Newcastle Town Planners

Newcastle Council is one of the most difficult Council in the Hunter Valley to deal with for development applications. We are happy to help our customers navigate the Newcastle Council approval process.

No one knows the Newcastle Council DA system like Outlook Planning and Development! We have experience with Newcastle Council and all the Hunter Valley Councils including Lake Macquarie, Cessnock, Singleton, Maitland, Port Stephens and Dungog.

We are based within the Newcastle LGA in Beresfield and are proud to call Newcastle our home and take pride in the development within the area. If you need town planning assistance to get your development approved  then have a talk with one of our friendly and experienced town planners.

Outlook Planning and Development expert advice and support for all our clients and help get approvals where others can’t. We have a wealth of development knowledge combined with ex-local government experience that gives us the advantage of understanding the Council approval process and achieve positive results for our clients.

Council Frustration?

Does the thought of dealing with Newcastle City Council cause you anxiety? Are you sick of receiving different answers to the same question? Remove your stress and get us to help!

Don't know where to start?

Development applications are complicated! There are so many documents listed and so much jargon that it can seem impossible! Get an expert to manage the process for you

In the right hands

Feel safe knowing your development is in the right hands. Our knowledge and experience allows us to get our clients their approvals faster saving them time and money.

Newcastle’s best town planning firm! 

No one knows the Newcastle Council Development Application approval system like Outlook Planning and Development. We have extensive experience in obtaining development applications approvals for developments in Newcastle Council and surrounds!

We have a wealth of local knowledge with our firm being based within Newcastle Council LGA. We know how the Council works and the processes and policies that can be the difference between an approval or a refusal.

We have helped many of our clients in the Newcastle Council area to obtain development approval and know how to navigate the Newcastle Council Approval system.

The Best Town Planning Firm for Newcastle Council

Have the best town planners working for your development application! Our local experience and knowledge means that all of our Development Applications for Newcastle Council have been approved!

The Variety of Developments in Newcastle

Newcastle and the greater Hunter Area is a city currently undergoing dramatic growth and will be set to become a global city.

With Sydney ranking as one of the most expensive cities in the world, it is no wonder why so many savvy property developers are looking towards the greater Newcastle area. Boasting a median house price of around $900,000 and a median price rise of about 40 percent over the past four years. 

But it is not just the affordable property values that make Greater Newcastle a desirable area for property investment. The area boasts diverse growth drivers that help create relatively stable returns on investment.

The area is shaking lose on it reliance on the steel and coal industry as the main employer and instead is embracing industries such as education, medicine and technology. The University of Newcastle is one of Newcastle’s biggest employers and has recently expanded into the Newcastle CBD with their newly opened New Space Campus.

As Newcastle is currently undergoing dramatic change the types of developments are diverse to keep up with the change. Below are some examples of the types of developments common for the Newcastle Area.

Dwelling House

Newcastle is starting to become a hot designation for new beautiful architecturally designed homes. We have helped many of our clients get the home of their dreams despite height limits and floor space ratio restrictions.

Multi Dwelling Houses

Why build 2 houses when you could build 4! Multi dwelling housing allows you to build multiple dwellings on the one lot and then subdivide through strata subdivision.

Shop Top Housing

Newcastle has some great town centres filled with shops such as Hamilton, Newcastle and the Junction. We have helped our clients with their shop top housing projects to provide residential accommodation above street shops and offices.

Dual Occupancy

Dual occupancies are becoming common in Newcastle LGA and surrounds with many of our Newcastle clients wanting to maximise on the land size and intensify the development potential for their site.

Boarding Houses

Boarding Houses are becoming increasingly popular in Newcastle around the University and the CBD. Through the SEPP Affordable rental housing developers are able to provide high density studio apartments for lower income residents.

Subdivision

The Newcastle area is still booming with large subdivisions occurring in land release areas. Smaller subdivisions are also common with clients taking advantage of some of the incentive clauses within the LEP to create undersize lots.

Change of Use

We commonly help our clients get approval for their new business premises. Whether it is a new trendy store on at Kotara Westfield, a new restaurant on Darby Street or a Boutique Beer Bar at Hamilton, we can help get your approval.

Rezoning - Planning Proposals

Sometimes our clients come to us with plans to rezone land to allow for better outcomes for their site. Whether it is turning rural land into residential or low density to high density.

Objection Letters

View loss and privacy impacts are the biggest source of objection for all developments. Our objection letters are thorough and detailed and we have a good track record for refusal or at least forcing the developer to redesign for a better outcome.

Who we are and what we do

Outlook Planning and Development are an experienced town planning consultancy that services Newcastle, the Hunter Valley and all of NSW. We provide expert advice and support for all our clients and help get approvals where others can’t. We have a wealth of development knowledge combined with ex-local government experience that gives us the advantage of understanding the Council approval process and achieve positive results for our clients.

Advice

Our experienced town planners can provide you with expert advice to help you with your development: We offer the following services:

  • Feasibility reports
  • Pre-purchase reports
  • Unapproved works
  • Letters and advice
  • General town planning advice
  • Neighbour objection advice and reports

Reports

Get us to provide you with the report you need to get the job done! We provide the following reports:

Approvals and Certifications

Let us help you obtain your approval! We provide the following approval services:

  • Lodgement of development applications
  • Project management of applications
  • Attendance at Council meetings
  • Rezoning Application/Planning Proposals
  • Masterplans

Newcastle Council DA approvals

  • Certified Town Planners

  • Development Application Experts

  • Servicing these Suburbs

Adamstown  Bar Beach Beresfield  Birmingham Gardens  Black Hill Broadmeadow Callaghan  Carrington  Cooks Hill  Elermore Vale  Fletcher Georgetown  Hamilton Hexham  The Hill  Islington  Jesmond  The Junction Kooragang  Kotara  Lambton  Lenaghan  Maryland  Maryville  Mayfield Merewether  Minmi  New Lambton  Newcastle  Rankin Park   Sandgate  Shortland  Stockton  Tarro  Tighes Hill  Wallsend Warabrook  Waratah and Wickham

The Work We do!

With expert experience in Local Government as well as the private sector, our town planners help get development approved. Below is a list of some of the development types we work with.

Why Choose Us?

Fast Development Application Approvals

Do it right the first time and have us handle your development application. Our statement of environmental effects are detailed and cover everything for your development saving time and money to get your approval.

Experts in our field 

We have extensive and broad experience in all types of town planning. Our Planners have Ex-Council experience and know the best way to get an approval.

Size Doesn’t Matter

No matter how small or how big your job is, we can help you. We work on small renovations to large subdivisions and residential flat buildings.

Out of the Box Thinking

Our experience and knowledge of the legislation allows us to come up with solutions to problem developments where others fail.

One Stop Shop

We have an extensive list of external consultants that we work with, such as surveyors, engineers and architects, and can find the best one for your project.

Flexibility

Our Town Planners have flexible working hours to help fit our clients needs. We are available for appointments 7 days a week when requested.

Competitive Flat Rate Prices

We offer highly competitive pricing and produce high quality reports. The majority of our quotes are flat rates so you know exactly how much our services will cost

Let’s work together

Have a chat with Josh and the Team Today!

Our Blogs

Property Development Spotlight: Beresfield

Beresfield is one of the biggest hot spots within the Newcastle area with investors and first home buyers flocking to the area to score great prices for great blocks of land. We look at what to look for for development within the area and how to maximise on your investments including dual occupancies and subdivisions.

Read More »

Thornton Developments Booming

Thornton and Chisholm has become a booming area for investors and first home buyers wanting to leave Sydney and head towards the Hunter Valley. The greater Maitland area is a booming area with plenty of land available for developers.

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What can I build without Council Approval?

We explain what types of development you can do without any Council approval for everyone doing their home renovations. Read all about exempt development and what you can build this weekend after a trip to Bunnings to get your DIY tools.

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Complying Development Certificates

Want to build a house or renovate but don’t want the hassle of a development application. You might be able to get approval through a private certifier. We take some time to explain what a complying development is and the steps you need to take to obtain a CDC through a private certifier.

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Guide to Heritage Impact Statements

Heritage Impact Statements are essential for any development involving a heritage item or heritage conservation area. We go into some of the basics of what makes up a heritage impact statement and who should be preparing them for your development.

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New Generation Boarding Houses

New generation boarding houses have a lot of negativity at the moment with developers obtaining approvals for large scale boarding house developments. So what exactly is a new generation boarding house?

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Northern Beaches Dual Occupancy for beginners

Northern Beaches Town Planners explain Dual occupancy facts on the Northern Beaches including Pittwater, Warringah and Manly. We provide some information on dual occupancy developments on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. Where you should be looking and what you should be considering.

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Reducing Car Parking in CBDs

We explore the theory that as the amount of parking decreases, the appeal of driving gives way to more environmentally friendly transport modes such as walking, cycling, ride-hailing, car pooling and public transport.

Some evidence suggests reducing or capping parking pays off. In cities that have implemented these measures, driving has declined and public transport use has increased.

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SFS Stadium Redevelopment seeks new construction company

The redevelopment of the Sydney Football Stadium has been full of controversy with a massive public backlash to the development.

The development has been subject to a lot of public debate with questions as to why the NSW Government are demolishing a functioning stadium instead of upgrading the stadium at a fraction of the cost.

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