Mathieson Avenue
North Fremantle
We design and build custom homes in North Fremantle.
Our projects typically start at $1.5M for the build, excluding land. North Fremantle is a heritage suburb first: a designated Heritage Area covers more than nine tenths of it, and the scheme caps houses in the Residential zone at two storeys. Here is what that means for a new home.
Our homes in North Fremantle
Mathieson Avenue is a modern home on a 480 m2 block in North Fremantle, completed in June 2022. The project page shows a contemporary house that sits comfortably in its street, and that is the brief here: the City of Fremantle treats the streetscape as part of the planning test, and a new home has to answer it in form and materials.
Tours of finished and in-progress homes are by invitation; ask us whether Mathieson Avenue can be visited.
Building in North Fremantle: what changes
The scheme and the codes. North Fremantle is in the City of Fremantle under Local Planning Scheme No. 4 (text dated 8 May 2026). Port, rail, industrial land, foreshores and river make up 79.3% of the suburb's area and carry no residential code. Of the rest, R25 covers about 14.0%, with R35 (2.8%) and R60 (2.3%). House lots are mostly R25, lower than most Fremantle suburbs, with R35 to R60 pockets near Queen Victoria Street and the river.
Two storeys and 5.5 m. Schedule 7 of the scheme, Local Planning Area 3 North Fremantle, clause 3.1, limits Residential zone buildings to "a maximum of two storeys (maximum external wall height of 5.5 metres as measured from ground level with a maximum roof plain pitch of 33 degrees)"; everything else follows the R-Codes. Sub-areas vary it: Rocky Bay allows a 7.0 m wall and 10 m ridge; Cypress Hill sets heights lot by lot from 4.0 to 9.0 m and counts an undercroft garage as a storey; Northbank, Staples Street and the McCabe Street area (LPP 3.11) have their own controls. The 5.5 m wall decides ceiling heights, roof form and where the upper floor sits. Check which sub-area controls apply to the lot with the City of Fremantle.
The Heritage Area. The North Fremantle Precinct is a designated Heritage Area covering 92.3% of the suburb. LPP 3.6.1 (September 2025) values it, among other things, for "its concentration of mainly modest workers accommodation dating from the Federation and Inter-War periods". Places are contributory or non-contributory, and the mapping is incomplete. Confirm the contributory status of the existing place with the City of Fremantle. Under LPP 3.6 a new house must respond to the contributory streetscape; a draft LPP 3.22 North Fremantle has been advertised, but we have not seen its text. Confirm the adopted wording of LPP 3.22 with the City of Fremantle.
Listed places. Eleven State Register places intersect the suburb, among them Hillcrest, the Railway Hotel, the former post office and town hall on Queen Victoria Street and the Fremantle Traffic Bridge. Public mapping records 337 Heritage List points and 415 Local Heritage Survey points, many of them houses and limestone walls.
Demolition. Clause 4.14.1 says Council "will only grant planning approval for the demolition of a building or structure where it is satisfied that the building or structure: (a) has limited or no cultural heritage significance, and (b) does not make a significant contribution to the broader cultural heritage significance and character of the locality". LPP 1.7 exempts demolition only where the R-Codes do not apply and the place is not State registered, heritage listed or in a Heritage Area; inside a Heritage Area, only outbuildings under 25 m2 that are not masonry or limestone, and some fences, are exempt. So a house demolition here needs development approval under clause 4.14 and then a Building Act 2011 permit; a limestone wall on the lot may be a listed place itself. The ABS recorded 28 new house approvals in the Fremantle statistical area, which also covers central Fremantle, in the 12 months to August 2026, up from 19.
River, coast and ground. The Swan Canning Development Control Area covers about 3.7% of the suburb along the river, and DBCA "has planning and development authority over the DCA, which includes private property"; we found no published river setback or floor level for North Fremantle lots. Confirm the river setback and finished floor level with DBCA and the City's foreshore plan. On the coast, Port Beach is "a recognised coastal erosion hotspot", a 2017 adaptation plan calls sections of Port, Leighton and Mosman beaches "exposed, and vulnerable to coastal processes", and a $175,000 State grant announced on 1 September 2026 funds a full hazard plan. The ground is Spearwood sand over 37.4% of the suburb, Tamala Limestone 16.9%, and made ground, fill, over 22.0% on the port and former rail yard land.
Rules in motion. The 2025 Report of Review recommends a new Scheme No. 5 and puts North Fremantle's potential at about 1,043 additional dwellings, mainly at McCabe Street and Leighton Beach. Rules change. Confirm the current codes for your lot with the City of Fremantle or with us before you buy or design.
North Fremantle at a glance
| Measure | Figure | As at | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| New houses approved, 12 months | 28in the Fremantle statistical area (19 the year before) | September 2025 to August 2026 | ABS Building Approvals |
| Residential density codes | About 14.0%of the suburb area R25, 2.8% R35, 2.3% R60 | Sampled 31 October 2026 | DPLH via Landgate SLIP |
| Swan Canning development control area | About 3.7%of the suburb area, along the river | Sampled 31 October 2026 | DBCA via Landgate SLIP |
| Separate houses | 26.2%of private dwellings | 2021 Census | ABS |
| Population | 3,947 | 2021 Census | ABS |
Figures are for the suburb or statistical area named. Area shares are grid estimates from public mapping and are not lot designations.
For current median sale prices, see REIWA's North Fremantle suburb profile.
What a $1.5M+ build looks like in North Fremantle
Our projects typically start at $1.5M for the build, excluding land. Our cost guide puts a Trendsetter home at $4,000 to $6,000+ per square metre, with builds from $1.5M to $4M and most between $1.5M and $3M. In North Fremantle the envelope is set before the budget is: two storeys and a 5.5 m wall in most of the Residential zone, so floor area comes from using the block well rather than building higher. Heritage adds time rather than square metres: the demolition case, the streetscape response and, on a river lot, DBCA's approval all come before construction.
How we work
Trendsetter Homes has designed and built custom homes across Perth since 1997. Design, construction and interiors are handled by one team, so the people who draw your home are the people who build it, and the interior designer is in the room from the first brief. Before you commit, we show you real homes: private tours of finished and in-progress client homes, by invitation, with no obligation. Many clients talk to us before they buy a block, and that is a good time to start.
The people you will work with
Design, construction and interiors are one team. These are the people you meet first.
Nearby suburbs we build in
The rules on this page are the City of Fremantle's. Check each neighbouring suburb's own scheme and heritage list.
Elsewhere on the coast: Karrinyup, Marmion, Ocean Reef.
All areas: see every suburb we have written up.
Questions about building in North Fremantle
Do I need approval to demolish a house in North Fremantle?
Yes: development approval, then a demolition permit. The precinct is a Heritage Area, so LPP 1.7's exemption does not apply, and clause 4.14.1 of Local Planning Scheme No. 4 lets Council approve demolition only where the building has limited or no cultural heritage significance and does not contribute significantly to the character of the locality.
How high can I build in North Fremantle?
In the Residential zone, Schedule 7 Local Planning Area 3 clause 3.1 allows two storeys with a 5.5 m external wall height and a roof pitch of up to 33 degrees. Rocky Bay (7.0 m wall, 10 m ridge), Cypress Hill (lot by lot, 4.0 to 9.0 m), Northbank (three storeys, 8 m, on R60 lots) and the McCabe Street area have their own limits.
Is every house in North Fremantle heritage listed?
No, but nearly every block is in the Heritage Area, which covers 92.3% of the suburb. In a Heritage Area, places are contributory or non-contributory and a new house must respond to the contributory streetscape under LPP 3.6; the City can confirm a specific place.
Does the river change what I can build?
On the 3.7% of the suburb inside the Swan Canning Development Control Area, yes. DBCA has planning and development authority over that area, including private property. We found no published river setback or floor level for North Fremantle lots; ask DBCA and the City before you design.
Talk to us
Book a design meeting at our Osborne Park office, or request a private tour of a finished or in-progress home. Office (08) 9446 2822. For tours, call Marek on 0412 688 079. Or use the enquiry form below.
Request a design chat