Hurlingham Road
South Perth
We design and build custom homes in South Perth and the river suburbs around it.
Our projects typically start at $1.5M for the build, excluding land. South Perth has had a new scheme, Heritage List and tree policy since March 2024, and this page sets out what each means for a new house on a South Perth block.
Our homes in South Perth
Hurlingham Road is a contemporary minimalist home in progress on a 756 m2 block in South Perth, due for completion in 2027. A block like that is the setting this page is written for: a single code under the 2024 scheme, an older house to remove, and the City's heritage and tree rules to check first. Nearby, Conochie Crescent in Manning is in progress on 427 m2 for 2026.
Private tours are by invitation; ask us which homes can be visited.
Building in South Perth: what changes
The scheme and the codes. South Perth's Local Planning Scheme No. 7 was gazetted on 27 March 2024, replacing Town Planning Scheme No. 6. Clause 26 states "There are no modifications to the R-Codes", so the old dual-density codes no longer exist and each lot carries a single code. On the scheme sheets, plotted 11 April 2024, R15 dominates the established streets; R40 to R100 sit around Mill Point, Mends Street, Canning Highway and the Angelo Street and Preston Street centres. Public mapping puts about 13% of the suburb's area in R15, 9.5% in R40 and 8% in R-AC0; lot-level codes must be read from the City's IntraMaps tool. Confirm the current lot code under LPS 7.
The edges. Special Control Area 1 on Canning Highway requires a Local Development Plan for vehicle access before development, with an exception for a single house. Schedule B item ASR11 on Canning Highway lots sets a maximum of three storeys and 12.0 m, and Stone Street lots inside the South Perth Activity Centre Plan area have a primary height of five storeys, rising to nine where design excellence and community benefit criteria are met. On an R15 street none of this binds you.
Heritage. Twelve places in the suburb are on the State Register, among them the Old Mill, the Windsor Hotel and the Old Council Offices. The City adopted its Heritage List on 28 October 2025; public mapping counts 31 Heritage List places and 74 survey places in the suburb, and the South Perth Historic Village Precinct around Mends Street is listed as a whole. LPP 8.1 Heritage Conservation and Development, adopted 27 February 2024, states that full demolition of a heritage-protected place "will not be supported" unless demonstrated against the policy tests. The 2021 strategy said residential listings were few and probably understated, so the list may grow. Check whether the house to be replaced is on the October 2025 Heritage List.
Trees. LPS 7 has no Significant Tree Register, and the old tree preservation orders no longer have statutory effect. LPP 3.2 Tree Retention, adopted 26 August 2025, defines a regulated tree as 8.0 m or more high, 6.0 m or more in canopy, or 1.5 m or more in trunk circumference at 1.4 m, and "tree damaging activity" to one needs a development application where other works are proposed, even if those works are otherwise exempt.
Flood and the river. The City's foreshores and "sections of the South Perth Peninsula" are subject to the 1 in 100 year flood level. DWER's design levels for the Swan River at a South Perth foreshore site are 1.35 m AHD for the 1 in 100 AEP event (2023) and 2.28 m AHD at 2110 including 0.9 m of sea level rise; Table 7 of LPS 7 adds that habitable floors on all zoned land sit at least 500 mm above the 1% AEP level including forecast sea level rise. Confirm the 1% AEP flood level for the lot. Lots on or abutting the river reserve sit in the Swan Canning Development Control Area, where DBCA Policy 48 sets the dwelling setback at the lesser of 10 m or 20% of the lot's average depth, requires visually permeable fencing above 1 m and limits retaining walls to 1 m each and 3 m combined. The suburb sits on the Bassendean dune system, with groundwater between the surface and 10 m.
Demolition and knockdown rebuild. The suburb was settled from the 1830s, and the 1880s and 1890s brought "many elegant homes"; the strategy sends new density to the activity centres and corridors, so on an R15 street a single house replaces a single house. The City requires approval before most demolition under the Building Act 2011, and for a heritage-protected place the permit application follows development approval. Confirm demolition requirements and verge bond with the City of South Perth.
Rules change. Confirm the current codes for your lot with the City of South Perth or with us before you buy or design.
South Perth at a glance
| Measure | Figure | As at | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| New houses approved, 12 months | 33in the South Perth - Kensington statistical area (31 the year before) | September 2025 to August 2026 | ABS Building Approvals |
| Residential density codes | About 13%of the suburb area R15, 9.5% R40, 8% R-AC0 | Sampled 31 October 2026 | DPLH via Landgate SLIP |
| Swan Canning development control area | About 13%of the suburb area, along the river | Sampled 31 October 2026 | DBCA via Landgate SLIP |
| Separate houses | 28.3%of private dwellings | 2021 Census | ABS |
| Population | 12,596 | 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 South Perth suburb profile.
What a $1.5M+ build looks like in South Perth
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 South Perth the block comes with three questions before the brief: is the house on the Heritage List, is there a regulated tree, and is the lot inside the flood line or the river control area. On a 756 m2 R15 lot like Hurlingham Road the floor area can go into a wide single level or two storeys with a garden; near the foreshore the 500 mm freeboard and the Policy 48 setback come first.
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
South Perth's neighbours share its 2024 scheme, but the heritage weight is concentrated here.
Nearby: Manning.
Elsewhere in the river suburbs: Ardross, Bull Creek, Mount Pleasant, Salter Point.
All areas: see every suburb we have written up.
Questions about building in South Perth
Do I need approval to demolish a house in South Perth?
The City of South Perth requires approval before most demolition work. If the house is heritage-protected, LPP 8.1 applies first: full demolition "will not be supported" unless demonstrated against the policy tests, and the permit application follows development approval. Confirm the current requirements with the City.
How do I know if the house I want to replace is heritage listed?
Check the City's Heritage List, adopted on 28 October 2025, and the Local Heritage Survey adopted on 24 June 2025. The 2021 strategy said residential listings were few and probably understated, so an older house is worth checking.
Can I remove a large tree on the block?
Not without a development application if it is a regulated tree and other works are proposed. Under LPP 3.2 Tree Retention, adopted 26 August 2025, a regulated tree is 8.0 m or more high, 6.0 m or more in canopy, or 1.5 m or more in trunk circumference at 1.4 m.
Does the river or the flood level change the design?
Near the foreshore, yes. Table 7 of LPS 7 requires habitable floors at least 500 mm above the 1% AEP flood level including forecast sea level rise, and DWER's design level at a South Perth foreshore site is 1.35 m AHD. A lot abutting the river reserve also carries the DBCA Policy 48 rules, with referrals taking up to 42 days.
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