Looking for building plans in Cape Town? FloorPlan.co.za puts families, builders and developers in Cape Town in touch with draughtspersons and architects serving Cape Town and nearby areas of Western Cape. Send one request and you receive quotes directly, free and with no obligation.
Building Plans in Cape Town
Registered draughtspersons and architects in Cape Town prepare building plans for the local municipality and know what its building control office looks for. Give the erf number and the suburb so the quote covers Western Cape submission requirements, travel to the stand and the engineer's visits.
New to this? Read the building plans guide for the choices and the questions worth asking before anyone measures up.
Plans & approvals in Cape Town: local notes
The City of Cape Town runs an online submission system, and a good draughtsperson will check zoning, building lines and any overlay zone before drawing. In Bo-Kaap, Sea Point and parts of the city bowl, buildings older than 60 years may need heritage comment first. Many sites on the Atlantic seaboard need a geotechnical report. Compare quotes, as fees differ between draughtspersons and registered architects.
Homes and buildings in Cape Town
Cape Town is a patchwork of stand types. On the Atlantic seaboard and in Constantia and Bishopscourt, large houses sit on steep slopes with views, wind and heritage rules. Woodstock, Observatory and the Bo-Kaap hold Victorian cottages where alterations are closely watched. On the Cape Flats, Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha homes get backyard rooms and extra storeys, while the sandy ground and high winter water table shape the foundations. Northern suburbs such as Durbanville and Milnerton favour new estates with design guidelines. Plans go through the City of Cape Town, and many owners ask for both drawings and an engineer.
The requests we see from Cape Town usually come from:
- Families building a new house: a complete set for a new house, with the forms and drawings council needs to approve it
- Owners adding or changing rooms: plans for an addition or a garage conversion, showing old and new work for council
- Developers and builders: submission sets for several units, with the site development plan and engineer's details
- Estate agents, sellers and landlords: approved plans to complete a transfer, or new plans where none exist or work was done without approval
- Rental and granny flat investors: plans for a backyard rental room or an extra dwelling that meet the zoning and parking rules
- Shops, offices and restaurants: plans for a shop, office or workshop, with fire and access notes and change-of-use details
- Churches, schools and crèches: plans for a church, crèche or hall that meet the fire, access and toilet requirements
- Farms, smallholdings and rural homesteads: a set for a farm building or homestead, with water and sewage solutions where there is no network
Local tips for Cape Town
Most asked for in Cape Town: sloping-site homes, heritage alterations and backyard dwellings. Who draws them: studios in Woodstock, Claremont and the city bowl, draughtspersons in every suburb. A useful tip: ask whether an overlay zone or heritage area applies before the first sketch.
Around Cape Town the largest group asking is families building a new house, which usually means a complete set for a new house, with the forms and drawings council needs to approve it. Expect drawn to SANS 10400, SACAP-signed as the baseline, and keep in mind: south-easter wind, sandy Flats and steep slopes: ask for an engineer's report.
What to include in your request
- The erf number, address and municipality
- New build, addition or conversion
- Floor area, or rooms wanted
- Whether the title deed and SG diagram are on hand
- Whether submission and follow-up are included
Detail saves a wasted site visit. Fill in the brief below and the form adds up the floor area for you.
Service area: Cape Town and surrounds
Our network covers Cape Town together with Century City, Woodstock, Epping, Montague Gardens, Paarden Eiland, Claremont, Salt River. A street address or the stand number helps a draughtsperson check zoning, building lines and servitudes before quoting.