In 2024, Australian couple bought a 1,840-sq-m block to live next door to family; two years later, council says two modular homes make an ‘estate’, leaving them paying rent and mortgage on a home they can’t build

The dream of staying close to family remains a pipe dream for an Australian couple. In 2024, Caitlin Holme and Chris Robinson bought into a sprawling 1,840-square-metre block in Bulli, hoping to build a second modular home. Ms Holme’s sister already occupied one on the rear of the property. Their plan was simple: two families, two homes and a shared block. The sisters could live next door. But it has been two years, and the couple is still waiting to build their home. What’s the problem? According to Wollongong City Council, two modular homes on the property constitute a ‘manufactured housing estate’, which is not allowed under the site’s zoning rules.

No home, and yet paying mortgage and rent

“I think not many people realise there was this weird thing. Like suddenly two houses means it’s a manufactured housing estate? It’s not a caravan park,” Ms Holme told ABC News. The city council’s decision has left the couple, who are raising two young children, without a home while still paying rent and a mortgage.“We don’t want to give up on the plan of living next door to my sister and her family; it’s too good of a dream to walk away from at the moment. The reality is housing prices are more expensive and our generation has to be a bit more creative about how you make that a reality. But I think [with] everything we’ve been through in this process, we’re not super optimistic anymore; we still just feel so up in the air,” she told the broadcaster.

When two homes become an ‘estate’

The couple wanted to be close to their family, so they bought into the 1,840-sq-m block in 2024. Ms Holme’s sister was already living in the modular home at the back of the property. The couple planned to build their modular home at the front. They were about to live their dream life. “It felt like an amazing way we could live in a beautiful spot and make it easier in terms of costs. This idea was planted when I was pregnant with our first child, who is now four... now we’ve got our second, and she’s just turned one,” Ms Holme said.The timing stings because Holme and Robinson were following the NSW government’s own playbook. State and federal policy actively encourages modular construction as a solution to the housing crisis. In May, the government announced plans to change building laws, citing the Productivity Commission’s estimate that modern construction methods could reduce building costs by up to 20% and cut construction times by half. The couple was confident that their application would be approved, as the same modular home builder had already completed similar dual-occupancy projects in other parts of NSW, including Port Stephens. Instead, their application was rejected.Wollongong City Council said putting two modular homes on the site fell within the definition of a ‘manufactured housing estate’. “The Wollongong Local Environment Plan permits one such modern method of construction (MMC) development per allotment within the current zoning,” a spokesperson said.“More than one MMC home presently constitutes a manufactured housing estate, which is not permissible under the current zoning. Planning legislation does not allow a council to approve a prohibited use.”

More trouble

The couple wanted to find a way to make this work. After all, they were still paying rent and a mortgage without actually being able to live in their new home. So they consulted a town planner, subdivided the land and resubmitted their application. But the outcome was the same.“It feels like we’re still in purgatory. I feel like we did everything that was asked of us. We followed the state and federal government’s advice to move out of the city. They’re spruiking modular housing. We ticked all those boxes and now we’re just waiting,” Mr Robinson told the network.

Proposed reforms could change the process

The NSW government has since introduced building reforms intended to remove the distinction between modular and traditionally constructed homes in the approvals process. Building Minister Anoulack Chanthivong said the changes would establish a single approval pathway for all housing, regardless of construction method. “It will establish a new building approvals pathway that will no longer be determined by the construction method, so a house will be treated as a house whether it be prefabricated, traditionally built or a combination of both,” the minister said in a statement. The minister added that the reforms would cut red tape, speed up approvals and make it easier to build homes. The city council also stated that it had asked for clearer legislation for approving modular builds.“Further detail is required and [the] council is looking forward to the new legislation clarifying definitions and planning pathways that will better enable us to consider modular housing applications. This includes vagaries within the definitions and requirements for manufactured homes and manufactured home estates,” a spokesperson said.Planning Minister Paul Scully was more direct about the inconsistency and said the proposed reforms would resolve the family’s trouble. “When you’ve got this anomaly… that modern methods of construction aren’t dealt with in the same way as traditional methods of construction, we’ve got to deal with that. If we pass the bill… that uncertainty gets resolved.”