There are safety concerns as more serious cases of flouting the building rules in Auckland come to light.

The number of serious complaints about people not getting building consents has increased since the building boom began.

In some cases entire new buildings have gone up, but there's also been a rash of conversions, with garages and basements being turned into flats and liveable spaces.

Compliance Manager Wolfgang Nethe said a deck collapsed in Te Atatu recently and that it was pure luck no one came to serious harm in that incident.

It appears language barriers are also a significant problem when it comes to understanding the rules around new construction in Auckland.

It comes after concerns that a number of migrant builders - particularly Chinese - are not adhering to building regulations or health and safety rules.

The Chinese Real Estate Association of New Zealand was formed in June this year, after a noticeable increase of breaches involving Chinese property developers and builders.

It's become a major issue since the city's housing boom and Secretary General of the Chinese Real Estate Association, Yong Lu, says there are language and cultural barriers that make it difficult to understand and communicate.

The association has been working closely with WorkSafe, ACC and Auckland Council to better educate and inform migrant builders.

Mr Nethe said people from all backgrounds are among those not applying for building consents when they should and the council is only too happy to assist with translators and interpreters onsite.