hume community housing association · how to ask for alterations to your home 35 making our...

Hume Community Housing Association

Making changes to your home Easy Read version

How to use this document

This information is written in an easy to read way.

We use pictures to explain some ideas.

This document has been written by Hume

Community Housing Association (Hume Housing).

When you see the word ‘we’, it

means Hume Housing.

/

Some words are written in bold. We explain what

these words mean. There is a list of these words

on page 48.

This Easy Read document is a summary of

another document.

You can find the other document on our website

at www.humecha.com.au

You can ask for help to read this document.

A friend, family member or support person may

be able to help you.

http://www.humecha.com.au/

What’s in this document?

How to use this document 2

What’s in this document? 3

Making changes to your home 4

Disability Modifications Policy 6

Changes to your home 7

Minor modifications 10

Major modifications 12

How to ask for changes to your home 15

Request for Modifications Form 20

Home Alteration Policy 22

Changes to your home 23

Alterations you can make without asking 26

Alterations you need our approval for 28

Alterations you can’t make 32

How to ask for alterations to your home 35

Making our decision 39

Alterations we didn’t approve 42

Request for Alteration Form 43

Word list 48

Contact maintenance 50

Contact us 50

Making changes to your home

We understand that you might want or need to

make changes to your home.

There are 2 types of changes that you can make:

• modifications – changes customers with

disability or who are ageing need to make to

their home

• alterations – changes or improvements you

want to make to your home.

We have policies for making changes to Hume

Housing homes.

The policies explain the types of changes that can

be made.

Our Disability Modifications Policy explains the

changes customers with disability can make to

their homes.

You can read the Disability Modifications Policy on

page 6.

Our Home Alteration Policy explains:

• how you can make changes to your home

• what changes you can make.

You can read the Home Alteration Policy on page 22.

These policies help us to follow what the law says.

The law that applies is the Residential Tenancies Act

2010 (NSW).

Disability Modifications Policy

Changes to your home

We understand that our customers with

disability might need changes to their home.

These changes can help them:

• live safely

• live independently

• improve the quality of their life with

or without support.

Our Disability Modifications Policy explains:

• what you can change

• the support available

• what you need to do.

We have a Disability Modifications Policy to:

• meet the needs of customers

with disability

• give you the option of living in a

home instead of having to move

to a care facility

• follow what the law says.

You can ask to have your home changed,

or modified, to suit your needs.

You can ask for:

• minor modifications – small changes

• major modifications – larger changes.

We explain the 2 types of modifications on the

following pages.

When you ask for modifications, we call

it a request.

Minor modifications

Minor modifications are small changes.

These changes don’t affect the structure of your

home. The structure of a home includes things

like doorways.

Minor modifications usually cost less

than $2,000.

They might include:

• adding grip rails

• putting in a hand-held shower

• changing taps so they have levers.

For minor modifications, you need a letter from:

• a doctor

• another health care professional.

The letter needs to explain:

• your medical condition or disability

• the changes you need to your home.

The changes to your home need to help you

with your medical condition or disability.

Major modifications

Major modifications are large changes.

These changes affect the structure of your home.

Major modifications usually cost between

$2,000 and $15,000.

They might include:

• making doorways wider

• putting in ramps

• changing the:

o kitchen

o bathroom

o laundry

• work that needs approval from the

local council.

For major modifications, you need a report from

an Occupational Therapist (OT).

The report needs to:

• explain your medical condition or disability

• explain the changes you need to your home

• include drawings of the changes

with measurements.

If you don’t have an OT, you need to:

• talk to your doctor

• get a referral – a letter from your doctor

that says you need an OT.

We may need to visit your home so we can:

• see it for ourselves

• think about what the options are

• figure out who would be the right person

to do the work.

We might need to ask the NSW Government

Department of Family and Community Services

(FaCS) to make major modifications.

They also might need to visit your home.

We try to get major modifications approved

within 28 days.

How to ask for changes to your home

To ask us for modifications, you need to fill out

a Request for Modifications form.

A carer or support person can help you.

You can find the form on page 20.

For minor modifications, you also need to give us

other documents like:

• medical certificates

• reports from:

o doctors

o other health care professionals.

These documents are called supporting documents.

For major modifications, you need a report from

an Occupational Therapist (OT).

When we get your request and supporting

documents, one of these people will assess it:

• Maintenance Coordinator

• Neighbourhood Officer

• Supported Housing Coordinator.

They will think about:

• how long you will stay in your home after the

modifications are made

• if it’s a smart way to spend our money.

They will visit your home to make sure the

changes can actually be made.

If your request is approved, we will think about

how we will pay for it.

We keep money in our yearly budget to pay for

minor modifications.

We don’t keep money in our yearly budget to pay

for major modifications.

Sometimes FaCS might help pay for

major modifications.

FaCS might not pay for modifications that cost

more than $15,000.

If modifications are going to cost more than

$15,000, we might have to:

• get the money another way

• find somewhere else for you to live.

We can’t promise that we will approve

your request.

We can’t always make the changes that

people ask for.

This might be because the changes:

• can’t be made to your home

• cost too much

• won’t make life easier for you.

We look at each request on its own when

we are making our decision.

We will write to you to tell you our decision.

If we say no and you’re not happy, you can talk

to the Housing Appeals Committee (HAC).

You can get more information about the HAC from:

• their website www.hac.nsw.gov.au/

• a Hume Housing Officer.

http://www.hac.nsw.gov.au/

Request for Modifications Form

Your name:

Your address:

Your phone number:

Your email address:

The reason you need a modification:

The modification you need:

When I move out, I agree to:

� leave the modification there

� remove the modification and pay the cost.

Home Alteration Policy

Changes to your home

Sometimes you might want to make changes or

improvements to your home.

We call these alterations.

Our Home Alteration Policy helps you understand

how you can do this.

You need to pay:

• for any alterations you want to make to

your home

• to have things put back the way they were if

you move out.

We need to say yes before you can make any

alterations to your home.

You need to have this approval in writing.

This includes all the homes we own and manage.

If you make alterations without our approval,

you’re going against your lease.

This is also called your Residential

Tenancy Agreement.

We will ask you to:

• put things back the way they were

• fix any damage that has been done.

We might ask you to move out of the home.

We might have to go to the NSW Civil and

Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).

Our Home Alteration Policy does not cover:

• general repairs or maintenance that needs

to be done

• alterations we want to make.

Alterations you can make without asking

You can make some alterations without asking us.

They include:

• putting in telephones

• getting Foxtel

• putting up picture hooks – but you need to

use the ones that stick to the wall and can

be removed

• putting in appliances that can be moved

around, such as air-conditioners

• setting up a:

o compost bin

o worm farm

• building a garden bed – but it must be more

than 1 metre away from any building.

Alterations you need our approval for

You can only make some alterations if you have our

approval in writing.

We have rules about what you can do.

They include:

• putting in air-conditioners or TVs that are

fixed to the wall

• painting the walls inside the house – but there

are limits to what we will let you do

• decorating the outside of the house – but

there are limits to what we will let you do

• put down laminate or timber flooring

• building a shed

• changing the driveway

• building walls or fences

• changing kitchens or bathrooms – but they

need to meet our standards and must stay if

you move out

• putting up a TV aerial or satellite dish

• putting tiles on floors or walls

• paving or building a deck

• putting in wardrobes

• electrical works – but they need to be done

by an approved electrician

• gas works – but they need to be done by an

approved plumber

• putting in clotheslines

• changing window features such as:

o blinds

o curtains

o fly screens

o roller shutters

o awnings

• putting in a security system or burglar alarm.

Alterations you can’t make

There are some alterations you aren’t allowed to make.

They include:

• changing or moving:

o walls

o doors

o windows

• removing asbestos

• taking out a bath to put in a shower

• putting up lights that you need to make a hole

in the ceiling or wall for first

• putting up:

o solar panels

o flag poles

o garages

o carports

• pulling up grass to put down paving or decking

• putting in gas appliances apart from

gas cookers

• painting the brick walls on the outside

of the house

• putting in a pond or swimming pool – small,

portable, above-ground pools are ok

• putting bars on windows

• setting up security cameras

• cutting down trees.

How to ask for alterations to your home

To ask us for approval to make alterations, you need

to fill out a Request for Alteration Form.

You can find the Request for Alteration Form on

page 43.

When we get your request, it might be assessed by a:

• Maintenance Coordinator

• Neighbourhood Officer

• Supported Housing Coordinator.

They will look at the alteration you want and check if it:

• is on the list of alterations you can’t make

• is part of work we’re already planning to do

• affects the structure or layout of the home

• can be removed

• affects any disability modifications in the home

• is within the rules

• needs asbestos to be removed

• needs gas, sewer or water mains work

• affects the way the home looks on the outside or

from the street

• affects an entrance or an exit

• affects the closest neighbours

• matches what the law and building codes say.

You need to make sure you have been doing the right

thing according to the Residential Tenancy Agreement.

Your payments need to be up-to-date, including:

• rent

• water bill

• other charges.

Making our decision

We will send you an Alteration Request Outcome

Letter. This will tell you if your request is:

• approved – it will go ahead

• declined – it won’t go ahead.

We can’t promise that we will approve your request.

We will decline any alterations that:

• can’t be maintained

• can’t be removed easily

• include a lot of indoor decoration work

• include any outdoor decoration work

• don’t match the look of the home

• don’t follow the law or building codes.

If your request is approved, the work on your

home should be done within 12 weeks.

You must pay for alterations.

We might pay some of the cost if:

• there is a problem with the home that needs

to be fixed

• the alteration is something we were planning

to do anyway.

You must let us know when the work is finished.

We will send someone to your home to check the work.

If we’re not happy with it, the work will need to be:

• fixed

• done again.

You will need to pay for the extra work.

Alterations we didn’t approve

You aren’t able to make changes without our approval.

Your Residential Tenancy Agreement, or lease, doesn’t

allow you to make changes without approval.

If you have made an alteration without our approval:

• we will ask you to put things back the way they were

• you will have to pay.

If your alteration is something that we would have

approved but the work isn’t good enough, we might:

• ask you to fix it

• fix it ourselves.

You will have to pay.

If your alteration is something that we would have

approved and we’re happy with the work, we might give

you approval.

If you have made an alteration and don’t remove it when

you move out:

• we will remove it

• you will have to pay for the work.

Request for Alteration Form

Your name:

Your address:

The alteration you want to make:

Does the alteration need approval from the

local council?

� Yes

� No

Has the local council given approval for

the alteration?

� Yes

� No

Is the approval from the local council attached to

this form?

� Yes

� No

Have you attached a Location Diagram?

� Yes

� No

Have you attached:

• photos?

� Yes

� No

• colour samples?

� Yes

� No

• product information?

� Yes

� No

Is the alteration one of the Alterations you need our

approval for?

� Yes

� No

Date you are applying:

_ _ / _ _ / 20_ _

Have you already talked to a contractor –

someone you might hire to do the work?

� Yes

� No

Have they given you a quote – an estimate of how

much an alteration will cost?

� Yes

� No

Please give us their details:

Their name:

Their address:

Their phone number:

Their registration number:

Word list

Alterations

Changes or improvements customers choose to

make to their home.

Approved

We have said yes to your request. The change will

go ahead.

Contractor

Someone you might hire to do the work.

Declined

We have said no. The change won’t go ahead.

Modifications

Changes customers with disability need to their home.

Modified

You have your home changed to suit your needs.

Quote

Estimate of how much an alteration will cost.

Referral

A letter from your doctor that says you need care from

another health care professional.

Request

When you ask for modifications or alterations.

Contact maintenance

.

Quote job number 2674.

(02) 9727 0688

[email protected]

Contact us

(02) 9722 4300

[email protected]

1/119 The Crescent

Fairfield

NSW 2165

4/79 George Street

Parramatta

NSW 2150

www.humecha.com.au/

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