Australia’s housing system is under unprecedented pressure. Decades of under-supply, rapid population growth, rising construction costs and fragmented land ownership have collided — driving affordability to historic lows and forcing governments to act.
Across NSW, this has resulted in the most significant planning reforms in a generation. Traditional local planning controls are increasingly being overridden by state-led policies designed to deliver more homes, closer to transport, jobs and services.
These reforms are not abstract policy settings. They directly determine:
For homeowners, this matters because planning controls underpin land value. Where new density, height or housing types are permitted, the value of land to developers can increase materially — often well beyond what is reflected in individual home sales.
Two reforms are driving most of this change across NSW:
While related, they operate very differently.
*Local Area Plan
**State Environmental Planning Policy
^State Significant Development
Under the Low-Mid Rise (LMR) reforms, the NSW Government has introduced baseline development standards that override many legacy local controls. Outcomes vary based on distance from centres or stations and zoning, with stronger uplifts closer to transport and services.
*Walking distance is measured along the pedestrian network, not straight-line radius.
^Floor Space Ratio (FSR) and storeys shown are indicative and generally a starting point (often the baseline FSR is exceeded in practice). For R2 land, the Low-Mid Rise reforms do not prescribe a single statutory FSR; achievable density is driven by permitted housing types, height limits and building envelope controls under the State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021 (SEPP).
Standard low-mid rise designs and faster approval pathways
As part of the Low-Mid Rise reforms, the NSW Government has published design pattern books and guides that show how compliant developments can be laid out and resolved architecturally. These resources are intended to support faster, more predictable planning outcomes by providing tested design precedents that align with state planning objectives.
For detailed examples of acceptable mid-rise forms (typically 4–6 storeys), see the NSW Government’s design patterns here.
Developments that align with these standard design patterns benefit from:
For homeowners, this means that land capable of accommodating these standard designs — especially on consolidated or well-shaped sites — is more likely to attract developer competition and higher bids.
The Transport Oriented Development (TOD) Program is the most powerful — and most targeted — of the current planning reforms.
Unlike LMR, TOD applies only to specific, government-nominated transport precincts, typically centred on major train and metro stations with high service capacity. These precincts are intended to absorb a significant share of future housing growth.
Within TOD precincts, planning controls are often fundamentally transformed. This can include:
For homeowners, TOD can create a step-change in land value, not a marginal uplift. But these outcomes almost always depend on coordination and scale. Larger sites attract more competition, reduce delivery risk for developers, and align directly with government housing targets.
As a result, TOD precincts are increasingly driving collective sales, strata renewals and coordinated land assemblies — turning fragmented ownership into deliverable housing supply and meaningful value for seller
Think your property may be impacted by the LMR reforms or TOD program?
Planning reforms are complex, highly location-specific, and often misunderstood. Blocsy helps homeowners cut through the noise, understand what the new rules actually mean for their land, and assess whether a collective approach could unlock additional value.
Register with Blocsy and we’ll send a full listing of all the LMR centres and TOD areas. You can also follow us on Instagram and Facebook to receive regular updates concerning specific streets that are impacted.
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