Conversion and Reversion

Yes you can. A private certifier will need to work with your builder to ensure the house is compliant for multiple tenants. A converted Rooming House must achieve a final certificate from the certifier to be insured, and tenanted as a Rooming House.

A Rooming House should include a shared communal kitchen and laundry facilities, common entry, emergency lighting, and a fire egress plan, including a fire extinguisher and fire blanket. Rooms are not required to have ensuites, kitchenettes, patios or balconies, cupboards, furnishings, or air conditioning, however these are strongly recommended to be competitively rented and to achieve a strong market valuation.

A private certifier will need to work with your builder to ensure the house is compliant for multiple tenants. Waterproofing in wet areas, fire compliance, shared kitchen and laundry, emergency lighting, termite resistance, plumbing and hydraulics, structural systems, weather proofing will all need to be certified to achieve a final certification and have Class 1B awarded.

A shared communial kitchen and laundry facilities, common entry, emergency lighting, and a fire egress plan including a fire extinguisher and fire blanket are the bare minimum when converting a dwelling house into a Rooming House. Well equipped bedrooms, each with an ensuite, kitchenette, and courtyard or balcony are highly recommended in addition to these requirements.

Because of the inefficiencies in converting a home to a Rooming House, a footprint of over 300m2 is recommended.

Any home that is sufficiently large, with a high number of existing bathrooms can be redesigned for Rooming.

It can be, but keep in mind that timber and weatherboard high-set homes have more maintenance issues than modern builds.

Yes, most Rooming Houses are built this way.

Yes, you can do this so long as the design is compliant with town planning and other codes. Your town planner or architect can advise accordingly.

Yes, you can revert a Rooming House into a dwelling house. Rooming Houses are typically larger and have more bathrooms and kitchenettes, so the amenity and configuration will have to be decided so it works well as a house for a family.

This is typically not allowed, however your town planner can advise how to make a commercial or industrial site habitable. If it is a commercial or industrial strata, the rules of the estate or body corporate may prohibit this as well.

A unit building is already leased to multiple tenants. You will have to work with your town planner to achieve an acceptable solution. You may be better off converting the whole unit building to a boarding house to increase its cashflow and then you are not limited to 5 tenancies.

Yes, however keep in mind that a Rooming House is a smaller boarding house limited to 5 rooms leased. Boarding houses typically have rooms with lower amenity and tenants share kitchens, bathrooms, lounge rooms, and storage. The configurations are very different and will need effective design to convert.

It is highly recommended that you engage a professional builder, however you can apply to be an owner builder and may have to take a council course on project management.

Your builder can typically take care of town planning approvals for you. If you are an owner builder, then you will need to engage a town planner.

Your builder can typically take care of Certification for you. If you are an owner builder, then you will need to engage a private certifier.

Your builder typically takes care of the design and drafting for you. If you are an owner builder, then you will need to engage a building designer or architect to deliver a compliant design to build.

Yes, however building design is more involved than most people consider. A building must be compliant across many areas including energy efficiency, natural lighting, acoustics, waterproofing, wind resistance, tie down, structural, hydraulic, streetscape, and more. If you are unsure, a builder with a proprietary design or engaging a building designer will suffice.

If the home is existing and larger than 300m2 you do not have to reduce it.

Generally, the limit is 5 suites as leases are limited to 5 single adults for a rooming house.

Yes, to be a habitable space, height is one of many considerations to achieve.

No, however it will not rent competitively if not air conditioned.

No, however it will not rent competitively if not with this basic amenity.

It is much harder to convert a house in a flood zone. We do not recommend this and you must seek the advice of a town planner here.

Yes, you can be an owner builder and convert your house into a Rooming House. The Council may request you to have adequate qualifications or complete a project management course, and to notify your community of such activities.