Knockdown Rebuild Builder Wollongong, Illawarra and South Coast

Yes, every knockdown rebuild needs an approval in place before demolition starts. That is either a development application assessed by the council, or a complying development certificate issued by a private certifier when the block and the design meet the state's standard rules. Where your block qualifies we advise the complying development pathway over a development application, using our preferred certifier, City Building Approvals. We check your zoning, lot size, overlays and design before the plans are finalised, so the documents are right the first time.

Yes, and both are common across the Illawarra. Narrow lots in the northern suburbs need a plan drawn for the width you actually have and a careful site set-up for deliveries and access. Corner blocks often open up a dual occupancy or a home with two street frontages. Setbacks and boundary clearances are worked out at the site walk before any drawing starts.

Often, yes. Parts of the northern suburbs near the creeks, Towradgi Creek among them, and parts of Shellharbour around Lake Illawarra carry flood overlays. The council will then set a minimum floor level and drainage requirements for the new home. We check the flood mapping for your address before anything is priced, and where an overlay applies the design allows for it from the first sketch rather than as a late change.

If the house is individually listed or sits inside a heritage conservation area, demolition is assessed differently and may not be permitted. Berry's main street sits in a heritage conservation area, and the council's planning maps show whether your address is affected. We check this first, before any design work starts.

Yes, and it usually changes the build. Blocks close to the escarpment reserve or other bushland are generally mapped as bushfire-prone land, so a bushfire attack level assessment forms part of the approval. The rating it returns sets the standard for windows, cladding, decking and roof detailing. It is a solvable requirement, and planning for it at design stage is far simpler than changing materials once the home is drawn.

Established trees are protected under council rules, and removing one or building close to it usually needs consent as part of the approval. A large tree on your block or on the neighbouring side can also affect where the new home sits and how the footings are designed. We look at every significant tree during the first site walk so the design works around what has to stay.

Sometimes, and it needs to be decided before the plans are drawn. Anything you keep has to be shown on the approved plans and has to work with the new footprint, the new floor levels and the site drainage. An old structure can also limit where the new home can sit. We give you a straight read on whether keeping it helps the design or holds it back.

Under a development application the council notifies the neighbours and they can lodge a submission, which the assessing officer weighs against the planning rules. Under a complying development certificate there is no submission process, but the neighbours must still be given notice before demolition and construction begin. Either way, a design that respects overlooking, overshadowing and the streetscape moves through assessment with far less friction.

Most knockdown rebuilds start with a survey of the block and a pre-demolition asbestos report. Depending on the block, a bushfire attack level assessment or a geotechnical report may be needed as well. We coordinate the lot so the plans are drawn to the real block, not a guess.

Either works. TAG Homes collaborates regularly with local architects and draftspeople across the Illawarra and South Coast, so if you already have an architect you trust we work with them directly. If you do not have a designer yet, you design with our drafting team and we manage the project from first sketch to keys.

Yes. A new home must meet the current energy-rating and sustainability requirements, and an older home rarely comes close. In practice the rebuilt home is warmer in winter, cooler in summer and far easier to heat and cool, which is one reason the site walk looks so closely at orientation.

In your existing home right up to demolition. Design, documentation and approval all happen before a demolition date is set, and most clients stay put through that entire phase. You only need to move out once demolition is ready to begin, and we coordinate the timing so rental accommodation is not needed for longer than necessary.

We do. A licensed demolition contractor is engaged as part of the build, any asbestos is removed by a licensed removalist, and the site is cleared and levelled ready for the new footings. You do not need to find a demolisher yourself or hold two separate contracts.

Electricity, gas, water and sewer all need to be formally disconnected before demolition and reconnected during construction. TAG Homes coordinates the disconnection and reconnection with the relevant service authorities as part of the build. The National Broadband Network connection is handled during construction so the home is ready to go on move-in day.

No, we handle it. Many homes built before the mid-1980s contain asbestos in sheet cladding, eaves, wet area linings or old roofing, and a pre-demolition asbestos report, standard on every knockdown rebuild, identifies where it is before demolition starts. A licensed asbestos removalist takes it out under the relevant workplace health and safety authority requirements, and the removal is priced openly in the fixed-price contract, not added as a surprise later.

Once the approval is in place and you have moved out, demolition and site preparation take two to four weeks and construction runs seven to eleven months to handover. Design and approval sit before that, so the calendar you plan your move around starts on demolition day, not the day you sign.

Generally, yes. Replacing a tired home on a good block with a new, compliant, energy-efficient home usually lifts the long-term value of the site, and it also cuts ongoing maintenance. The exact effect depends on location, design and specification.

On many blocks in the Wollongong and Shellharbour council areas, yes. A dual occupancy is generally permitted in a low density residential zone once the lot meets the minimum size and frontage requirements. The best blocks are around 700 square metres with at least 15 metres of frontage for a decent-sized four-bedroom home on each side, and council minimums vary by address. Call Grant on 0423 409 212 with your address and we will tell you where your block stands before you spend anything on design.

TAG Homes builds custom homes, duplexes and dual occupancy homes, and knockdown rebuilds across the Illawarra and NSW South Coast. A good portion of our knockdown rebuild clients end up with what is effectively a fully custom home on their existing block, and the two services overlap significantly in how they are designed, approved and built.

Call Grant on 0423 409 212. We will book a site walkthrough, talk through your ideas and give you a straight assessment of whether a knockdown rebuild is the right path for your block. There is no charge and no obligation.