We are a family owned tiny house company in East Lismore, in the Northern Rivers, and we build tiny houses on wheels only. NSW is our home state and the one we deliver to most, so these are the rules we work with every week.
Short answer on legality. In NSW a tiny house on wheels is treated as a caravan, not as a house. Under clause 77 of the Local Government (Manufactured Home Estates, Caravan Parks, Camping Grounds and Moveable Dwellings) Regulation 2021 you can keep one caravan on a lot that already has an approved dwelling, and a member of your household can live in it long term, with no development application.
That exemption is narrower than most people expect. It does not cover vacant land, renting the home to a tenant, or the plumbing.
Can you live in a tiny house in NSW
Yes, in the right situation. The mechanism is the caravan definition. Blue Mountains City Council’s tiny homes fact sheet puts it plainly: a tiny home is not a defined development type, and a tiny home on wheels is a moveable dwelling designed to be capable of being registered as a trailer, which makes it a caravan. Eurobodalla Shire Council uses the same wording from the Regulation and ties it to the Road Transport Act 2013.
Once it is a caravan, clause 77 applies. Eurobodalla and Ballina Shire Council describe the two main limbs the same way. One caravan, campervan or tent may be occupied long term by a member of your household, but only where the lot already has an approved dwelling house. Up to two may be occupied for no more than two consecutive days at a time and no more than 60 days in any twelve months, the rule that catches vacant blocks.
Ballina lists two further exemptions: seasonal accommodation for agricultural workers on rural land, and temporary accommodation for people displaced by a natural disaster, for up to two years. In the Northern Rivers that second one has mattered a great deal since 2022.
City of Newcastle splits tiny homes into Type A, fixed to the land, which always needs development consent, and Type B, moveable. A Type B caravan needs no consent where there is an existing dwelling on the property and it is used by a member of the owner’s household. Council is explicit that it cannot be leased or short term rented.
What the rules actually say
Registration first. The Regulation asks that the dwelling be designed to be capable of registration as a trailer. It does not, on its face, require current registration, and the planning lawyers at Whiteacre make that point directly. Several councils, Byron Shire among them, describe the exemption as applying where the tiny house is registered.
Registering a new trailer is its own process. NSW Government guidance on buying and registering a trailer says one manufactured on or after 1 July 2023 needs a 17 character VIN, an entry on the Register of Approved Vehicles, and a plate showing manufacturer, model, VIN, date of manufacture, aggregate and gross trailer mass and tare. Trailers listing “homemade” as the manufacturer are rejected. We are one of the few tiny house builders in NSW who manufacture their own trailers, which is worth asking any builder about.
Plumbing is where people get caught. MidCoast Council and Ballina both state that plumbing for water supply or wastewater disposal needs approval under section 68 of the Local Government Act 1993, even where the tiny house is exempt. MidCoast adds the warning that matters most: permanent connections may change the use from a moveable dwelling to a permanent dwelling, requiring other approvals.
Fixed tiny homes sit elsewhere. A small dwelling bolted to a slab falls under State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021, which absorbed the old SEPP 21 for caravan parks and SEPP 36 for manufactured home estates in September 2021. The Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure notes a secondary dwelling can be complying development on a lot of at least 450 square metres. That is a granny flat pathway, not a tiny house on wheels one.
Reform is moving, slowly. Shellharbour City Council resolved in September 2025 to prepare a planning proposal for a two year mobile tiny homes pilot that would remove the household member restriction, reported as an NSW first, and it still needs a Gateway determination. On 30 June 2026 the NSW Government responded to the Legislative Council Select Committee on Rural Housing and Second Dwellings, backing more secondary dwellings and dual occupancies in rural zones in principle. None of it is settled law yet.
Council by council reality
Positions differ, and the differences are real.
Byron Shire Council’s tiny houses fact sheet says no DA is required in some cases where the tiny house is registered as a trailer and an exemption applies, and that otherwise you need a development application or a complying development certificate, with bushfire, flooding and land use conflict assessed. Byron also flags septic upgrades on rural land and water and sewer contributions in town.
Ballina Shire Council publishes one of the clearest North Coast guides, defining a tiny house as a self contained dwelling of 50 square metres or less. Coffs Harbour City Council separates fixed tiny homes, which need a DA assessed against Coffs Harbour Local Environmental Plan 2013 and Development Control Plan 2015, from mobile tiny homes registered as caravans, generally exempt in the limited circumstances above.
Lismore City Council is our own council and works within the same state framework. Much of its planning attention since the 2022 floods has gone to rebuilding and relocation, including a Departmental exemption allowing rural allotments without a dwelling entitlement to be considered for relocated houses under the NSW Reconstruction Authority’s Resilient Homes program. If your block is flood affected, get Council’s position on your lot in writing before you order.
City of Newcastle covers the Hunter with the Type A and Type B split above, and the Blue Mountains fact sheet is built directly around clause 77. Central Coast and the Sydney metropolitan councils sit under the same Regulation, but bushfire, flood, heritage and lot size controls change block by block. Ask your council what applies to your lot. We will not tell you an approval is guaranteed, because it is not ours to give.
Getting a tiny home to NSW
Every home we build is 2.5 metres wide, the general access width limit for towing on Australian roads, and sits under the 4.3 metre general access height limit. No oversize permit, no pilot vehicle.
From East Lismore we deliver to the Northern Rivers, Lismore, Byron, Ballina, Coffs Harbour, the Hunter, the Central Coast, the Blue Mountains and Sydney, and to the rest of the state on quote. Northern Rivers runs are short and cheap. Sydney is roughly a day’s tow. You get a delivery figure in writing before you commit.
Site access is the part people underestimate. A 9.5 metre home needs room to swing through a gate and firm, level ground. Send photos of the driveway and the intended position early.
Which of our models suits NSW
We deliver tiny homes NSW wide, and the right model depends on your block as much as your budget. If the home is going behind an existing house as household accommodation, the 7.4 metre range usually does the job. Spirit starts at $93,000, Dreamer at $96,000 and Cozy at $100,000. Shorter homes fit a suburban block within setbacks and are easier to reverse in.
The 8.4 metre range suits full time living. Haven starts at $135,000, Essence at $140,000, and Inspiration at $255,000 for a much higher specification.
For rural blocks in the Hunter, the Northern Tablelands or the Central West, where space matters more than manoeuvring, the 9.5 metre homes make sense. Grand starts at $145,000, Impressor at $260,000 and Entertainer at $270,000.
Coastal NSW is humid and salty. The Blue Mountains and the Tablelands get genuinely cold, and frost is a real consideration for water lines. Tell us which conditions you are building for, because insulation, ventilation and external finishes should suit the site.
Frequently asked questions
Are tiny houses legal in NSW?
Yes, within limits. A tiny house on wheels is treated as a caravan under the Local Government (Manufactured Home Estates, Caravan Parks, Camping Grounds and Moveable Dwellings) Regulation 2021. Clause 77 allows one caravan to be occupied long term by a member of your household on a lot that already has an approved dwelling, with no development application. Outside that you are usually into a DA.
Do I need council approval for a tiny house on wheels in NSW?
Not for the installation if you meet clause 77, which Eurobodalla, Ballina and Blue Mountains councils all set out on their websites. You almost certainly do need approval for the plumbing. Ballina and MidCoast both state that water and wastewater connections need approval under section 68 of the Local Government Act 1993 even where the home itself is exempt.
Can I rent out a tiny house on my property in NSW?
The clause 77 exemption covers a member of your own household, not a tenant. City of Newcastle says this directly, stating a caravan under the exemption cannot be leased or short term rented. Renting is not impossible, but it is a different approval pathway and you need to raise it with your council first.
Does a tiny house on wheels need to be registered in NSW?
The Regulation defines a caravan as a moveable dwelling designed to be capable of being registered as a trailer, which is not the same as requiring current registration. Some councils, Byron Shire among them, describe the exemption as applying to a registered trailer. We build our own trailers with a compliance plate and VIN, so registration is open to you either way.
Can I put a tiny house on vacant land in NSW?
Only for short stays. Up to two caravans, campervans or tents may be occupied for no more than two consecutive days at a time and no more than 60 days in any twelve month period. Living on a vacant block full time needs a dwelling entitlement and council approval. Rural blocks have seasonal worker and natural disaster provisions worth asking about.
How much does a tiny house cost in NSW?
Our 7.4 metre homes start at $93,000 for the Spirit, $96,000 for the Dreamer and $100,000 for the Cozy. The 8.4 metre Haven starts at $135,000 and the 9.5 metre Grand at $145,000. Higher specification models run to $270,000. Delivery, site works, plumbing approvals and council fees sit on top.
Talk it through before you commit
Peter Wigley is our CEO and the NSW State Lead for the Australian Tiny House Association, and he lives in a tiny home himself. Ring him on 0411 079 446 and tell him where your block is, what is already approved on it, and what you want the home for. He will tell you straight whether the caravan exemption fits or whether you need to sit down with your council first. There is no showroom, just a conversation and a build slot if it stacks up. Email info@tinyhomesaustralia.com.au if that suits better.