The Victorian Building Authority (VBA ) is the organization responsible for building regulations and standards in the State of Victoria, Australia. The VBA works closely with the Australian Building Codes Board, the national body responsible for the National Construction Code (NCC), dealing with energy and water efficiency in buildings. This paper presents Part 1 of a five-part study undertaken to characterize the nature of the market for home additions and alterations in the State of Victoria, Australia and understand how energy efficiency provisions under the building code are interpreted and applied in practice. The overall research method involved identifying and assessing building permit data for a significant sample of dwellings in selected regions of metropolitan Melbourne and undertaking energy assessments of these dwellings complemented with surveys with selected building practitioners. The results of Part I provide a general understanding of alignment between regulatory practices and intended building construction outcomes.
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