Category: Blocks

Setbacks

When you are buying a block one of the issues that controls what you can put on a block is the Setbacks of the main structure.

Setbacks vary from council to council and can also vary between neighbourhoods in a council area.

To give you an idea here are typical Setbacks:

Street Setbacks

  • From the front title boundary the minimum setback is typically 5.0m, which is enough to park a car on the driveway.
  • In low density suburbs larger front setbacks may be required.
  • For older inner city suburbs the allowable front setback may be much less.(to match existing properties).
  • Side setbacks for corner blocks are generally less than the front setback, with 2.0m being typical.
  • Some councils will also have maximum setbacks,such as 1/3rd the total block length.

The following structures are usually permitted to project into setbacks:

  • Porches, verandahs and pergolas, with a maximum height of 3.6m.
  • Eaves, fascia, gutters, sunblinds, shade sails, and screens.
  • Decks, steps, or landings less than 800mm in height.

Side and Rear Setbacks to Adjoining Properties

Typical setbacks are:

  • Side 2.0m, plus 0.6m for every metre of height over 3.6m.
  • Rear 3.0m, plus 0.6m for every metre of height over 3.6m.

In addition to the encroachments mentioned above encroachments are also usually allowed for;  masonry chimney backs,  flues, pipes, fuel tanks, water tanks, and heating & cooling equipment.

 

Don’t want any setback?….see Building on Boundaries

 

Building Envelope

If you need to fit a large House onto a small block one of the issues you will have to deal with is ‘The Building Envelope”.

What this means is the actual area within your title boundaries that is legally and physically possible to build on.

The building envelope can be affected (reduced) by:

  • The size and positioning of Easements.
  • Required Setbacks from roads.
  • Restrictive Covenants.
  • Setbacks from adjoining blocks.
  • Ability to Build on Boundary.
  • Significant trees.
  • Existing buildings/structures that can’t /  won’t be removed.
  • Neighbourhood amenities.
  • Location of driveway crossovers.
  • Requirement for vehicles to leave the site travelling forward if the block is on a main road.
  • Nature strip assets such as Fire Hydrants.

So when you are looking at buying a block don’t think you can automatically build on all……. or even 75% of the block.

All councils will have different requirements and may even have varying requirements for different neighbourhoods.

It can be worthwhile talking to the council about permissible Building Envelopes, particularly if you want to  build on more than 50% of the block or are on a corner block.

 

See Blocks for more things to think about when buying a block.

 

 

 

Types of New House Permits

Here is some information on the several sorts of permits that are involved before you start building a house.

Planning Permit

Sometimes called a Development Approval (DA) if you are buying a block on an existing subdivision you should already have Development Approval.

This DA will provide details of the restrictions on what you can build on your block.

If you want to do any of the following you will probably need to apply for a Planning Permit:

  • Change of use (for example farming to residential).
  • Subdivision of an existing block.
  • Substantially altering an existing building.
  • Changing any conditions of the existing permit.

Building Permit

A Building Permit is an approval that confirms that the proposed work meets the standard of the Building Regulations.

A permit is usually required for works that involve:

  • Building a New House.
  • Major alterations to an existing house.
  • Additions to an existing house (for example a Pergola or Deck).
  • Demolition of an existing house.

Road Opening Permit

A Road Opening Permit,from the Council Engineering Department is normally required to create or alter the access to a property, install service trenches, and build over a council Easement.

Sewer Build Over Permit

In many areas the sewers are controlled by a Water Authority rather than the council. If you want to build on a Sewer Easement you will require a separate permit from the Water Authority.

Want to know more? …………………….The best thing is to go down to your local council and talk to the staff there.

 

Once you have finished you will need an Occupancy Permit

See Restrictions for more limitations on how you develop your block

 

Subdivision – Process

Found a big block and would like to split it into two? ………  or just looking to build another house on your block?……….You are going to need to subdivide the block.

Here is an idea of the process for Victoria (It will be similar in other states but check with your local council to make sure you get the details right)

Stage 1 – Planning Permit

You will need to make a formal application to the Council for a planning permit.

As part of its decision making process Councils time will advertise  your proposal to  adjoining property owners.

It will also require consent to the issuing of a permit from the Servicing Authorities (water, sewer, gas, telephone, drainage) and the highway authority.

Generally it will take 60-90 days for the Planning Permit but it might be longer if there are objections.

The Planning Permit will outlines conditions that must be met. These can include: Servicing Authorities requirements, such as construction of vehicle crossings, drainage works and contribution towards open space where applicable. The Planning Permit may also request the submission of amended plans.

Stage 2 – Certification

Certification is an administrative step to ensure that the Plan of Subdivision is satisfactory.

The Plan of Subdivision for Certification is referred to the Highways and Servicing Authorities to determine.

  • Whether Easements are required for their services.
  • Engineering plans for required works are approved (eg. construction of roads, drainage and services,

Once the Servicing Authorities have consented to the Plan of Subdivision and Engineering plans have been approved the plan can be Certified.

The Certified Plan is valid for five years, if the plan is not registered at the Titles Office within that time, the plan expires.

Stage 3 – Compliance

A Statement of Compliance is  required to allow registration of the subdivision at the Titles Office and obtain release of the new titles by the Titles Office.

Compliance requires all the conditions of the Planning Permit  being met. This will include construction of any drainage and vehicle crossings, and payment to all Servicing Authorities for water/sewerage/drainage/electricity supply.

Council will only issue the Statement of Compliance after it has received a letter from each Servicing Authority and carried out a final inspection of the site.

Costs

See this post:  Subdivision Costs

 

Also see Battle Axe Block

 

What Sort of Plan?

Buying Land…….There are several sorts of Plans/ Surveys of your Block to think about before you can start building a house.

Here is a guide to the various plans based on the same block:

Title Plan

Title Plans are the legal document that describes the land. Initially they are usually the only plan that is available  They are limited to:

  • Showing the dimensions and bearings of the boundaries.
  • Showing the locations of Easement.

The drawing below is a typical title plan

Feature Survey

The Feature Survey is an accurate representation of the block prepared by a surveyor. Typically the information shown is:

  • Boundaries.
  • Site Contours.
  • Locations of trees.
  • Any other above ground features such as driveway crossovers and manholes.

If you buy direct from a project builder they will normally arrange the feature survey. If you want to get quotes from several builders it can be worth getting a feature survey done first.

Geo-Technical Plan

The Geo-Technical Plan is more in the form of a sketch than an accurate representation of the site. The main purpose is to indicate the approximate location of boreholes. Other information that may be included is:

  • Indication of location of trees as these may affect the Geotechnical Recomendations.
  • Any rock outcrops.
  • Direction of fall.
  • Ponds / swampy areas.

 

See Blocks for more information on buying land.

 

Waffle Pod Raft Slab

A ‘Waffle Pod’ slab is now probably the most common Concrete ‘Raft’ House base. Its generally taken over from the Conventional Raft Foundation.

It’s an example of composite construction with polystyrene pods forming voids in the underside of the concrete ‘Waffle’.

This photo shows the pods, with the reinforcement placed over them, prior to placing the concrete.

Advantages

  • Cost
  • No trenches resulting in:
    • Simpler excavation; and
    • Flat site means site is easier to keep dry than trenches that collect water.
  • Waffle Pods bring house further out of ground. In an area that is wet the higher the better.
  • Better insulation from the ground meaning the floor will warm up quickly from cold. (especially if you go for in slab heating)

Disadvantages

  • More susceptible to bad workmanship – If the pods move during placing of the concrete.
  • More susceptible to bad drainage which can lead to soil heave if building on reactive clay
  • Lower thermal mass so less suited to passive solar design.
  • Thinner slab (typically 75mm rather than 100mm) means may not be as resistant to point loads such as jacking a car. Some people specify 100mm thickness for garage floor.
  • A thicker overall slab may be needed if you want Floor Drains (To allow for the dropped floor in those rooms)

Problem Sites

If  your block has difficult ground conditions its still possible to use a waffle pod slab with:

 

Also see Ground Conditions

 

Building On Fill – Concrete Piers

Its not unusual for the Site Investigation for your new house to reveal fill materials on top of the more stable clay or rock.

Even if there is no fill the builder may need to level a sloping site using ‘Cut and Fill’ methods, or the top layers of soil are generally poor.

To deal with the problem of building on poor ground concrete piers are commonly used.

These are basically a hole that is excavated through the fill and into the top of good ground. The hole is then backfilled with concrete to the level of the underside of the slab.

When they are finished you have a flat site with concrete pads (like the photo below), ready for the slab to be constructed

You don’t have to have Concrete piers over the whole site, just the parts where there will be fill between the bottom of the slab and the stronger soils.

The following diagram shows a typical slab on a cut and fill site with piers excavated through the fill to the good ground.

See the following link for an alternative to Concrete Piers: Screw Piles.

The Slab is likely to be either a Waffle Pod Raft or a Conventional Raft Slab

When the site investigation indicates fill the builder will often put in a Provisional Sum for so many metres of concrete piers.

At the time of construction they will drill down to  good ground in the fill areas and calculate the actual metres you will need to pay for.

If your whole house is on ‘Controlled Fill‘ You may not need to use concrete piers.

 

Lots more information in the anewhouse Guide to Buying a Block for only $4

See Ground Conditions for more about your new house foundations.

 

Block Orientation

Sponsored by Coral Homes

When looking at block orientation a key issue is using the sun to warm the house in winter and keeping the sun out of the rooms in the summer.

Typical blocks in Australia are rectangular. About twice as long as the block width, as are most home designs. This limits the way you can place the house. In my experience the order of preference of blocks is.

1. Facing East
2. Facing West
3. Facing South
4. Facing North

If you have got a block at an angle it will require a bit more thought unless you can orientate the house in one of the above preferred directions. Larger blocks and square blocks make adjustments to the house orientation easier.

My reasons for the preferences are as follows:

Facing East

This orientation allows one of the long sides to face north making the best use of the sun in a passive solar house. Usually the master bedroom is at the front so even in the summer the low sun morning sun only warms the bedroom from the chill of the night. Windows can be minimised on the west side to stop the house overheating in the afternoon and evening. This orientation also gives you plenty of roof area for the most effective location of solar hot water and solar electricity panels.

Facing West

Again like the east facing block you can have one of the long sides to face north making the best use of the sun in a passive solar house. With a master bedroom at the front you will need to take steps to keep the afternoon sun out of the room to stop overheating. Like the East facing orientation this is useful for solar panels on the roof.

Facing South

With a house facing south the best layout is to have as many rooms as possible having large windows facing north which can be difficult on a narrow block. To make the best of this orientation you may need to have plans drawn up as most standard plans don’t suit this orientation. It’s also best to minimise west facing windows.

Facing North

A north facing house is probably the least desirable on a suburban block as it makes it hard to get the sun into the house. I certainly wouldn’t want big north facing windows allowing passers by to look in.

 

Lots more information in the anewhouse Guide to Buying a Block for only $4

See similar posts see Choosing a Block and Passive Solar

 

Exit mobile version