Is my house heritage listed?
Written by Shea Cullen, architect, for Dudils.
A heritage listing changes what you can do to a house more than almost any other planning control. Type an address and the Site Checker reads the heritage map in your council's Local Environmental Plan (LEP) from the NSW Planning Portal, which covers listed heritage items and heritage conservation areas, and names the listing and its significance if your lot is on it.
NSW addresses only. Free, and no sign up.
Is my house heritage listed?
The Site Checker tells you whether your lot is on the heritage map in your council's LEP, and if it is, the name of the listing and whether it is of local or state significance. The LEP lists heritage items and conservation areas in Schedule 5 and protects them through clause 5.10, Heritage conservation. A place can also be on the State Heritage Register under the Heritage Act 1977. Most state listed places appear in the LEP as well, but the State Heritage Inventory lets you search both by address, and it is worth doing before you buy.
A clear reading does not rule out a listing on the way. A draft heritage item, an interim heritage order or a proposed conservation area in a planning proposal may not be on the LEP map yet, and council will know. The section 10.7 planning certificate states whether the land is a heritage item or in a conservation area.
What is the difference between a heritage item and a heritage conservation area?
A heritage item is one listed place, such as a house, a garden or a church, protected for its own significance. A heritage conservation area is a whole precinct protected for its shared character, where most houses are not listed individually but together make the streetscape worth keeping.
Inside a conservation area, councils usually rate each property as contributory, neutral or uncharacteristic, although the terms vary. The rating decides how much weight council gives to keeping the building. An item has the strongest protection, a contributory house the next strongest, and a neutral or uncharacteristic house the most room for change, though council still controls how a new building fits the street.
Can I renovate or knock down a heritage listed house?
You can usually renovate with consent, but demolishing a heritage item or a contributory house is difficult to get approved and is often refused. Under clause 5.10, demolishing, moving or altering the exterior of a heritage item, or of a building in a conservation area, needs development consent, and so do some changes to an item's interior. Council will normally want a Statement of Heritage Impact from a heritage consultant with the application.
The path councils approve most often is a rear addition that is hard to see from the street and keeps the original front rooms. Clause 5.10(3) also lets council confirm in writing that minor works, such as maintenance or small changes that do not affect significance, need no consent, but only if you ask before the work starts. Many councils run a free heritage adviser service, and a conversation with the adviser before you buy costs nothing.
Does heritage stop complying development?
For a heritage item, yes: complying development cannot be carried out on land that holds an item listed in the LEP or on the State Heritage Register, or under an interim heritage order. In a heritage conservation area, clause 1.19(1)(a) of the Codes SEPP rules out complying development under the Housing Code and the other new housing codes, except for a detached outbuilding, other detached development (but not a detached studio) or a swimming pool. So a new house, an addition to the house or a granny flat there needs a development application. Internal alterations under the separate Housing Alterations Code may still qualify, and your certifier can confirm whether your work does. The complying development page covers the other gates.
Does a heritage listing next door affect my property?
It can. Clause 5.10 lets council consider how development near a heritage item affects its significance, so a new house beside a listed one may be asked to respect its setback, height and materials. This is development in the vicinity of a heritage item, and a neighbour's listing will not show in your own lot's reading. Look at the heritage map around your lot, not just on it, in the NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer.
Does heritage listing affect the value of a house?
It changes who wants to buy it more than it sets a price. A listing limits redevelopment, which matters to a buyer planning a knockdown rebuild and matters little to one who wants the house for what it is. A local agent and a valuer who work in the street are the people to ask. If you plan to subdivide or build much bigger, find out what council will accept before you exchange contracts.
Is my house heritage listed? Check any NSW address, free.
NSW addresses only. Free, and no sign up.
What else do people ask?
Can I paint a heritage house any colour?
Not always without consent. Repainting in a similar scheme is often treated as maintenance, but painting unpainted face brick or stone, or changing the scheme, can need consent because clause 5.10 covers changes to an item's finish. Check with council's heritage adviser first.
Can a house become heritage listed after I buy it?
Yes. Council can list a place through an amendment to the LEP, and an interim heritage order can protect a place that is under threat while its significance is assessed.
Do I need a heritage consultant?
For a development application on a heritage item or in a conservation area, usually yes, because council will ask for a Statement of Heritage Impact. For minor works, council's heritage adviser can often tell you whether you need one.
Where does this information come from?
The Site Checker reads public maps. It is not a section 10.7 planning certificate, a flood certificate, a bushfire attack level assessment or a survey, and a map can be out of date for your lot. Confirm anything you rely on with council or the relevant authority before you buy, design or build. Nothing on this page replaces advice from your certifier, engineer, lawyer or your own designer.