An interactive website that allows home renovators to design their renovation and check immediately whether it complies with the rules will reduce bureaucratic delays, says the Baird government.
The Planning Portal allows renovators to click on a 3D model of a home to check requirements for driveways or decks, for example, or whether a kitchen revamp requires planning approval.
It covers local and state planning controls.
The NSW government is seeking to boost the number of renovations that can be fast-tracked by being carried out as "complying developments" –- avoiding the need to submit full development applications with local councils – by redrafting the Housing Code in plain English.
"These changes will mean the community can build or renovate their home with less time, less money, less paperwork and less frustration," Planning Minister Rob Stokes said.
"Simplifying the code will mean you can build a house or add a bedroom without needing to be a planning expert or a lawyer to understand the rules."
The new draft code uses diagrams.
Approvals for complying developments that meet set standards are issued within 22 days on average, compared to an average 71 days for development applications (DAs).
Last year, complying developments made up one-third of all development approvals.
The top three complying developments applied for were:
1. Residential alterations and additions (9853)
2. Single new dwellings (7745)
3. Commercial/retail/office (5480)
Housing Industry Association executive director David Bare said the portal "drags the inherently complex planning process into the digital age".
By checking the design on the website, home renovators will know whether a minor adjustment will allow them to meet complying development rules, and cut approval times from 10 weeks to 10 days, he said.
Simpler language in the Housing Code will leave less room for interpretation and confusion, so builders don't get different results from council to council, he said.
