A secondary dwelling on a bushfire-prone block follows the same Australian Standard as the main house - AS 3959 Construction of buildings in bushfire-prone areas. The BAL rating, the approval pathway and the construction cost all change depending on where you build, what vegetation surrounds the site, and which state you are in. This guide covers the full process from assessment through to construction,...

Building in a bushfire-prone area does not mean choosing between a safe home and the home you actually want. The right kit home supplier matches the frame type, cladding system and detailing to your BAL rating - and gives you the documentation your certifier needs to sign off. This guide explains what to look for, how the major approaches differ, and where iBuild fits in the picture. Why Kit Homes...

Building in Bushfire-Prone Areas Victoria Victoria's bushfire building regulations operate through two overlapping systems - a planning control (the Bushfire Management Overlay) and a building control (the Bushfire Prone Area designation). A property can be subject to one, both, or neither. The two systems serve different purposes, are administered by different authorities, and trigger different...

Large areas of New South Wales are designated as bushfire-prone land, and in many parts of regional and coastal NSW the designation covers entire suburbs and rural areas. If you are planning to build a house on land that sits within this designation, the planning and construction pathway in NSW carries a set of requirements that sit on top of the national building standards - additional approvals, specific...

Reviewed by M. Zeng, M. Eng. September 2026. What AS 3959 Is and What It Is Not AS 3959:2018 is the current edition of the standard, incorporating Amendment No. 1 (2019) and Amendment No. 2 (2020). It applies to the construction of Class 1 buildings (houses) and Class 10a buildings and decks associated with a Class 1 building. It does not apply to Class 2 buildings (apartments) or larger...

In Victoria the starting position is not that some building work needs a permit. It is that all of it does, unless a specific exemption applies. The Building Act 1993 and the Building Regulations 2018 set that default, and the list of things carved out of it is finite, conditional and narrower than

If you are considering changing a window in your iBuild home design, you generally do not need to have the wall re-engineered simply because the window is being changed. What Happens If I Change a Window? Changing the window itself should not require the wall to be re-engineered. However, changing the size or position of the window can affect the home's 7-star energy rating, particularly depending...

Yes. As a national housing provider, all new iBuild designs meet the livable standard requirements. What are the Livable Design Regulations? Most Australian states and territories have introduced new livable standard regulations, with the exception of Western Australia and New South Wales, which have not yet adopted them. These regulations are designed to assist elderly and disabled people by...

Many qualified engineers consider taking the owner-builder route due to their technical expertise and understanding of construction principles. While engineers may have extensive knowledge in design, structural systems, and project management, there are still legal requirements that apply when managing and completing residential building work.In many cases, engineers can act as owner-builders and may be...