Reference Data · New South Wales
Fairfield City DCP: the dwelling controls, as published.
6 controls for low-density residential — dwelling houses, taken from Fairfield City Wide Development Control Plan 2024 — Chapter 5A Dwelling Houses. As at 2026-08-29.
NSW has no statewide dwelling setback or site-coverage standard. The LEP sets zone, height and FSR; the numbers that shape a build sit in each council's DCP — here, the 6 that Fairfield City publishes numerically. Anything its DCP assesses on merit rather than a fixed number is absent from this table: not a zero, and not a permission.
Fairfield City Council — published dwelling controls
| Control | Published value | Qualifier |
|---|---|---|
| Front setback | 4.5 m | Prevailing-line control: any part of the dwelling (except landscaping/retaining walls) must be within 1.5 m of the average existing front setback, averaged from the adjoining four houses on either side; where that average yields a setback less than 4.5 m the dwelling minimum is 4.5 m, and garage/carport minimum is 5.5 m (5A.2.3.1). |
| Secondary street setback | 1.5 m | — |
| Side setback | 0.9 m | — |
| Rear setback | 4 m | — |
| Landscaped area | 30% | deep-soil requirement applies |
| Private open space | 60 m² | — |
Source: Fairfield City Wide Development Control Plan 2024 — Chapter 5A Dwelling Houses. Clauses: 5A.1 (lot size / site requirements), 5A.2.1 (FSR), 5A.2.3.1 (front setback), 5A.2.3.2 (side & rear setback), 5A.2.3.3 (corner/secondary setback), 5A.4.1.1 (private open space), 5A.4.2 (landscaping / soft soil). Open the source DCP.
Scope: R2 dwelling houses. These are the controls for R2, Fairfield City’s low-density residential zone. Do not apply these figures to a dual occupancy, duplex, secondary dwelling or multi-dwelling housing development — those are assessed under different standards, which Feasibly has not codified.
What qualifies these Fairfield City controls?
- Current DCP is the Fairfield City Wide Development Control Plan 2024 (in effect 22 Aug 2024), which supplements Fairfield LEP 2013; dwelling-house controls are in Chapter 5A. Controls above are for a standard detached single dwelling in the R2 Low Density Residential zone (Chapter 5C covers narrow lots and Chapter 5B secondary dwellings — not included here).
- front_setback_m = 4.5 is the stated minimum floor for the dwelling; the governing control is a prevailing-line rule (within 1.5 m of the average front setback of the adjoining four houses either side). Garage/carport front setback minimum is 5.5 m (5A.2.3.1 d).
- rear_setback_m = 4 is the stated upper-floor rear-wall setback where adjoining residential properties (5A.2.3.2 c). A separate numeric ground-floor rear setback is not specified in the chapter.
- side_setback_m = 0.9 m (900 mm) at ground level; upper-floor side walls on southern/western boundaries require a minimum 1.5 m setback (5A.2.3.2 a,b). Battleaxe lots require a minimum 1.5 m to all boundaries (5A.2.3.1 g).
- No numeric site-coverage percentage in the DCP — building bulk is controlled via Floor Space Ratio (most commonly 0.45:1 for a detached dwelling, set by the Fairfield LEP 2013 FSR Map), so all site_coverage fields are null.
- landscaped_flat_pct = 30 is 'soft soil zone' (deep soil / permeable), min 30% of the site; 50% of that soft-soil area must be in the rear yard and 50% of the front yard must be landscaped; areas narrower than 2.5 m are excluded (5A.4.2).
- pos_min_sqm = 60 with a required 5 m x 6 m soft-soil portion in the rear yard and ≥50% grassed/soft landscaped in the rear yard; no small-site reduction is offered (5A.4.1.1).
- Fetch note: council site and S3 mirror both returned Zyte 'Website Ban' (520) on httpResponseBody; the official council PDF text was retrieved intact (567 pages) via an extraction proxy — content is the genuine Fairfield City Wide DCP 2024.
Wondering how this compares with asking an AI to read the scheme? We wrote that up here.
How reliable is this Fairfield City DCP data?
These values were machine-extracted from the source DCP and have not been independently re-checked. Treat them as screening grade: good enough to compare councils and to know which questions to ask, not a substitute for reading the clause before you rely on it. This is a different and lower tier of confidence than our Victorian zone schedules, which are read and verified from the source planning scheme by a person. We do not present the two as equivalent.
A council's DCP can be amended at any time and this page reflects the document as at 2026-08-29. Where a control is absent above, the DCP either sets no number or assesses that parameter on merit.
This information is provided for research and preliminary screening only. It does not constitute professional planning, legal or architectural advice. Always verify with Fairfield City Council before making decisions.
Fairfield City planning controls — common questions
Do these Fairfield City controls apply to a duplex or dual occupancy?
No. The figures on this page are Fairfield City’s dwelling-house controls. A dual occupancy, duplex, secondary dwelling or multi-dwelling housing development is assessed under different standards — Feasibly has not codified those, so do not apply the numbers above to one.
Which zone do these Fairfield City controls apply to?
R2 Low Density Residential — Fairfield City’s low-density residential zone. Confirmed against the zones the Fairfield City LEP actually contains. This page presents the low-density residential case; some DCP sections also cover other residential zones, and the source above names the zones it applies to.
What planning controls does Fairfield City Council publish for dwellings?
Fairfield City Council publishes 6 dwelling controls in Fairfield City Wide Development Control Plan 2024 — Chapter 5A Dwelling Houses: front setback, secondary street setback, side setback, rear setback, landscaped area, private open space. Each value and its clause reference is listed on this page, as at 2026-08-29.
Does NSW have a statewide dwelling setback standard?
No. The Local Environmental Plan sets zone, building height and floor space ratio, but the numbers that shape a dwelling — setbacks, site coverage, landscaped area and private open space — sit in each council’s Development Control Plan. That is why these figures are published per council rather than per state.
How reliable are these Fairfield City figures?
They are machine-extracted from Fairfield City Wide Development Control Plan 2024 — Chapter 5A Dwelling Houses and have not been independently re-checked, so treat them as screening grade — good enough to compare councils and to know which questions to ask, not a substitute for reading the clause. This is a lower confidence tier than our Victorian schedules, which a person reads and verifies from the source scheme.
Do these controls apply to every property in Fairfield City?
No. These are the council-wide published figures for low-density residential — dwelling houses. The zone, any overlays and the consent triggers that actually apply depend on the individual parcel, and a control absent from this page means the DCP either sets no number or assesses that parameter on merit — not that the requirement is zero.
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