Floor Space Ratio, or Plot Ratio

When you are buying a new house block it’s important you understand how much of the block you can build on!

One way in which NSW councils prevent Over development is by prescribing a ‘Floor Space Ration’ (FSR). The same principle applies in WA but is called ‘Plot Ratio’.

The FSR of buildings on a site is the ratio of ‘Gross Floor Area’ to Total Site Area.

Gross Floor Area is defined as – The sum of the internal floor area of each floor of a building measured at a height of 1.4 m above the floor.

It includes habitable rooms in a basement or an attic.

It excludes:

Stairs
Voids above a floor in 2 storey properties.
Non habitable storage including basement areas
Vehicular access and car parking
Terraces / Balconies with outer walls less than 1.4 metres high, and

To calculate, you multiply the site area by the FSR ratio.

For example

For a 800sqm site and a FSR of 0.5:1

Maximum Floor Space = 800 x 0.5 = 400sqm.

See Restrictions for more posts about what you can do on your land

Habitable Rooms

What is a Habitable Room?

You see the phase in several planning and building documents with regard to things like Ceiling Height (see Room Height) and Overlooking.

Well according to the Building Code of Australia (BCA)

A Habitable Room is ” A room used for normal domestic activities”

Habitable Rooms Include:

Living / Lounge / Family rooms
Bedrooms
Television Room/Home Theater
Kitchen
Dining Room
Sewing Room/Study
Music Room
Playroom/Family Room
Sunroom

Habitable Room Normally Excludes:

Bathrooms / Ensuites / Toilets
Laundry/Clothes Drying Room
Pantry
Walk-in Wardrobe
Corridor/Hallway/Lobby
and “Other spaces of a specialised nature occupied neither frequently nor for extended periods.”

Protecting Underground Pipes

One of the problems that happen all too often during a new house build is that Sewers and Drains get filled with concrete.

Its normally happens on:

A knock down and rebuild project where the sewer connection wasn’t sealed during demolition.
A Battle Axe block subdivision where the new home is built close to the pipeline.

During the pouring of the foundations the concrete gets into the pipeline through the unsealed connection, or a cracked pipe, and then flows along the pipe.

Our company then gets brought in to remove the concrete using a hyraulic impact cutter like this.

Don’t think its cheap though . . . . . . It normally takes a team of three plus a high pressure jetting truck so the costs is upwards of $200 an hour, and its not unusual for one job to take 2-3 days.

To understand more issues when purchasing land see: Buying a Block

Buying a Block

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What’s on the Nature Strip?

Don’t forget to have a look at the Footpath and Nature Strip!

Often forgotten but what’s there can affect what you can do with the block, and general livability.

Some of the things that can affect you are:

Place of the Crossover If the driveway crossover isn’t where you want it it can cost you several thousand to have the existing one removed and a new one built. In some cases you may not get permission to move it particularly if it is close to a junction.
Street Light Pole Some people hate having a light pole outside their house. As for me, I love it, as I think it provides extra security.
Street Trees Street trees can be an advantage or a disadvantage. The advantage is they can be an excellent source of shade particularly if your house faces West. The major disadvantage are mature trees can affect the the location of your driveway and thus the house layout. On a new estate it can be much easier to have trees relocated.
Fire Hydrant As well as being an obstacle to any future driveway the fire hydrant will restrict parking outside your house.
Utility Inspection Covers If you have to incorporate a utility cover into a driveway it may increase the cost of construction.
Utility Poles Generally fairly rare on new subdivisions with services typically being underground. For an established block as well as potentially being in the way it may detract from the view.
Parking Restriction Not good if you expect lots of visitors who will need street parking.
Bus Stops Something I would really suggest you avoid with problems of privacy, litter and noise.

For more Information why not look at: The Guide to Buying a Block

Cubby House – Fail

What do you think of this Cubby House that someone built in their garden, soon after moving in?

Well it looks pretty good…………………………. Solidly constructed building, nice colourful paint job, and securely bolted down to a convenient concrete slab.

So why is it a Fail?

Well have a look at this close up of that convenient concrete slab.

That solid concrete slab is actually the top of a sewer manhole on the Easement.

This particular manhole has two covers (You can see the front one on the photo) which need to be accessed for cleaning about every 18 months!

How would you like to move this?

For more Unusual Houses and Fails see What the………………….?

To find out what you shouldn’t build on your block see Restictions

Manhole

When I started in the drainage business 40 years ago we called them Manholes.

Since then due to political correctness we have had; Person Holes, Access Points, Inspection Pits, but now we seem to be coming back to calling them Manholes.

We are not talking about the small inspection covers less than 300mm across for the individual house system but pits big enough for someone to climb down to inspect the public sewer or council storm drain.

Some manholes look like the photo, some have round concrete covers and some have square concrete covers.

But what does it mean to you?

Appearance

The initial issue is that the manhole may spoil the look of your driveway or paved area of the garden.

Maintenance

Hopefully with most new developments it will be quite a while before something goes wrong. Rebuilding in a long established area you may not be as lucky. For older sewers tree roots getting into the pipes are a big cause of problems, which might need action a couple of times a year.

Well if something goes wrong with the public system someone will want access to the manhole

Don’t bury the manhole or cover it with paving. You don’t want to delay things if there is a blocked pipe which affect you.

When you plan your house It’s going to be easier if you can give access to the manhole without workmen going through the house, or garage. If not you might have to take some time off work.

Also see Easements

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.

Category: Restrictions