This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
VICTORIA’S Allan government will cut red tape for building more homes on smaller parcels of land in growth areas in Melbourne and regional cities.
Minister for Planning Sonya Kilkenny announced changes to the Small Lot Housing Code, which will introduce a new type of home that can be built on lots less than 100 sqm without a permit.
This includes building townhouses on skinnier longer blocks, which was not covered as part of the original code.
The existing code allows homes to be built on blocks less than 300 sqm without a planning permit if the set of design standards are met.
The government said that as a result of industry feedback, updates to the code also bring in improved design standards for lots under 300 sqm to ensure homes are “better suited to modern living – including larger balconies, more windows facing the street, and more space for trees and greenery”.
“Through these changes we’re also strengthening design standards, so that we’re not just building more homes but building better-quality homes,” Kilkenny said.
Removing requirements in the updated code, such as the need for double garages, allows for more green space, smarter housing designs and homes up to four-storeys.
The Small Lot Housing Code applies to residential and mixed-use Precinct Structure Plans in Melbourne’s Urban Growth Zone, as well as special purpose zones in Melbourne’s Cardinia, Casey, Hume, Knox, Melton, Mitchell, Whittlesea, and Wyndham, and Geelong, Ballarat and Baw Baw.
The updated code will have a two-year transition period. Developers can begin using the new standards immediately, but the current code will remain in effect until the end of 2026.
The government said it is separately examining how planning and building systems can be streamlined, “enabling more Victorians to add a second home, build two new homes, or subdivide a block into two lots”.
Changes to the code come about a a month after a string of announcements from the state government aimed at defining itself on housing policy. They included unlocking supply around train stations and tram routes, the release and rezone of surplus state-owned land near trains that will unlock around 9,000 homes across Melbourne and the regions, greenfield land releases that could deliver 180,000 homes, new stamp duty concessions, and a suite of reforms to give more power to renters.
Last week, it gave the green light for Malaysian developer UEM Sunrise and US giant Greystar to transform an old Honda dealership in Collingwood into 400 build-to-rent and affordable homes.
