Breaking the rules? Informal housing, urban deregulation and secondary dwellings in Australia

Secondary dwellings, from ‘backyard’ and basement units to converted garages or ‘granny flats’ are increasingly viewed as a potential source of lower cost rental accommodation. However, in many cities of the so-called global north, secondary dwellings are restricted under local planning rules designed to maintain lower density residential neighbourhoods. This article examines the outcome of planning reform to legalise secondary dwellings as a housing solution, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Traditionally, secondary dwelling production has been seen as a form of unregulated/informal dwelling type. In response to a chronic shortage of affordable renting supply, this paper considers how the state has undertaken a process of deregulation of planning controls to permit secondary dwelling production. We call this an example of ‘calculated informality’. We examine the case with reference to data on the geography and scale of secondary dwelling production, as well as interviews with secondary dwelling industry groups and local council officers responsible for enforcing planning regulation. Our analysis shows that deregulatory reform enabled an informal rental market in secondary dwellings to grow at scale; however, affordability and secure private rental outcomes remain unclear.