Development Applications in Bonnyrigg, NSW

Development activity in Bonnyrigg

Bonnyrigg’s got a bit of a split personality when it comes to housing, and that’s what keeps the work interesting. You’ve still got those solid brick veneer homes from the 70s and 80s sitting on big blocks, the ones with the rumpus rooms and the asbestos carports that’ve been patched up three times over. But walk a few streets south, closer to Edensor Park, and you’re into newer estates where the blocks are tighter and the spec homes are going up fast. The old stock is mostly owner-occupied by families who’ve been here twenty years, and now they’re either looking to sell to a knockdown-rebuilder or they’re doing a serious renovation themselves. There’s not much of the original fibro stuff left, but you’ll see the odd weatherboard from the 50s if you know where to look.

The clients here are a real mix, but the biggest group right now is the upsizer. These are couples in their late 40s or early 50s who bought in Bonnyrigg when it was still considered out west, back when a four-bedder cost two hundred grand. They’ve got equity, they’ve got kids leaving home, and they want a proper master suite with a walk-in robe and a bathroom that doesn’t look like a 1980s laundromat. They’re not interested in McMansions, though. They want something that sits well on the block, with a decent alfresco and a separate study. The knockdown-rebuild crowd is smaller but growing, especially on the older streets near Bonnyrigg Avenue where the blocks are still 700 square metres. They know they can sell the old house for land value and put up a new one without moving suburbs. Investors are around too, but they’re picky. They want dual-living potential or a granny flat, and they’ll haggle hard on the build cost.

The local council is Fairfield City, and you need to know how they tick. Their turnaround on a standard new home DA is about four to six months if everything’s clean, but if you’re doing a knockdown-rebuild with a retaining wall or a cut-and-fill situation, add another two months easy. They’re strict on stormwater detention, and they’ll want a geotechnical report for any slab on reactive soil, which is most of Bonnyrigg because the ground here is clay-heavy and can shift. They’re also particular about boundary setbacks, especially on the newer subdivisions where the minimum is 900mm on one side. If you’re doing a renovation that touches the footprint, they’ll want a full set of architectural drawings, not just a sketch. The good news is they’re consistent. If you follow the LEP and the DCP to the letter, you won’t get knocked back for something stupid.

Right now there are seven DAs lodged in Bonnyrigg, and the bulk of them are for new home construction. That tells you the market is still moving, but it’s not a boom. It’s steady. A lot of those new homes are going in on the old blocks that got subdivided in the early 2000s, the ones where you’ve got a battle-axe lot at the back and a narrow frontage. The other active project type is “other,” which in practice means alterations and additions, mostly second-storey extensions. People here are willing to build up rather than move out, because the schools are decent and the M7 is close for the commute. You don’t see many knockdown-rebuilds for townhouses yet, but that might change if land values keep climbing.

The housing stock in Bonnyrigg is genuinely mixed, and that’s what makes quoting jobs here a bit of a challenge. You’ll do a quote on a 1980s brick veneer with a terracotta roof and a single garage, and the next job is a 2023 project home with a Colorbond roof, double glazing, and a heat pump hot water system. The older homes are usually on concrete slabs with no insulation in the walls, so if you’re doing a renovation, you’re often chasing moisture issues or dealing with termite damage. The newer builds are