What the Manual Is
The NHBRC’s registration page says that after you submit your documents you are issued with the Home Builders Manual Part 1 and 2 as well as Part 3, “which you will then have to go and study in preparation for the technical exam”.
That is the only study material the NHBRC names for the technical assessment. The same page describes the assessment itself: it is conducted Monday to Friday at your nearest NHBRC customer care office.
Where to Get It
The NHBRC answers this in its online-services FAQ: “You can obtain the manual at any NHBRC office. Please present your proof of payment with the correct reference number and company name.”
Take the proof of payment, reference number and company name the FAQ asks for, and ask your office which payment it means.
What It Costs
The registration page lists two options for buying the manual:
- Home builders manual: R87.82
- Home builders manual and SANS 10400: R3168.15
The same page lists the registration fees beside them: an application fee of R745.61, once off and not refundable, and annual membership of R526.32.
The page does not say whether the manual you are “issued” after applying is included in the application fee or bought separately. Ask your provincial office when you collect it, before you pay for a second copy.
The Copies You Will Find Online
Searches for the manual and for NHBRC questions return copies of the manual and of question packs on document-sharing sites. We don’t link to them. You can’t tell which edition a copy is, or whether pages are missing, and the NHBRC office is the source it names.
Can You Take It Into the Assessment?
The NHBRC does not publish what you may take into the assessment. Candidates and preparation providers commonly report that it is open book with the manual and your ID. Treat that as a report, not a rule: ask your provincial office when you book, and see what to confirm before assessment day.
If it is open book on the day, it only helps if you already know where things are in the manual. Looking up every answer from scratch uses the time you need for the questions you don’t know.
How to Study From It
- Read it once for the layout, not the detail. Learn where each topic sits in Parts 1, 2 and 3, so you can find a topic quickly later.
- Practise questions, then go back to the manual. When you get a question wrong, find the passage that answers it and mark it. That is how the manual becomes something you can navigate, not just something you have read.
- Keep a short list of the passages you looked up twice. Those are the ones to re-read before assessment day.
Each of the 10 questions in our free practice test names the reference its answer comes from, so a wrong answer points you to a document to open. Our guide to reading a SANS reference explains how to follow one.
You can start with the free 10-question practice test. No account is needed.
Questions People Ask
Is the Home Builders Manual free?
The NHBRC says you are issued the manual after submitting your documents,
and it also lists purchase prices of R87.82, or R3168.15 with SANS 10400.
Ask your provincial office which applies to you.
Where do I collect it?
At any NHBRC office, with your proof of payment, reference number and
company name.
Is the manual the same as SANS 10400?
No. The NHBRC lists them separately: the manual on its own, or the manual
together with SANS 10400.
Where can I read more about the assessment?
Our page on the NHBRC technical assessment
sets out what the NHBRC publishes about it and what it does not.
Official statements on this page are from nhbrc.org.za, checked on 28 September 2026. Fees and prices can change; check nhbrc.org.za before you pay. NHBRC Test is independent test preparation and is not affiliated with the National Home Builders Registration Council.