Dual Occupancy on the northern beaches is one of our most popular inquiries (second only to development objection letters)! We are talking with customers weekly in regards discussing what they can and can’t do on their Northern Beaches regarding dual occupancy potential.
Our Principal Planner was born and raised on the Northern Beaches and began his career at Pittwater Council and worked there for over 5 years as a development planner. As a result of this experience and connection with the Northern Beaches it is not surprising that a high portion of our clients are from the Northern Beaches. We love helping our Northern Beaches clients to get their development approvals or help neighbours with their development objection letters.
One of our most common inquiries is whether our northern beaches clients can subdivide or do a dual occupancy for their property. Our experience and local knowledge help our clients understand what they can and can’t do for their property.
Please Note: The NSW Government recently released changes to the legislation to allow dual occupancy in all R2 zoned land (subject to site conditions).
This is fantastic news for any property owners within Northern Beaches as they can now take advantage of the relaxed zoning requirements for dual occupancy development. The big change is that dual occupancies are now permissible within the former Warringah Council area.
Dual occupancy is defined as two dwellings located on the same lot but does not include a secondary dwelling.
Attached dual occupancy is defined as “2 dwellings on one lot of land that are attached to each other”
Detached Dual Occupancy is defined as “2 detached dwellings on one lot of land”.
Getting approval for a dual occupancy does not mean you can sell them separately, in order to do this you will need to apply for subdivision of the dual occupancy through either strata subdivision or Torrens Title Subdivision.
Northern Beaches Council
For those that are new to the Northern Beaches area you might not be aware that the Council area of the Northern Beaches was previously made up of three Council areas known as Pittwater Council, Warringah Council and Manly Council. In the reforms of local Councils it was determined that the three Councils should amalgamate to save costs amongst other things. Unfortunately for the town planning side of things the three original Council Local Environmental Plans have been retained and now for the Local Govermental Area we need to look at three seperate legislations depending on where the subject site is located.
The biggest difference between the three LEPs is in relation to the handling of dual occupancies within the R2 Low Density Residential Zoning. Each LEP treats dual occupancy differently with Warringah not allowing it within the R2 zone, Pittwater restricting dual occupancies to site over 800sqm and Manly having no restrictions. The below provides some addition information for dual occupancies for the different Local Environmental Plans..
Where are they permitted?
Dual occupancies (both attached and detached) are permitted in the R2 Low Density Residential Zone and the R3 Medium Density Residential Zone and attached dual occupancies are permitted in the R5 Large Lot Residential Zone and the R2 Rural Landscape Zone.
What site requirements do I need to meet?
Under the Pittwater Local Environmental Plan you need to have a lot size of at least 800sqm for a dual occupancy (see Clause 4.1B for more information).
If you want to look at subdividing the dual occupancy you will need to meet the minimum lot size requirement under Clause 4.1 of the LEP. This applies to both Torrens Title and Strata Subdivision.
Popular areas for dual occupancy
In the Pittwater area a lot of the area has been restricted to single dwellings until a change in legislation in 2014, now dual occupancies are becoming more prevalent. Some common areas for dual occupancy has been Mona Vale, Newport, Avalon, Warriewood, Elanora Heights and Narrabeen. Areas such as Palm Beach, Whale Beach and Bayview are also slowly catching up however these areas are restricted due to the smaller lot sizes and the topography of the site.
Attached VS Detached in Pittwater
In the Pittwater Area a lot of residents can take advantage of an attached or detached dual occupancy development. Please note though that if you are looking at pursuing a detached dual occupancy in Pittwater then the house at the rear of the site is restricted to being only single storey.
Lot Requirements
There are minimum frontage dimension requirements, however these depend on the area of your dual occupancy. Please contact us for more information on site depths and widths.
Where are they permitted?
Dual occupancy is now permissible in the former Warringah Council area. A recent legislation change (State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) Amendment (Dual Occupancies and Semi-detached Dwellings) 2024 ) has now allowed dual occupancy in R2 zones.
The Amendment SEPP introduces Part 12 to the Housing SEPP. Section 141C of the Housing SEPP now provides that development for the purposes of dual occupancies and semi-detached dwellings is permitted with consent in Zone R2 Low Density Residential.
Since a SEPP takes precedence over a local environmental plan, section 141C will override any prohibition on dual occupancies and semi-detached dwellings in the R2 Zone in the local environmental plan for all local government areas (aside from a few exceptions).
However, the provision does not apply to land that is:
The main thing to consider is whether your property is bushfire impacted, as this will mean that dual occupancy is not permissible on your site. If you aren’t sure, you can check your Planning Certificate or just ask Northern Beaches Council.
Not Complying Development under Codes SEPP
The Amendment SEPP also inserts sub-section 1.19(3B) into the Codes SEPP, which provides that those dual occupancies carried out in Zone R2 that are now permitted with consent under the new Part 12 of the Housing SEPP are not complying developing under the Low Rise Housing Diversity Code. However, this does not apply to any dual occupancies which were already permitted in Zone R2 under the relevant local environmental plan. That is, it will not prevent a dual occupancy being carried out as complying development if it could be carried out as complying development before the Amendment SEPP came into force.
What site requirements do I need to meet?
Under the Warringah Local Environmental Plan there is no dual occupancy specific development standards. If you are wanting to Torrens Title the dual occupancy at the end of the development then you will need to meeting the minimum lot size requirement under clause 4.1. It is noted that strata subdivision for dual occupancies under the minimum lot size requirement could be an option for subdivision.
What site requirements do I need to meet?
Minimum lot size of 450sqm.
Popular areas for dual occupancy
You will find dual occupancies, generally, where ever you find the R3 zone pockets but due to the recent changes they are now becoming popular around Beacon Hill, Dee Why, Frenchs Forest, Alambie and Manly Vale. There are some existing dual occupancies that were approved prior to these restrictive requirements.
Where are they permitted?
Dual occupancies (both attached and detached) are permitted in the R1 General Residential, R2 Low Density Residential Zone and the R3 Medium Density Residential Zone and attached dual occupancies are permitted in the E4 Environmental Management Zone.
What site requirements do I need to meet?
Under the Manly Local Environmental Plan there is no dual occupancy specific controls. If you are wanting to Torrens Title the dual occupancy at the end of the development then you will need to meeting the minimum lot size requirement under clause 4.1.
Popular areas for dual occupancy
You will find dual occupancies all over Manly including areas such as Fairlight, Balgowlah, Manly, Queenscliff and so many more.
The State Government in 2018 unveiled a new change to SEPP Exempt and Complying Development Codes to permit dual occupancies under a complying development certificate. Northern Beaches Council and a large number of other Councils were opposed to this change as it would allow a dual occupancy to be constructed well below the minimum lot size and the lot size restriction for dual occupancy developments. It is noted that if an LEP provides a minimum lot size for dual occupancies then you still need to comply with this.
The backlash from the Councils resulted in the deferral of the legislation for certain Council areas with the Northern Beaches Council being one of those areas.
The deferral was initially set for 6 months but since then it has been extended a number of times and official ran out as of the 1st July 2020. In response to the new dual occupancy codes the Northern Beaches Council have submitted a planning proposal to the department of planning to remove dual occupancies as a permissible use within the R2 zones. This is still being reviewed by the department of planning so if you are located within an R2 zone and wish to take advantage of the new changes then we suggest you get started quickly.
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Dual occupancy on the Northern Beaches is in demand and we take the time to explain where you should look and the limitations to obtaining a development application for dual occupancy on the Northern Beaches. We explain the different zoning requirements across the three Local Environmental Plans (Manly, Warringah and Pittwater) and give you some inside information on development.
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