a threshold. It is a false economy and a compliance risk: regulators audit declared values against actual contracts, an under-declared cost can void or complicate home-warranty cover when a claim arises, and it can expose the applicant to penalties.
For a builder the practical points are to declare an honest, defensible estimate (keep the basis for it), to check which thresholds the value crosses before you lodge (licence class, warranty insurance, approval pathway), and to remember that a cost-plus job still needs a realistic declared figure even though the final cost is open.
Also known as: Estimated cost of works, declared value, value of building work.
Category: Planning / Approvals.
Related
See also
- HIA cost-plus contract
- Direct cost vs overhead
- Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021
References
- DA process WA (Chalkline) (verified 2026-06-09)
Last updated: 2026-06-09. Verified: 2026-06-09. Quarterly review for currency.