At What Point Does the BAL Rating Get Built into the Costs?
The Bushfire Attack Level, commonly known as the BAL rating, should ideally be identified before iBuild prepares your initial cost estimate. This allows any bushfire-related design, material and construction requirements to be included in the estimated kit home price from the outset.
Who Determines the BAL Rating?
The formal BAL rating is not set by iBuild or by your local council. It is determined by a qualified bushfire consultant — in most states an accredited Bushfire Planning and Design (BPAD) practitioner — who assesses the site under Australian Standard AS 3959. The assessment considers the type of surrounding vegetation, the distance from that vegetation to the building, and the slope of the land.
Each state and territory has its own planning control that triggers bushfire requirements for new development. The main controls are:
- Victoria — The Bushfire Management Overlay (BMO) applies to land that may be significantly affected by bushfire and triggers a planning permit requirement. Separately, land within a designated Bushfire Prone Area (BPA) triggers AS 3959 construction requirements at building permit stage.
- New South Wales — Land mapped as Bush Fire Prone Land under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 triggers compliance with the NSW Rural Fire Service document Planning for Bush Fire Protection 2019 (PBP 2019). Subdivision and special fire protection developments also require a Bush Fire Safety Authority from the NSW Rural Fire Service.
- Queensland — Local council planning schemes include a Bushfire Hazard Overlay based on State Planning Policy bushfire-prone area mapping. Development that triggers assessment against this overlay may require a bushfire hazard assessment. At building permit stage, the Building Act 1975 adopts the Building Code of Australia and AS 3959.
- South Australia — The Planning and Design Code includes bushfire hazard overlays such as the Hazards (Bushfire — Urban Interface) Overlay. Properties within or near a designated High Bushfire Hazard Area may require a site-specific BAL assessment under AS 3959.
- Western Australia — The Map of Bush Fire Prone Areas, designated by the Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner, identifies land that may be affected by bushfire. Development in these areas is subject to State Planning Policy 3.7 and the Planning for Bushfire Guidelines.
- Tasmania — The Bushfire-Prone Areas Code under the Tasmanian Planning Scheme applies to mapped bushfire-prone land. Building work in these areas must also comply with the Director’s Determination for building in bushfire-prone areas under the Building Regulations 2016.
- Australian Capital Territory — The Bushfire Prone Area (BPA) map, designated by the ACT Emergency Services Agency, covers urban areas adjacent to forest and grassland as well as all rural ACT. Development on land within the BPA must comply with the Planning for Bushfire Risk Mitigation General Code in the Territory Plan, and buildings must meet AS 3959.
- Northern Territory — The NT Planning Scheme 2020 includes bushfire overlays for some areas. Bushfire management is administered by Bushfires NT through Fire Management Zones under the Bushfires Management Act 2016. The NT does not currently apply the same comprehensive bushfire planning and construction controls as other jurisdictions — check with your local council or Bushfires NT for site-specific requirements.
Where these planning controls apply, the bushfire consultant generally also prepares a Bushfire Management Plan — an annotated site plan setting out the required bushfire protection measures, including defendable space, the BAL construction level, a water supply for firefighting and suitable property access. This plan is submitted with the planning permit or development application. Separately, at building permit stage, land within a designated bushfire-prone area triggers AS 3959 construction requirements, with a minimum of BAL-12.5 for new homes.
You can find a BPAD-accredited consultant through the Fire Protection Association Australia (FPA Australia) website.
Where Do I Enter the BAL Rating?
If a BAL assessment has already been completed for your property, enter the confirmed rating on the Estimate Request Form (ER1) when requesting your iBuild cost estimate. Providing it upfront helps iBuild prepare a more accurate estimate and reduces the likelihood of significant pricing changes later.
What If I Do Not Have a Formal BAL Assessment Yet?
A formal assessment involves engaging a bushfire consultant and carries a cost, so some clients do not have one during early planning. You can still confirm whether bushfire controls are likely to apply — and in some cases identify a likely BAL level — by checking your state or territory planning portal. These tools are free and available online.
For a step-by-step guide to the free online tool in each state and territory, see our companion article: How to Check Whether Your Land Is in a Bushfire-Prone Area.
Your local council can also confirm whether a planning permit or development approval is required and whether the applicable planning-scheme schedule specifies a particular BAL for the area.
If any of these checks indicate that bushfire controls apply, iBuild can use a reasonable placeholder when preparing the estimate. For example, iBuild may initially cost the project at BAL-29. If the formal assessment later confirms that the property is only BAL-19, the specification and price can be amended accordingly.
What Happens When the Final BAL Rating Is Confirmed?
Once the formal BAL assessment is available, iBuild reviews the confirmed rating against the allowance used in the original estimate. The project specification and price are then adjusted to reflect the actual requirements. If the confirmed rating is lower than the placeholder, the estimated cost may be reduced. If it is higher, additional bushfire-related requirements may need to be included.
Key Recommendation
Where possible, provide a completed BAL rating on the ER1 form. If a formal assessment is not yet available, use the free planning portal for your state or territory to check whether bushfire controls apply, and ask iBuild to include a reasonable placeholder in the estimate. This gives a more realistic early project budget, while allowing the final price to be updated once the qualified bushfire consultant has completed the formal BAL assessment and any required Bushfire Management Plan.
