Can you build a townhouse in Victoria? Yes, and meeting the code skips the objection fight.

Often, yes. Since 31 March 2025 the Townhouse and Low-Rise Code sets clear "deemed-to-comply" standards for projects of two or more homes up to three storeys. If your plans meet every standard that applies to your lot, the council must approve them, and neighbours cannot take the decision to the state tribunal (VCAT). Your project still goes to public notice so neighbours are told about it, but their objection can no longer stall it at the tribunal. If you miss even one standard, the normal review process and third-party appeal rights come back.

It is a numeric rule you either meet or you do not. There is no discretion or argument about it. Examples in the code include a six-metre front setback, tree canopy and open space requirements, room sizes, storage, sunlight, and energy standards. If your design meets every deemed-to-comply standard that applies, the project is treated as compliant and the council cannot apply extra policies or weigh objections against it. This replaces the older system where an assessor could judge a project against broad "objectives" and a neighbour could dispute that judgement.

The first track is the statewide code: the Townhouse and Low-Rise Code for buildings up to three storeys, and the newer Mid-Rise Code for four-to-six-storey apartments. Both use deemed-to-comply standards, so a compliant project skips the objection fight anywhere in the state. The second track is the activity centres program: around 60 town centres near train stations and tram lines in Melbourne where the state raises the height limits so taller buildings are allowed. In short, the code changes how you get approved, and the activity centres change how much you can build near transport.

About 60 activity centres have been identified across Melbourne. An activity centre is a town centre or shopping strip near a train station or tram line, a place with jobs, shops and services already in place. The rollout came in stages: 10 pilot centres with plans finalised in 2024, 25 Stage 1 centres finalised on 31 March 2026, and 23 Stage 2 centres under review in mid-2026. Together the 60 centres are meant to hold more than 300,000 new homes by 2051.

The Mid-Rise Code is a set of deemed-to-comply planning rules for apartment buildings of four to six storeys in Victoria's residential areas. It was introduced by Amendment VC300, gazetted on 19 March 2026, and it commenced operation on 16 April 2026. Like the townhouse code, a proposal that meets the standards has its third-party appeal rights removed and must be approved. It extends the same "meet the rules, skip the fight" approach from low-rise up into mid-rise heights, which matters most near the activity centres.

In most cases, no. Since Amendment VC253 in December 2023, a small second home of 60 square metres or less on the same lot as an existing house does not need a planning permit, as long as your lot has no flooding, environmental, or other special planning controls over it. You do still need a building permit, which checks siting, safety, and design. The rule is aimed at making it faster and cheaper to add one extra small home in a back garden.

It can be up to 60 square metres and must have its own kitchen, bathroom, and toilet. You can rent it to anyone, including someone outside your family, which makes it a real income option. You cannot subdivide it or sell it separately from the main house. It stays part of the one property title. There is no car parking space required, and it must not be connected to piped natural gas, which pushes new second homes toward all-electric.

The Townhouse and Low-Rise Code and the Mid-Rise Code apply across the state of Victoria, not only Melbourne. So the "meet the rules, skip the objection" pathway is available in regional cities and towns too, wherever the relevant residential zones apply. The activity centres program, on the other hand, is a Melbourne program. The roughly 60 centres are all in metropolitan Melbourne, near its train and tram network. That is the key split: the codes are statewide, the higher height limits are centred on Melbourne's transport hubs.

The Victorian Government says meeting the deemed-to-comply standards can cut planning permit assessment time by at least 60 percent. On top of that, a compliant project avoids the state tribunal (VCAT) appeal stage entirely, which on its own can add many months. The saving is real, but it is conditional: it only applies if your design meets every standard. Miss one, and you drop back into the slower, discretionary process where the time saving disappears.

The trade is deliberate and it has drawn criticism. Neighbours are still told about a project through public notice, but if it meets every code standard they cannot appeal the council's decision at the tribunal. Supporters say this stops a single objection from adding months of delay to housing the city needs. Critics, including some councils and resident groups, argue it reduces local say over what gets built next door. For an owner or builder, the practical point is that certainty now comes from hitting the numbers, not from winning an argument.

Victoria's Housing Statement, released in September 2023, set a target of 2.24 million new homes across the state by 2051. It also set a goal that about 70 percent of that growth should happen in areas that are already built up, rather than on the edges of the city. The activity centres program is the main tool for directing that infill growth to places near trains and trams, and the codes are the tool for making each project faster to approve. The target is long-term, so the early years are about setting up the rules, not hitting the full number yet.

It is in force and still expanding as of mid-2026. The Townhouse and Low-Rise Code has been operating since March 2025, the Mid-Rise Code started in April 2026, and the granny flat rule has run since December 2023. The activity centres program is moving through its stages: the pilot and Stage 1 centres are finalised, and Stage 2 is under review. There is no repeal or general pause. The trend in 2026 is more centres and more code coverage, not less.

Check two things about your lot before you design anything. First, is your lot inside or near one of the roughly 60 activity centres? If yes, your height limit may be well above the surrounding streets, and mid-rise may be on the table. Second, can your project meet every deemed-to-comply standard in the relevant code? If yes, you get the fast, appeal-proof pathway; if not, plan for the slower discretionary route. The single biggest lever is designing to the numbers from the start, because that is what removes the objection risk.