Dwellings on <40ha farming zone properties

I have just started a web site to try and change the planning laws regarding farm zoned blocks of land under 100 acres , My wife and I were burnt out on Black Saturday 2009 in Callignee Victoria , WE lost our house 45 head of breeders that were in the process of calving our bull and 3 horses all of our farm machinery fences in fact everything , we have 2 blocks of land 126 acres on which we had our residence and 19 acres across a government road 20 meters away , we applied to get a planning permit 15 months ago for the 19 acres which is rated rural residential but zoned farm and we were refused a permit , The government changed the zoning of these small blocks without any consultation by there owners , we have been paying residential rates on the 19 acres for 25 years and have every rate notice , not only can't we build on our block these laws make the land worthless , if anyone has one of these blocks and wants to join my web site to help fight these unfair laws please contact me , It makes me sick to think they are cutting up the best farm land around Warragul - Pakenham - Drouin - Berwick and the like and won't let my wife and me build on our sandy land that is definitely NOT farm land. I'm not sure about advertising our web page here and don't wish to break any of the site rules , maybe someone could set me straight on this and if it's alright I will put up my URL , best regards Murray.

 

Yes that's fine Murray - go ahead.

 

I have stumbled across this forum in my research “frustration” as a vendor selling a small parcel of land, 20 acres (nearly 9ha) located in a Farming Zone “FZ”. The property is located in Central Victoria, has a lovely outlook, situated on the corner of a quiet sealed road and an all weather road, positioned 15 minutes to a small country township and 30 minutes to a larger town. The school bus passes daily and power is onsite. The land has lifestyle properties adjoining on similar sized land holdings.

I am on the “roundabout”:
>buyers reluctant to purchase without a permit to build.
>shire planning departments requiring the purchaser to submit a farm plan that details why and how a home will support the proposed rural enterprise (climatic conditions would ideally support olives, proteas, grape vines or evening truffles as a boutique farming enterprise).

I have posted on this forum to reassure and encourage anyone thinking about purchasing a similar property to negotiate with the vendor and discuss options prior to just dismissing the idea of purchasing small acreages in farming zones as being to difficult. As a vendor I would be happy to commit to a contract subject to approval of a permit to build, I would also consider contributing to the basic costs of this process.

My message: These planning restrictions are frustrating to all, buyer and vendors, often time consuming and clouded by lack of clarity. Let’s work together to overcome these hurdles.

 

Hi everyone. I found this thread as my fiance and I are beginning the process of purchasing vacant land around Kinglake West in Victoria to build a home on. We have found an interesting looking block and just as Emily said back in 2012, it is FZ. I have called council to discuss what this means in terms of being able to build a home - waiting to hear back. We have had some interesting experiences with bank and LMI (lenders mortgage insurance) as we will be purchasing over 80%. Apparently some banks will not lend to first home buyers purchasing vacant land in Kinglake as the max property value they will insure on is $280,000 (random figure). Some others proceed to say they won't lend to us if we don't have the 20% as vacant land is deemed to be an "investment" purchase and if it is an "investment" you need more of a deposit lol.. very confusing.

Anyway, if Emily is still around and receiving notifications on this thread, would be interested to see how she went with it all. If anyone has any advice for us, would be great too.

It's been some time, but thanks for the message Scotty, as its good to hear that vendors would be open to these conditions too Hope it all worked out for you.

Best wishes,
Mariella

 

I too have just found this thread after looking to purchase a small lot of 4 acres in Golden Plains Shire near Geelong. However, whilst the council were extremely polite and happy to discuss, there seems to be a strict refusal to allow a dwelling on farm zoned land in this shire. I'd be interested to hear of any experiences in this area.
Richard