Can we build a two-storey house
on our block in Manly?

Part of a bigger picture: the whole knockdown rebuild path, step by step.

What height does the code allow?

Brisbane City Plan 2014 assesses a house against the Dwelling house code, or the Dwelling house (small lot) code on a lot under 450 square metres. Both set a building height envelope for the low density residential and character residential zones.

The small lot code's acceptable outcome in the low density residential zone is “a maximum building height of 7.5m above ground level at side and rear walls, increasing at no more than 30 degrees to a maximum building height of 9.5m above ground level” and two storeys.

Brisbane City Council, Brisbane City Plan 2014, Dwelling house (small lot) code. Two storeys is the ordinary outcome, not an exception. The current code is the one the designer works to.

“Above ground level” is the phrase that matters on a hill. The envelope follows the ground, so a house on a slope is measured from the slope, not from the street.

What does Manly's slope do to it?

It makes the second storey natural and the measurement careful.

On a block that falls from the street to the back, a house that's one storey at the street can be two at the rear without going near the envelope. On a block that rises from the street, the opposite: the house steps up the hill and the height is measured at each point. Either way the designer works from a survey with levels on it, not from the fence line.

Slope also means retaining, cut and fill, and footings that change across the block. The soil test matters more on a hill, not less.

Which overlays could complicate it?

• Traditional building character. Manly's older streets around the village and the esplanade are in it. If the house is pre-1947, demolition needs a development application first. A new house in the overlay is also code assessable, so the design is checked against the character code for how it sits in the street.
• Flood and coastal hazard. The low streets near the harbour and the creek. A minimum habitable floor level can push the living upstairs anyway, which on those blocks makes two storeys the answer rather than the question.
• The neighbourhood plan. City Plan has a Wynnum–Manly neighbourhood plan with its own provisions for parts of the area. City Plan online shows whether your lot is in one of them.

None of these say no to two storeys. They say how, and sometimes they say “with an application.” The approvals are explained here.

What about the neighbours' view and privacy?

Views aren't protected by the planning scheme. Privacy and overshadowing are addressed by it: the codes have outcomes for overlooking from upper-floor windows and decks, and for the height at the side boundaries that keeps sun on the neighbour's yard.

On a Manly hill, where everybody's upper floor looks over somebody's roof, this is mostly design: where the windows go, screening on the side of a deck, the envelope stepping in at the top. It's also good manners. Show the neighbours the plan before the certifier does.

What does a two-storey house on a Manly block look like?

Usually one of two houses.

On a block with the view to the front or the side, the living areas and the main bedroom go upstairs and the kids, the garage and a second living area go below. On a block that falls away at the back, the house enters at street level, the living opens onto the high side of the yard, and the bedrooms sit downstairs with the ground.

Either way it's a house drawn to the levels on the survey and the lines in the code, which is the reason a plan drawn for a flat estate lot doesn't work here.

Common questions

Sources: Brisbane City Council, Brisbane City Plan 2014, Dwelling house code and Dwelling house (small lot) code; Building a new house: approvals and requirements. Read 17 September 2026. Zones, overlays and codes are checked per lot on City Plan online and change over time. This is a plain-English guide, not planning advice.