2 houses into 1 house back into 2 houses

antiskeptic

Someone buys two houses, knocks a doorway (without planning) between the two and uses as one house for years - such that the postal address of one fades over time and eircode apply one eircode to it. Other than that, it's two houses: electric meter, gas meter, sewers, folio, entrances etc.

Do you need planning to block up the door and return to two properties?

sydthebeat

antiskeptic wrote: »

Someone buys two houses, knocks a doorway (without planning) between the two and uses as one house for years - such that the postal address of one fades over time and eircode apply one eircode to it. Other than that, it's two houses: electric meter, gas meter, sewers, folio, entrances etc.

Do you need planning to block up the door and return to two properties?

Yes

you can go from 2 to 1 without permission (where the original dwelling was designed as a single dwelling)

but you cant go from 1 to 2

antiskeptic

sydthebeat wrote: »

Yes

you can go from 2 to 1 without permission (where the original dwelling was designed as a single dwelling)

but you cant go from 1 to 2

So I can cut a doorway today without permission and tomorrow I need permission to block it back up. Sounds strange but you is the man!

antiskeptic

Another thought. If reverting to the original two dwellings, is one (or even both) of them considered 'new' such that it would have to conform to modern regs as part of the conversion-back process?

I can't imagine a multiunit period house, for which planning was obtained to make it multi unit, would need to conform to mod build regs on conversion to original state.

But I'm open to surprises!

sydthebeat

antiskeptic wrote: »

So I can cut a doorway today without permission and tomorrow I need permission to block it back up. Sounds strange but you is the man!

no

what you can do without permission is convert two (or more) houses back into one single house, as long as it was originally a single dwelling.

you cant make one house out of two different ones without permission.

antiskeptic

sydthebeat wrote: »

no

what you can do without permission is convert two (or more) houses back into one single house, as long as it was originally a single dwelling.

you cant make one house out of two different ones without permission.

Just to clarify:

1. The (now) single house was originally two single dwellings

2. Planning was obtained in 1995 (I found out a few minutes ago) to do various works including: convert the two original dwellings into the current single dwelling. This was achieved by knocking a door in the party wall.

3. Given planning granted then, am I right in assuming planning required to convert back to the original two single dwellings. In other words, is planning required to revert to original state (which you say isn't the case of subdivided single dwelling)


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If converting back (whether planning required or not) to two single dwellings, what is the position wrt modern building regs? Do I need to render either of the dwellings up to modern standards? Or would it be like reverting a subdivided period original back to original state - where I don't have to upgrade to modern regs.

Cheers..