Small boarding house certification

What is a Class 1b building?

Class 1b covers a boarding house, guest house, hostel or similar building that stays within set floor area and resident limits. It also covers four or more single homes on one lot used for short-term holiday stays. That group has no floor area limit.

The building code gives Class 1b some concessions that a Class 3 building does not get. The idea is that a smaller building with fewer people carries a lower fire risk. Above the limits, a boarding house is Class 3 and is outside our Class 1 and 10 scope.

What smoke alarms and lighting do I need?

Physically, the biggest change from an ordinary house is how many smoke alarms are needed. A Class 1b building must have one in each bedroom, in each corridor or hallway that serves a bedroom, and on every other storey. If there is no corridor, an alarm is placed between the bedrooms and the remainder of the building.

Alarms must meet AS 3786, be mains powered where the building has mains power, and be interconnected if more than one is installed. Evacuation lighting is required as well, switched on by the corridor alarm. This can be a light built into the alarm itself, or the lighting in the corridor or area that alarm covers.

A new Class 1b building can also need access for people with a disability, including access to and within at least one bedroom.

How does planning define a boarding house?

State planning rules now treat a boarding house as affordable rental housing. On a permanent basis, it must be used as affordable housing and managed by a community housing provider that is registered. Tenancies run for 3 months or longer. Private rooms start at 12 square metres for one person and are 16 to 25 square metres for a couple, not counting any private kitchen or bathroom.

Co-living housing is a separate use. It has at least 6 private rooms, shared indoor and outdoor space and no affordability rule. A small share house may fit neither definition. Confirm the planning use with council before you design around it.

What happens after people move in?

The Boarding Houses Act 2012 requires a general boarding house with 5 or more residents to be registered with NSW Fair Trading, and council inspects registered premises within 12 months. A boarding house also needs a fire safety statement every year, which an ordinary house does not. The statement is sent to council and Fire and Rescue NSW and confirms the fire safety measures are being maintained.

Lot size, parking and density numbers

The state housing rules set several figures that shape a boarding house design. Since 1 July 2022, the minimum lot size for boarding houses and co-living housing has been 600 square metres in the R2 zone and 800 square metres on other land.

Car parking is set at 0.2 spaces per room in accessible areas and 0.5 spaces per room elsewhere, unless council's plan sets a lower rate. Bicycle and motorcycle parking must also be adequate. On land where residential flat buildings or shop top housing are permitted with consent, a boarding house can gain a 30% floor space ratio bonus.

Boarding houses are no longer a use the state forces councils to allow in R2. Whether one is permitted there now depends on the local environmental plan (LEP), so check it before design starts.

Watch how the bonus interacts with the building class. Extra floor space can push a design past 300 square metres, or the room count past 12 residents, and either step makes it Class 3.

When does it become an assisted boarding house?

A general boarding house becomes an assisted boarding house once it accommodates 2 or more people with additional needs. That term is defined in the Boarding Houses Act 2012.

As well as registering with NSW Fair Trading, the operator must hold an authorisation from Homes NSW, whose assisted boarding houses team decides whether one is needed. Some premises are exempt, including hotels, hospitals, nursing homes, retirement villages and certain government-funded disability or school and university accommodation.

If an assisted boarding house runs without authorisation, Homes NSW may take no action, arrange further assessment or advise on what is required. Prosecution is a last resort where the proprietor or manager knowingly keeps operating against that advice. Ask the future operator about the expected residents early, since their needs can change what the operator is legally required to hold.

What operators owe residents

Every resident needs a written occupancy agreement. Operators may use the standard form or write their own, and the occupancy principles form part of every agreement whether written in or not. Either side can take a dispute to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

Several principles depend on the building itself. The premises must be reasonably clean, secure and in reasonable repair, and residents have a right to quiet enjoyment. Except in an emergency, operators must give written notice before entering for inspections or repairs.

Money rules apply as well. A security deposit cannot exceed 2 weeks of occupancy fees and must be refunded within 14 days of a resident leaving, less allowable deductions. Fee increases need 4 weeks of written notice, and utility charges are limited to the cost of supply plus a reasonable measure of use.

Who checks the fire safety measures?

The measures a boarding house must keep working are listed in its fire safety schedule. Since 1 August 2023, new schedules must follow the NSW Government template.

When new building work finishes, a fire safety certificate is issued by or for the owner, confirming a qualified person installed and checked the measures in the schedule. The occupation certificate (OC) is issued together with that certificate and the schedule.

From then on, the yearly fire safety statement must cover every essential fire safety measure in the building. An accredited practitioner (fire safety) verifies the measures, and the statement also confirms the exit systems comply. Some critical measures need supplementary statements at intervals set by the schedule.