come without the significant added costs of creating
two dwellings with separate driveways.
“Detachedisdefinitelybetter,asyouarenotsharing
acommonwallwithyourneighbour,”saysMansour.
“Eventhoughcommonwallsarebuilttolimitsound
between the units, it is never eliminated 100%.”Size
Your local council will determine the minimum block
size for developing in your area. Obviously the bigger
your block the better the development, as you and
your future neighbours or tenants will enjoy more
spacious living. There’s also more of a chance that you
could build detached dwellings without sacrificing
toomuchspace.
Mansoursaysthatblocksbetween600sqmand
650sqm will be enough to give you good value for your
money. But smaller lots will reduce your investment
return as you will be limited to how many bedrooms
youcanfitinthenewdwellings.
“Whenyoustarttodesignaduplexonalotless
than 600sqm, then certain things have to give. You’ll
compromise bedroom sizes in order to accommodate
four bedrooms, and as you get lower in the site
area the duplex will end up becoming three bedrooms,”
he says.
“There are significant differences in resale value
when it comes to four bedrooms as opposed to a three-
bedroom dwelling. By having three bedrooms, your
return on investment isn’t as attractive.”renttheseconddwellingtooffsetthecostofthe
new family home.
“Someclientsofminehavepreviouslylivedinan
older style house with outdated fittings and fixtures,”
hesays.“Sobybuildingaduplexandsellingoneof
thedwellings,theywouldbeleftinasimilarfinancial
position as pre-development with the added benefit
oflivinginabrandnewhome.Theymayeven
pocketatinyprofit.”
And in Sydney, where the cost of property is so
expensive,manyofMansour’snewclientshavebeen
developing duplexes to help their adult children find
an affordable way into the property market.
“It’shardtobuypropertyinSydney.Iftheclient’s
childrenareofayoungerage,bythetimetheyare
old enough to live in them the capital growth would
be great.”
Attachedvdetached
Thereisoneaspectofbuildingaduplexthatturns
peoplerightoff:sharingacommonwallwitha
neighbour. Even though the attached dwelling would
haveaseparateentranceandlivingfacilities,
the shared wall and driveway may clash with your
desire for space and privacy and mean an instant
vetoagainsttheidea.Butsharingawalldoesn’talways
have to be the case.
If your block satisfies the minimum size require-
mentsfordevelopment(checkwithyourlocalcoun-
cil),youalsohavetheoptiontocreateaduplexthat
consistsoftwodetacheddwellingssharingthesame
blockofland.Theprosareobvious–morespaceand
more privacy for both households. But this doesn’t
Y
oumaywellhavetheoptionto
have both dwellings sit on top
of one another and share some
common facilities, such as a
driveway, an area for parking, a
pool or a laundry. In this scenario,
each dwelling would be separately
titled,andtherewouldalsobea
new title for the common property
that you and your new neighbours
wouldshare.Youandtheowner
ofthesecondlotwouldthen
become members of an
owner’s corporation.
Anthea Digiaris, an associate
accredited specialist in property
lawatSlaterandGordon,saysthat
although you might be interested
in going the strata route, it will
ultimately depend on your zoning
restrictions and whether it will
be appropriate in your area.
“You need to get planning advice
from a town planner or architect towor ou w e er is ype o
developmentisrightforyour
particular parcel of land,” she says.
“You need to look at the local
council’szoningrequirementsand
see what’s happening with the other
neighbours in your street. You have
toworkoutwhetherit’sinanarea
that this type of development will
be welcomed or whether you’re
going to have problems.”Get advice about strata title
You r
property
must have
the correct
zoning
and has to
comply with
the council’s
minimum
standards