Livable Housing Design Standard

The phase in of the Modern Homes' Livable Housing Design Standard (LHDS) commenced on 1 October 2023.

Public consultation to include minimum accessibility standards for housing in the National Construction Code (NCC) 2022 took place between 6 July and 31 August 2020.

In April 2021, a majority of building ministers agreed to include minimum accessibility standards for new residential housing and apartments in the NCC 2022.

This implemented the 2009 National Dialogue on Universal Housing Design, which committed to a 100% uptake of accessible housing features in new houses by 2020. This commitment was supported by a broad group of key industry organisations, community advocates and governments.

What this means

Under the LHDS, new houses and units must be designed and constructed so they are more accessible to

  • the elderly
  • people with disability
  • families with young children and those with temporary mobility injuries.

New homes must include:

  • a step-free access path to the entrance
  • at least 1 step-free entry
  • slightly wider internal doors and corridors
  • 1 step-free access into a bathroom and shower
  • an accessible toilet
  • reinforcing of bathroom and toilet walls to allow for future installation of handrails.

Implementation

The Queensland Development Code 4.5 was developed to support industry’s transition with implementing LHDS, which includes the following:

  • a time limited exemption to 30 September 2026 from the LHDS in limited circumstances such as certain houses on narrow lots (frontage of 12.5 metres or less where the lot was created prior to 1 October 2023) and certain small pre-built houses under 55 square metres in size that were completed prior to 1 October 2023
  • clarification that repairs and maintenance do not automatically trigger a requirement to meet the new standard
  • clarification about when major renovations must comply
  • alternative, cost-effective compliance pathways for showers and grading to floor wastes in wet areas
  • an exemption from installing a toilet on the entry level when no habitable rooms exist on that level.

Why these standards matter

A lack of accessible housing comes at a significant cost in the form of:

  • unnecessarily expensive home modifications to make homes more accessible
  • longer stays in hospital and transition care (if applicable) if discharge is delayed due to inadequate accessibility features in the home
  • not being able to age-in-place, needing to be relocated to more suitable accommodation
  • an inability for friends and family to visit each other due to inadequate accessibility features in the home.

The LHDS meet the changing needs of all of us as we age, without the need for costly adaptations.

Impact on new houses in Queensland

The impact of implementing the new LHDS was considered in the Proposal to include minimum accessibility standards for housing in the National Construction Code - decision regulatory impact statement (PDF, 3.6MB).

This document confirmed that retrofitting homes to comply with the new standard can be expensive and stressful. The estimated average cost is around $20,000 for houses and apartments. Some changes, like increasing the width of a corridor in an existing apartment, may not be possible to make.

In contrast, the average cost to ensure a new home complies with the same standards can be as little as 1 per cent of the average building cost.

Not only is it possible to build a compliant new home at a reasonable cost, but doing so increases the stock of houses that can improve a person’s economic and social participation in society by making their life easier.

People who are affected by the lack of suitable housing with accessible features will be able to leave hospital when they are ready, which reduces the need for care services. Additionally, they can live in their homes longer close to family and friends.

At the broader level, homes with LHDS features promote more inclusive communities.

Step-free entry requirements guidance

To assist with the design of step-free entry requirements we have prepared:

Case studies on accessible housing

General enquiries

Visit the Australian Building Codes Board website .

Also consider: