Thirteen architects have been tapped for new home and landscape designs to add to the state’s “pattern book” for home building.
In July 2024, NSW launched a competition to determine what Premier Chris Minns has billed as “the future of housing in NSW” to help address the state’s undersupply of new homes.
The state announced that it would take a page from history, launching a new “pattern book” to expedite the construction of new low- and mid-rise housing designs across the state and in Sydney particularly.
![](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 800 450"%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Sydney’s iconic terrace houses lining a street in Surry Hills. Image: Getty
Pointing to the city’s iconic Victorian terraces and art deco flats, the state government noted that much of Sydney’s architecture was thanks, in part, to a similar guide that existed many years ago, which provided dwelling designs that were used to quickly add density in suburbs ranging from Haberfield to Coogee and beyond.
Significantly, the state promised that with the housing pattern book up and running, developers and home builders making use of the designs would gain access to a fast-tracked planning pathway granting quick building approval permits.
The competition winners were announced in November 2024, introducing five designs for the forthcoming pattern book.
A winning design for a mid-rise apartment from NSW’s pattern book competition. Image: Neeson Murcutt Neille, Finding Infinity and Monash Urban Lab
Responses from the public, however, were mixed. Most objections commented on the style of the designs, which some felt were too reminiscent of the 1950s and 1960s.
New designs broaden appeal
The state has now announced that a further thirteen architectural firms will contribute designs to the book.
This will see the available options in the forthcoming book increase substantially, with six new terrace designs and six new plans for mid-rise residential flat buildings up to six stories.
In addition, a landscape design practice will produce guidance for the low-rise and mid-rise patterns to develop the green spaces around the buildings.
Announcing the additional design commissions, NSW minister for planning and public spaces Paul Scully said that the state wanted to ensure that the pattern book, once released, would be an attractive option for those looking to build.
“We’re not sacrificing quality for quantity as we deliver more homes, the NSW pattern book will have the stamp of approval from the NSW Government Architect,” he said.
“We want new homes to be built faster, but the pattern book will mean those homes are good quality, sustainable and cost-effective.”
The architecture practices selected to develop low-rise designs are:
- Anthony Gill Architects
- Carter Williamson
- SAHA
- Sam Crawford Architects
- Sibling Architecture
- Studio Johnson
The architecture practices selected for mid-rise are:
- Bennett & Trimble
- Collins and Turner
- MHN Design Union
- Nguluway DesignINC
- Silvester Fuller
- Tonkin Zulaikha Greer
The design practice selected to develop landscape guidance is Hassell.
A design by Andrew Burges Architects that was part of the initial selection for the NSW pattern book. Image: Andrew Burges Architects
Addressing Sydney’s pain points
Explaining the emphasis on terraces, semi-detached homes and mid-rise flat buildings, Mr Scully acknowledged that the capital city in particular was suffering from a lack of housing diversity.
“Sydney is currently the second most expensive city in the world and has less housing diversity than it did a century ago. This means less optionality and less opportunity for our families, young people, workers and downsizers to live in NSW.”
“As we see the average household change and evolve, we want to make sure there are homes to suit everyone, and this means more than just single dwellings and high-rise apartments,” Mr Scully said.
Are you interested in building a new home? Check out our New Homes section.
