Housing

Background

Housing is a fundamental human right and plays a significant role in social cohesion, community wellbeing and quality of life. It provides stability and security for individuals and families and often determines a number of social and economic outcomes, like education, employment, health and general participation in society.

Addressing the issue of housing requires the involvement of many agencies, social services and investors.

The planning system has a role in ensuring sufficient land is available for housing in suitable locations. A suitable location means good access to:

• employment
• education
• recreational spaces, and
• public and commercial services.

The planning system, along with the building system, also has a role in ensuring housing is safe and secure, has the required facilities, like:

• heating
• cooking
• lighting and
• sanitation,

and that it is has appropriate levels of amenity.

There are a range of factors outside the control of the planning system that affect housing supply and affordability, including:

• interest rates and taxation
• building and labour costs
• access to materials and labour.

How is this managed within the planning system?

The objectives of the Resource Management and Planning System (RMPS) and the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993 (LUPAA) provide the overarching framework for housing planning. The RMPS objectives focus on providing for the fair, orderly and sustainable development of land, which flows into all parts of the planning system.  LUPAA also promotes the health and wellbeing of all Tasmanians by ensuring a pleasant, efficient and safe environment for working, living and recreation.

Strategic planning

Generally, we plan for the supply of land for housing at a strategic planning level first. This provides the opportunity to ensure a sufficient supply of well-located land for housing into the future.

Strategic planning identifies growth and redevelopment areas for settlements. It considers research about land supply and demand, as well as other issues including proximity to employment, education, recreational areas and social services, infrastructure capacity like transport links and water supply, natural hazards and environmental protection. Strategic growth and redevelopment in appropriate locations is achieved through regional land use strategies and local strategic plans and through applying appropriate zoning for residential land in the planning scheme.

The Tasmanian Planning Policies (TPPs) are the highest level of land use planning policy. The draft TPPs include detailed strategies for managing settlements, including planning for growth, promoting liveability, and enabling a sufficient supply of well-located and serviced housing. The TPPs direct the content of the regional land use strategies and the Tasmanian Planning Scheme (TPS).

The three current regional land use strategies provide the direction for where future land use and development occurs in our settlements. This informs the application of the zones in the TPS.

Statutory planning

The TPS has five zones where housing is the primary use, and a range of other zones where housing can be provided with a mix of other uses. This includes rural zones, where housing is provided to support agricultural and other rural based industries. The only zones where housing is not allowed are the industrial zones. Please see Rural Planning for more information on housing in rural areas.

The TPS also provides options for temporary housing (for up to 3 years) in the form of crisis accommodation provided by Homes Tasmania or a recognised housing support provider. This enables installation of temporary structures on suitable sites or the use of existing buildings for housing.

The zones in the TPS set the planning rules for housing, including requirements relating to density and site coverage, building height and setbacks, privacy and amenity. They also have requirements for the subdivision of land for housing, including consideration of lot size, shape and orientation, connection to the sewer and a water supply, and the suitability of road and pedestrian connections.

The TPS generally does not set rules for house size, which enables a diversity of housing. The size of a house is generally controlled through the rules on building height, setbacks, site coverage and privacy requirements.

A number of Codes in the TPS may also apply to housing. This includes requirements for parking and codes for:

• protection from impacts of natural hazards
• protection of heritage and natural values
• minimising conflicts with other land use and protecting residential amenity.

Please see the Tasmanian Planning Scheme for more detail.

Please see Natural Hazards for more detail.

The planning system has rules for the development of what are referred to as secondary residences. These are also often called ‘granny flats’ or ‘ancillary dwellings’. The rules allow an additional small dwelling on the same site as the main house, providing flexible living options. A secondary residence must comply with certain requirements, including having a floor area not more than 60 m² and not having separate connections to services such as electricity, water or sewerage.

Planning has an important role to play in enabling more homes to meet Tasmania’s diverse housing needs. However, while planning regulates the locations and types of new housing, it is important to recognise that it does not control the speed with which housing is developed, nor affect the drivers for investment in housing.

Pressure on planning systems to deliver more housing often oversimplifies complex drivers and fails to appreciate the role of planning to put the right housing in the right place, integrating well-designed homes with planned infrastructure to create complete communities. Planning can assist housing supply but should not enable poorly located or badly designed development.

Planning initiatives

Draft Tasmanian Planning Policies (TPPs)

The draft TPPs set out common land use planning policies to be achieved through the regional land use strategies and the TPS.

There are 7 policies covering:

• Settlement
• Environmental Values
• Environmental Hazards
• Sustainable Economic Development
• Physical Infrastructure
• Cultural Heritage
• Planning Processes

They give a consistent policy on housing and settlement that flows onto each council area through regional land use strategies and the TPS. The draft TPPs include detailed strategies for:

• settlement growth through the allocation of land to meet the existing and future needs of the community
• the liveability of settlements by improving access to housing, education, employment, recreation, and variety of other services that support the wellbeing of the community
• the provision of a sufficient supply of well-located and serviced housing, including social and affordable housing.

See the draft Tasmanian Planning Policies page for more detail.

Review of regional land use strategies

The three regional land use strategies include detailed strategies for settlement growth and redevelopment, including the provision of housing. These inform the application of residential and other supporting zones like business, commercial, industrial, community purpose and open space/recreational zones.

The Tasmanian Government is currently reviewing the regional land use strategies. They will be informed by updated land supply-and-demand modelling for residential and industrial land.

The strategies will guide the work of local strategic planning done by Councils, and finally the application of zones through each council’s Local Provisions Schedule in the TPS. The review also takes into consideration other strategic planning projects like the Greater Hobart Plan.

See the Tasmanian Planning Scheme page for more detail.

Review of State Planning Provisions (SPPs)

The State Planning Provisions (SPPs) in the TPS were introduced in 2017. They are reviewed every 5 years to ensure they remain relevant and to implement improvements.

A comprehensive review of the SPPs began in 2022. A priority project for the SPPs review includes considering improvements to the planning requirements for housing in urban zones. The reviewed SPPs will deliver better planning requirements for a range of housing types and encourage well-designed and livable spaces. They will also implement improved requirements for apartments and other forms of medium density housing, informed by the Design Guidelines for Medium Density Residential Development being prepared by the Department of State Growth as part of the Greater Hobart Plan and the SPO's Improving Residential Standards in Tasmania project (see below).

For more detailed information about this review, please go to the State Planning Provisions Review page on Have Your Say. For more information about the SPPs, go to the Tasmanian Planning Scheme page.

Improving Residential Standards Project

The Improving Residential Standards Project is one of the key results of the State Planning Provisions Review. The project aims to increase housing supply, affordability and diversity of housing types, by reviewing planning controls for housing and residential development in Tasmania.

The project is being led by the State Planning Office (SPO) in the Department of Premier and Cabinet. The SPO engaged ERA Planning and Environment to lead the project team, and a Technical Reference Group (TRG) has been formed to provide expert knowledge and local experience to the project team. The TRG includes staff from the Australian Institute of Architects, Homes Tasmania, local government, the Planning Institute of Australia and the Department of State Growth.

The research and testing phase was completed in June 2024 and was released for public consultation on 24 July 2024 for six weeks.  Following consultation, the revised recommendations will be used to prepare SPP amendments to the urban residential zones and residential components of the business zones. These will go through the normal SPP amendment process which also includes public consultation.

Housing Land Supply Act 2018

The Housing Land Supply Act 2018 was introduced in 2018 to provide a more direct process for rezoning land to increase the supply of land for housing, particularly for social and affordable housing developments. It enables the Minister for Planning to boost the supply of land by making a housing land supply order to rezone eligible government land put forward by Homes Tasmania.

A proposed housing land supply order is subject to the same planning assessment criteria as land use under the standard rezoning process within the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993. There are additional criteria ensuring the land is suitable for the delivery of housing, specifically considering the land’s proximity to services and employment opportunities and public transport.

Land rezoned by a housing land supply order is transferred to Homes Tasmania to deliver housing developments, with a proportion delivered as social and affordable housing. In 2023, the Housing Land Supply Act 2018 was amended to extend the period for making housing land supply orders until the end of 2032. Documents relating to this amendment included a briefing pack for consultation and the consultation report.

This period was initially limited to 5 years after the commencement of the Act. The extended period for making housing land supply orders aligns with the Tasmanian Government’s plan for delivering more social and affordable homes.

There is also a fact sheet which outlines the process to make an order.

Existing Housing Land Supply Orders

The following Housing Land Supply Orders have been made under the Housing Land Supply Act 2018: and are reflected in the planning scheme in effect in the municipality.

Short stay accommodation

There are specific planning rules for hosting short stay accommodation in houses in Tasmania. In the TPS, short stay accommodation is called visitor accommodation. A planning permit is not required if you meet the ‘home-sharing’ exemption. This applies if the dwelling is used by the host (as owner or occupier) as their main residence and:

• the dwelling is only let to visitors while the host is on vacation, or are temporarily absent, or
• no more than four bedrooms are let while the host is living there.

For all other instances, a planning permit is required from the local council. You should contact your local council to provide advice specific to your proposal.

For more information on the exemptions and planning requirements for visitor accommodation in houses, there is general advice ((PDF 220.9 KB)) on short stay accommodation.

The Short Stay Accommodation Act 2019 permits data collection from platforms like Airbnb and Stayz on how houses in Tasmania are used for short stay accommodation. Collected on a quarterly basis, it is used to monitor compliance with TPS requirements, and to inform policy on the use of housing for short stay accommodation. For more information on this, go to the <fact sheet> on the Short Stay Accommodation Act (insert link). Information collected on under the Short Stay Accommodation Act can be found on the Consumer, Building and Occupational Service’s website.

The Short Stay Accommodation Act lets councils check compliance with the planning rules and to make informed decisions for their local government area. The TPS lets councils propose a specific area plan which would apply different planning requirements for short stay accommodation in residential areas.

• Short Stay Accommodation Act 2019 Information Package For Booking Platform Providers
  PDF, 142.0KB
• Short Stay Accommodation Act 2019 - Information-Package - Short Stay Premises Providers
  PDF, 172.6KB
• Fact Sheet - Short Stay Accommodation Act - Dec 2019
  PDF, 181.1KB
• Planning Directive 6 - Exemption and Standards for Visitor Accommodation - Advice
  PDF, 220.9KB

Tiny Houses

Tiny houses can offer flexibility and housing affordability and sustainable living options. The variety of ways that tiny houses are used can make it difficult to determine which planning and building requirements apply.

To help clarify requirements, the Fact Sheet  (PDF 842.3 KB)provides guidance on the current planning requirements for using and developing a tiny house as a permanent residence on a site.

All information is intended as a guide. It is best to seek advice from your council before residing permanently in a tiny house.

Who does what?

Councils are central to administering the TPS, and handle the bulk of development applications in Tasmania, including assessing compliance with the zone and code requirements. Councils are also responsible for applying the zones and codes to the land in their municipality through their Local Provisions Schedule in the TPS. The Tasmanian Planning Commission approves each council’s Local Provision Schedule in accordance with the requirements in the Land Use Planning and Approvals Act 1993, including consistency with the future TPPs and regional land use strategies.

The Minister for Planning sets the overall direction for the planning system through the approval and amendment of the:

• TPPs
• regional land use strategies, in partnership with local government and state agencies
• planning rules in the SPPs of the TPS.

These processes involve public consultation and independent review by the Tasmanian Planning Commission.

Homes Tasmania is the independent statutory authority charged with developing and delivering the Tasmanian Housing Strategy and has a particular interest in the delivery of social and affordable housing.

There are a variety of housing support providers that assist individuals to find housing.

The Australian Government also has a number of initiatives relating to housing, including the:

• Housing Australia Future Fund
• Social Housing Accelerator
• 30-Year Greater Hobart Plan | Greater Hobart Committee
• Land and Housing Supply Indicators (Australian Bureau of Statistics)
• The challenge of housing supply (Parliament of Australia)
• National Housing Accord 2022 (Australian Government)