A secondary dwelling (commonly called a granny flat) is a self-contained dwelling established in conjunction with a principal dwelling on the same lot. It may be within, attached to or separate from the principal dwelling. Its legal classification depends on the approved use and documents, not a marketing label or construction method.
This guide combines limited Comara statistical context with statewide planning guidance and verified local-government sources. It does not treat the locality name, statistical boundary or recorded local government area overlap as evidence that a particular parcel is suitable for development. The legal parcel, responsible authority, zoning, planning instruments, title and site conditions must all be checked.
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Local granny-flat overview
The canonical locality record identifies Comara as ABS SAL 10988, covering approximately 456.8105 square kilometres and containing nine mesh blocks. SAL means the Australian Bureau of Statistics Suburbs and Localities geography. SAL boundaries are statistical approximations designed for Census output; they are not cadastral parcel boundaries, planning zones or evidence of a consent authority.
The record places the Comara SAL wholly within the statistical LGA named Kempsey. “Kempsey” is the ABS LGA name, whereas the formal council organisation listed in the NSW Office of Local Government council directory is Kempsey Shire Council. This overlap is a useful research lead only. Confirm the responsible council for the street address in the NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer before relying on council material.
The 2021 Census Comara QuickStats, using the 2021 Census edition, reported 27 people and 19 private dwellings. These figures are historical statistical context, not current population or housing data. Because the recorded population is very low, percentages can be unstable and individual changes can have a large effect. Generic claims about present-day demographics, rental demand, household preferences or the property market would therefore be unsafe.
The verified evidence provides no locality-wide basis for describing Comara’s zoning, lot sizes, services, hazards, lifestyle or development capacity. Those characteristics must not be inferred from the SAL area or LGA overlap. For a specific property, start with its address, lot and deposited plan, then compare the Spatial Viewer result with the title, survey, planning certificate and approval history.
A useful property record should reconcile several identifiers before design begins. Check that the street address, lot and deposited plan, title search, survey and planning-map result all refer to the same land. Then establish whether the principal dwelling and any structure proposed for conversion appear in council approval records. Differences between an occupied site, online mapping and legal documents should be resolved with the relevant authority or qualified adviser rather than carried into a concept plan. This sequence helps prevent a design from being prepared against the wrong boundary, building status or planning instrument.
Under the NSW secondary-dwelling guidance, a secondary dwelling operates with a principal dwelling and remains on the same lot. This pathway does not produce a separately subdividable or independently saleable residence. A freestanding structure is not automatically a secondary dwelling, and a garage, shed or studio cannot be assumed to have lawful residential approval merely because habitation appears physically possible.
Council rules and approval pathway
NSW guidance states that secondary dwellings are permitted in residential zones R1, R2, R3, R4 and R5 and may be permitted in other zones where the applicable local environmental plan allows them. Permissibility is not approval. Rural and other non-residential land must be assessed under the relevant local environmental plan rather than by applying residential-zone assumptions.
A proposal may follow one of two principal pathways. A development application is assessed by the responsible council. Alternatively, a complying development certificate may be issued by a council or registered certifier when every applicable statutory requirement is met. The NSW complying-development guidance explains that this is a standards-based pathway; a certifier cannot waive an exclusion or development standard.
For the Housing SEPP complying-development pathway, official guidance identifies a minimum lot area of 450 square metres, except where the secondary dwelling is located entirely within an existing dwelling house. This is one eligibility condition only. It is not a universal minimum for a council-assessed development application and does not establish complying-development eligibility by itself.
Test a proposed complying-development pathway against current Schedule 1 of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021, the applicable provisions of the State Environmental Planning Policy (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008, mapped exclusions and property-specific standards. Do not rely on superseded Affordable Rental Housing SEPP material, an old checklist, a concept plan or a builder’s assessment.
If address-level verification confirms Kempsey Shire Council as the relevant authority, review the Kempsey Local Environmental Plan 2013 and the parts of the Kempsey Development Control Plan applicable to the legal parcel and proposal. The council page states that the Kempsey DCP 2026 took effect on 1 July 2026. Confirm its application rather than assuming every Comara address is governed by the same local provisions. For a development application, use the council’s current development-application requirements for required plans, forms and reports.
Before choosing a pathway, investigate the title and deposited plan, easements, covenants, restrictions, legal access, sewer and drainage assets, utility locations and existing approvals. Planning permission does not necessarily remove private title restrictions. Use official records to check only those mapped or property-specific constraints relevant to the address, such as bushfire, flooding, biodiversity, heritage, contamination or other overlays.
The Housing SEPP does not itself require additional parking for a secondary dwelling, but existing consent conditions, removal of existing spaces, driveway design and safe access may still matter. Council or the certifier should also identify applicable contribution plans, local fees, stormwater and waste requirements, vehicle-crossing processes and water or sewer authority requirements.
Following approval, the work may require construction certification, appointment of a principal certifier, inspections and compliance evidence. Service NSW explains that an occupation certificate is required before occupying or using a new building or an existing building subject to an approved change of use.
Costs and budgeting
A useful Comara budget must be based on the investigated parcel and a documented scope. Advertised package prices cannot account reliably for access, levels, ground conditions, service distances, planning requirements, conversion work or selected finishes.
Build the budget under separate headings:
- title, planning-certificate, survey and service investigations;
- design, engineering and specialist reports;
- application, Planning Portal, council and certifier charges;
- contributions and authority charges where applicable;
- demolition, excavation, retaining and site preparation;
- building work, fixtures, finishes and BASIX commitments;
- stormwater, wastewater, water, electricity and communications;
- driveways, paths, fencing, landscaping and waste removal;
- inspections, certificates, insurance and finance expenses; and
- contingency for documented but unresolved site risks.
Confirm service locations and capacity before fixing the footprint. Long or difficult connections, machinery access, earthworks and retaining can change both design and cost. For a proposed conversion, investigate the existing structure’s approval status and condition, including structural work, fire safety, waterproofing, insulation, ventilation and services.
Treat investigation costs as part of feasibility rather than hiding them within construction allowances. Record the date, scope and author of each survey, report and authority response so tenderers know what information they may rely on. Where an issue remains unresolved, request a clearly identified allowance and state the assumption behind it. This produces a more useful comparison than combining confirmed work and uncertain site items into one figure, and it creates a record for reviewing later design or contract changes.
Give tenderers the same drawings, specification and site information. Compare itemised quotations line by line, checking exclusions, provisional sums, ground assumptions, utility work, external works, approval responsibilities and nominated products. Separate confirmed prices from allowances so that an inexpensive headline quote is not mistaken for the total project requirement.
Current Building Commission NSW contract guidance requires a written contract for residential building work costing more than $5,000. More extensive large-job contract requirements apply above $20,000, and the maximum deposit is 10%. Read the Consumer Building Guide and check the current contract requirements before signing.
Home building compensation cover applies where required for residential building work valued at $20,000 or more, including GST. Use the official HBC Check to verify the certificate before paying money or allowing work to start, and ensure the builder, site and contracted work match the record. Recheck current fees, contribution arrangements and statutory requirements when quotations are obtained.
Design and site considerations
Begin with an accurate survey showing boundaries, levels, existing buildings, access, significant trees, easements and known services. Define whether the secondary dwelling will be within, attached to or separate from the principal dwelling, and whether any existing structure is proposed for conversion. That choice affects planning classification, documentation, construction interfaces and the relevant BASIX secondary-dwelling project type.
Test the layout against the daily use of both dwellings. Consider private open space, overlooking, acoustic separation, daylight, ventilation, entrance visibility, pedestrian access, bin storage, clothes drying and maintenance access. Review any effect on existing parking and vehicle movement. These matters should be resolved through a site-specific design rather than a standard plan placed on an unverified base map.
Check floor area, setbacks, height, landscaped area, site coverage and earthworks against the selected approval pathway and current instruments. Standards copied from another council, another development type or an older planning instrument may not apply. A prefabricated, modular or relocatable building remains subject to the applicable planning, building, certification and occupation requirements.
Resolve stormwater and wastewater arrangements during feasibility. Confirm lawful discharge, infrastructure location, connection capacity and authority requirements before excavation. If official address-level evidence identifies a relevant constraint, obtain the corresponding professional assessment and incorporate its findings into the design. Do not prepare an interchangeable hazard list in place of checking the property.
BASIX guidance addresses water, energy use and thermal performance for applicable residential development. Integrate the resulting commitments into orientation, glazing, shading, insulation, ventilation, fixtures and services. Ensure the approved certificate, drawings, specification and building contract are consistent, and preserve the required evidence for certification and handover.
Rental and investment considerations
Rental consideration should begin only after confirming the dwelling’s lawful approval status and obtaining the required occupation certificate. A utility connection, completion invoice or advertising description does not establish lawful occupation.
A secondary dwelling remains with the principal dwelling on the same lot. Owners considering rental should account for that shared legal and physical setting when discussing lending, insurance, management and future disposal with qualified advisers. Separate access, privacy, noise transfer, waste storage, deliveries, maintenance access and responsibility for shared outdoor areas can materially affect how the two households function.
If the approved premises are rented under a residential tenancy, use current NSW Fair Trading guidance on residential tenancy agreements, including the prescribed agreement and landlord obligations. The governing legislation is the Residential Tenancies Act 2010. Check current requirements for bonds, condition reports, disclosure, repairs, safety duties, utilities and notices before offering the premises.
Family occupation, boarding, licensing, short-term accommodation and a standard residential tenancy are not necessarily treated alike. Confirm the rules for the intended arrangement rather than transferring assumptions from one use to another.
The available Census evidence is too limited and dated to support a Comara rent, vacancy or demand conclusion. Obtain recent comparable evidence from an appropriately qualified local professional and distinguish achieved rents from online asking prices. Verify that any comparison has a similar approval status, condition, access and inclusions. Obtain property-specific finance, insurance and tax advice before relying on a proposed rental scenario.
Choosing a granny-flat builder
Identify the legal entity that will sign the contract, then use the Service NSW facility to check the builder or tradesperson licence. Confirm that the licence is current, the category covers the proposed work and the licence holder matches the contract. An ABN, association membership, referral or review score is not a substitute for this check.
Ask tenderers for recent secondary-dwelling projects involving comparable construction, access and servicing. With the owners’ permission, inspect completed work and speak with recent clients about communication, variations, defects, site-cost management, documentation and after-completion service.
Compare each tender against the same package, including:
- scope, specifications, inclusions and exclusions;
- provisional sums and site-condition assumptions;
- service, drainage, access and external-work responsibilities;
- design, approval, certification and inspection responsibilities;
- BASIX products and performance commitments;
- variation and extension-of-time procedures;
- progress-payment stages and defects processes; and
- warranties, certificates, manuals and handover records.
Clarify whether the price is based on approved construction documents or an early concept. Record who will coordinate consultants, answer council or certifier requests and supply compliance evidence. Ensure these responsibilities appear in the written contract rather than relying on sales discussions.
Follow the Building Commission NSW contract guidance described above, read the Consumer Building Guide and verify the statutory warranty information applicable to the work. Check cooling-off information and obtain independent advice on unclear terms. Keep progress payments aligned with completed contractual stages and document variations, including their price and program effects, before varied work proceeds where practicable.
Verify required home building compensation cover through HBC Check as described above. Confirm that the certificate matches the contracting entity, property and work; an application receipt or unrelated policy is not equivalent evidence. Builder selection should be based on licence status, documented scope, relevant experience, contract quality and the complete delivered proposal—not the lowest initial figure.
Planning and feasibility checklist
- Confirm the address, lot and deposited plan.
- Verify the responsible council and consent authority.
- Obtain the title, survey and existing approval records.
- Check zoning and mapped controls in the Spatial Viewer.
- Review the current LEP, DCP and site-specific instruments.
- Locate easements, drainage, sewer, utilities and legal access.
- Investigate only the constraints identified for the property.
- Define the internal, attached, detached or conversion proposal.
- Test both approval pathways with council or a registered certifier.
- Confirm design standards, reports, BASIX and documentation.
- Check current fees, contributions and authority requirements.
- Compare itemised quotations on an identical scope.
- Verify licences, contract terms, warranties and HBC cover.
- Obtain approval before starting work.
- Complete required inspections and approval conditions.
- Obtain the occupation certificate before occupation or use.
- Use current Fair Trading processes if renting the dwelling.