The first seven homes based on NSW’s new “Pattern Book” for residential housing have broken ground in Sydney’s west.
Several years in the making, the Pattern Book is an effort by the NSW government to create a quicker pathway for approval of low- and medium-density homes by offering 17 designs that have already been vetted by the state’s planning authority.
Officially launched just six months ago, the Pattern Book will see its first homes come to life in Edmondson Park, in Sydney’s west, as the government looks to back its own plan by being the first developer to build one of the designs.
Landcom, a NSW government-owned corporation that develops land and property, is the official developer on the project. The government is set to sell six of the completed terrace homes in this project, while retaining one as a “demonstration home” that can be used as a real-world example for prospective builders to tour.
This particular terrace design was created by The Other Architects, and allows for three homes on a single lot or up to seven connected homes on a greenfield site. The design configures each terrace into a series of flexible rooms that can be rearranged and customised to suit different households and preferences. Where the budget and site permits, it can also become a two-storey dwelling with an extra level added to the rear building.
A new book – an old idea
With designs sourced from a public competition as well as commissioned from international architectural practices, the book takes inspiration from the past by creating housing plans that can be easily tailored to different sites across the state.
A similar guide can be thanked for such iconic and ubiquitous constructions as the Victorian terraces and art deco flats that are found on across Sydney's established neighbourhoods.
To kickstart use of the Pattern Book, the NSW government has made the designs available to obtain for the low price of $1 for the first six months, before increasing their cost to $1000.
That deadline is fast approaching, with the price about to increase a thousandfold on 1 February, 2026.
According to the government, more than 21,000 patterns have been purchased in the first six months of the Pattern Book’s release, while eight other Pattern Book projects are ready to start construction across Sydney suburbs Gymea, Cronulla, Engadine, Chipping Norton, Carlton and Baulkham Hills, and in Wollongong’s Corrimal, with more being submitted through the planning system.
Projects based on Pattern Book designs can apply for development approval through the state's Complying Development pathway, potentially allowing construction to begin in as little ten days of an application being made.
The NSW government is planning on rolling out more demonstration homes in the state, with one potential site identified at Sydney Olympic Park.
Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully touted the first build in this ambitious project just the first of many that he anticipates seeing across the state.
“We hope to see these great designs popping up in streets and suburbs right across the state.
Landcom CEO Alex Wendler added that he believed “demonstrating the potential of the Pattern Book designs” would help bring more of them to life.
The homes underway at Edmonson Park are expected to be completed in early 2027.
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