As of the 1st of October 2023, new houses and renovations are required to meet additional “housing design guidelines” to make accessibility easier for aged and disabled occupants.
Some of the upgrades to class 1 houses include:
- 820mm clear openings to entry areas and habitable rooms
- Wider than normal hallways
- Flat step-free transitions to at least one entrance door, bathrooms and showers
- Reinforcing in toilet and bathroom walls
- A clear 1200mm in front of one toilet pan
The above requirements in a house are increasing the overall area of a house slightly and adding extra construction costs to new buildings. This has been seen by recent studies and news report highlighting the extra cost to build
The idea behind the “Livable Housing Design Guidelines” is to allow for aged persons to remain in their homes longer or to move into houses with relatives to reduce the need to find alternative accommodation. Not all future houses will require aged occupants or persons with disabilities but with provisions built in it helps to have the ability to house occupants with the necessary requirements.
Upcoming releases of the NCC building code may look at further increasing the need to provide additional upgrades to houses for better accessibility.