What distinguishes the CDC from the DA? Which approval route is appropriate for your construction or renovation project? There are typically two ways to have your plans authorized whether you want to construct a new home or make significant renovations: Development Application (DA) or Complying Development Certificate (CDC). Although each alternative has advantages and disadvantages, these two are the most significant ones:
(1) Timeliness of approval
(2) The degree of flexibility in the plan.
In any case, before any construction on your project can begin, a DA or CDC must be filed and approved by the appropriate authority.
Development Application
Development Application (DA) should be submitted to your local council. The Development Control Plan (DCP) and Local Environmental Plan of the local council in which your block is located will specify the exact controls for a DA(LEP).
Before submitting your DA, it's a good idea to talk to your immediate neighbours about your intentions and address any potential concerns or objections they may have. This will give you time to address and resolve any issues before submitting your DA.
At the application lodgement stage, council will confirm you've provided the necessary documentation, request any extra required information, alert neighbours (and the community, if applicable), and engage internal or external expert referrals.
It will then move on to the assessment stage, when council will examine all supporting material for your application and evaluate each component totheir DCP and LEP. Any specific parts of your design that are outside of the council's development controls will be evaluated on their basis. There is normally a margin of flexibility built into theseregulations. The main benefit of using the DA approval method rather than the CDC is the freedom it allows.
The last step is obtaining a Construction Certificate, which must be obtained before any building work can start after consent has been given.
The full DA procedure takes, on average, 3 months. The process may go more quickly in general the clearer and more thorough your first documentation is. The approval procedure will be extended if council needs to "stop the clock" to ask for and wait for additional information or if adjustments to your plans are required.
Complying Development Certificate
Instead of your local council, a private certifier evaluates a Complying Development Certificate (CDC), which is measured against a predetermined development standard called a Code. There are no distinct planning codes amongst various local council regions because the Code is a state-wide planning control. Your local council must still be notified if you use a private certifier to issue a CDC even though theyhave no input in the approval procedure.
The amount of documentation needed for a CDC submission is less onerous than what is needed for the majority of DAs. If your design complies with the Code, your private certifier will evaluate it and approve it.
This means that your application will be denied if even one part of your design does not comply with the required Code; there is no discretion or flexibility in this. Instead of councils giving tolerance in a DA for being unable to meet their development control standards, this lack of flexibility frequently means you need to make compromises to your design to satisfy Code requirements. This can limit the conditions under which you can implement your design vision.
The CDC approval option was created so that low impact developments may avoid the local council's approval process, which can occasionally be burdensome. As a result, the CDC approval turnaround time is typically significantly quicker (between 2-3 weeks) than a DA approval turnaroundtime (which takesfrom 3 months in general).
Which approval method should you select?
Instead of designing to a predetermined set of regulations created by your local council or the CDC guidelines, keeping an open mind at the beginning of your design journey is crucial to securing the greatest conclusion for your project.
Your architect will be able to suggest whether a DA or CDC is the best route for project approval after you and the designer have agreed on the first design concepts.
This decision will be determined by:
Your local council
The layout of the house you're constructing or remodelling
The block or land you are developing
Time Schedule
In general, CDC approval is quicker and less expensive if you have a simple build or renovation that can easily meet CDC requirements and time is of the essence.
On the other hand, if your ideal home does not adhere to the tight CDC regulations, you are remodelling in accordance with heritage regulations, or your house is located in an environmentally sensitive location, applying a DA through council could be your only choice. Even if the DA process takes longer, it can go quite well if you have thorough, expert documentation and are not trying to go beyond the council's development controls' general restrictions.
Who can assist you in submitting your application?
Because submitting an application can be intimidating, C2 team handle this task on our clients' behalf. We complete all the relevant paperwork and architectural documentation, liaise with external experts for essential reports, and handle any enquiries or additional information requests from council or the private certifier that may come back regarding your application.
Additional resources:
On the website of the NSW Government, you may view the detailed laws and rules.
On the website of your local council, there will be a section devoted to regional developments. Information about the DA procedure and the necessary papers will be provided in this section.
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