Fees
What it costs to get approved
Pre-Design — Approval Set (CDC)
$450 + GST
$495 inc GST
Pick one of our eight pre-designs. We prepare the CDC approval drawing set for you to issue to your certifier.
- Your choice of any Flat Grannys pre-design
- Checked against the Housing SEPP standards for your lot
- Site plan, floor plan, elevations and section for the CDC
- Minor internal tweaks that keep the design within the standard
- Drawings ready for you to issue to your certifier, and answers to their questions on them
Bespoke design — Approval Set (CDC)
$4,300 + GST
$4,730 inc GST
A granny flat designed from scratch for your block and brief, with the CDC approval drawing set for your certifier. Same fee as PlanLand.
- Brief and site review with the planner
- Custom floor plan and 3D views to refine
- Designed to the Housing SEPP standards for your lot
- Site plan, floor plan, elevations and section for the CDC
- Drawings ready for you to issue to your certifier, and answers to their questions on them
Design added to your site survey
$350 + GST
$385 inc GST
The site survey is by others. You supply your surveyor’s detail survey; we place the design on it, set to your boundaries, levels and setbacks, and you issue it with the application.
- Site survey by others — from your registered surveyor
- Design set out on your survey: boundaries, levels, setbacks
- Site plan ready for you to issue to the certifier
Full construction set
$1,800 + GST
$1,980 inc GST
The detailed drawings your builder prices and builds from — for any builder you choose.
- Construction plans, elevations, sections and details
- Door and window schedules
- Drawn to suit the certifier’s CC / CDC conditions
- Builder-agnostic: price it with anyone
Packages
| Package | Ex GST | Inc GST |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Design approval set only | $450 | $495 |
| Pre-Design approval set + added to your survey | $800 | $880 |
| Pre-Design approval set + added to your survey + construction set | $2,600 | $2,860 |
| Bespoke approval set + added to your survey + construction set | $6,450 | $7,095 |
Paid to others
These are charged by the certifier, consultants and government, not by us. They are indicative ranges for a Sydney granny flat; the cost estimator adds them up for your project.
| Item | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Detail site survey — by others From your registered surveyor. We place the design on it | $1,500–$3,500 |
| Private certifier — CDC and inspections Issues the CDC and inspects the build | $1,500–$4,000 |
| BASIX certificate and NatHERS assessment Energy and water compliance, required for every new dwelling | $700–$1,300 |
| Structural engineering Slab or footings and framing, needed for construction | $1,500–$3,000 |
| Geotechnical / soil classification Sets the slab design | $300–$800 |
| Long Service Levy Paid before work starts | 0.25% of works over $25,000 |
| Council development contributions Section 7.11 / 7.12 — nil in some councils | $0–$20,000 |
| Home Building Compensation Fund cover Arranged by your builder | 0.5–1.5% of the contract |
Not a CDC site?
If your lot is under 450 m², too narrow, heritage-listed, or affected by flood or bushfire controls that the code can’t meet, the granny flat needs a development application (DA) instead.
We refer DA work to our sister firm PlanLand, NSW planning consultants, who prepare the DA drawings and Statement of Environmental Effects and manage it through council. See PlanLand’s fees.
Bespoke design
If none of the pre-designs suit, we design from scratch for your block and brief. Bespoke design is a fixed $4,300 + GST for the CDC approval set — the same fee PlanLand charges.
Can you build a granny flat on your block?
Send us the address. We check it against the NSW controls and tell you what fits, which pathway applies and what it will cost — free, within one business day.