Setback rules in Victoria: front, side and rear setbacks explained

The setback rules for a new house in Victoria depend mainly on the size of the lot, whether a planning permit is required and whether separate small-lot or estate rules apply.

For many standard house lots, the setbacks are checked as part of the building permit. These rules cover front, side and rear setbacks, as well as walls built along a boundary.

Where a planning permit is required for one house, Victoria's planning rules apply instead. In the General Residential Zone, a permit is generally needed for a house on a lot smaller than 300 m². On a lot of 300 m² or more, the building rules generally apply unless something else triggers a planning permit.

Separate planning rules apply to developments with two or more dwellings on one lot and certain residential buildings of up to three storeys¹.

Different rules can also apply in some newer estates. Lots smaller than 300 m² may be covered by the Small Lot Housing Code. If the house meets the code and the required conditions, a separate planning permit may not be needed².

An estate can also have a registered building envelope that sets where a house can sit on the block. Where the envelope sets a different requirement for the same setback, it can replace the standard building rule for that lot.

The minimum side or rear setback for a wall up to 3.6 m high is generally 1 m in Victoria. The required distance increases as the wall gets higher³.

The standard setbacks are:

• 1 m for a wall of 3.6 m or less.
• 1 m plus 0.3 m for every metre of height over 3.6 m, for a wall of more than 3.6 m and up to 6.9 m.
• 2 m plus 1 m for every metre of height over 6.9 m, for a wall of more than 6.9 m.

For example, a 5 m wall needs a setback of 1.42 m, while a 6.9 m wall needs 1.99 m. An 8 m wall needs a setback of 3.1 m. The setback is worked out from the wall's height at each point along it.

The same basic height-based calculation applies under the building rules, the planning rules for a single house and the Small Lot Housing Code for Type A and B lots⁷.

Different rules can apply to developments with two or more dwellings. One option under those rules allows a building up to 11 m high to sit at least 3 m from most boundaries, or at least 6 m from a boundary on the southern side of the property¹.

Some building features can extend into the required side or rear setback. Under the building rules, eaves, fascias and gutters can generally extend up to 600 mm into it, while features such as porches, verandahs, chimneys, pipes, tanks and heating or cooling equipment can generally extend up to 500 mm. Other rules apply to some features under the planning system³.

If a house does not meet the standard building setback, the council must consent before a building permit can be issued. Where a planning permit is required, the council assesses a design that falls outside the standard planning setback as part of the permit process³.

Small lots and some new estates can have different setbacks from Victoria's standard building rules. Under the Small Lot Housing Code, the setback depends on whether the lot is classified as Type A, B or C.

On a Type A lot, the front setback is generally 3.0 m on a standard street, 4.0 m facing a declared road and 1.5 m where an open space reserve sits across the street. On a Type B lot it is 1.5 m, or 4.0 m facing a declared road².

The secondary street setback on a corner is 1.5 m for Type A and 1.0 m for Type B². A garage or carport door facing the front street must generally be at least 5.0 m from the street boundary, or 2.0 m from a secondary street.

Type C lots have different rules. The front setback is 2.5 m and the rear setback is 4.0 m where the rear boundary is not a street².

The lot type is recorded when the subdivision is approved. A house must meet the rules for that particular lot type to use the Small Lot Housing Code. If it does not, a planning permit is required instead².

Estate-specific rules can add another layer. At Alamora in Tarneit, for example, the general front setback is 4 m, as shown on each lot's building envelope. The guidelines also require a 1 m setback from one side boundary and a 3 m rear setback for a wall up to 3.6 m high. In some stages, the rear setback increases to 5.5 m for taller walls⁸.

Walls built within 1 m of a side boundary at Alamora are generally restricted to one side of the lot. They can cover up to 60 per cent of that boundary and be no higher than 3.6 m. Where a wall is less than 1 m from the boundary, it must generally sit within 200 mm of it.

These estate rules are recorded against the affected lots and can replace the standard Victorian setback rules for the matters they cover. At Alamora Stage 3, the registered rules apply to lots 301 to 350 and require buildings to follow the approved building envelopes. Those restrictions are due to end on 1 January 2031⁹.

The setbacks for a block in Victoria can depend on four main factors:

• The lot and estate rules. Some small lots are covered by the Small Lot Housing Code, while some estates have a registered building envelope that sets where the house can sit.
• The local planning rules. These determine whether a planning permit is required and can set different front, side or rear setbacks for particular areas.
• The type of road. Some freeways and arterial roads have a 6 m front setback instead of 4 m where there are no houses on the adjoining lots.
• Neighbouring houses. Where houses already stand on adjoining lots, their front setbacks can affect the required setback. Under the building rules, the average of the neighbouring setbacks is generally used, capped at 9 m. Under the planning rules, the smaller neighbouring setback is generally used, capped at 6 m.

The exact setback can therefore vary from one block to another. Small-lot classifications, estate building envelopes and local planning rules can change the standard Victorian figures.