NEW HOME BACKYARD GUIDE
Plan a new-build backyard
in Mickleham
Start with the handover facts for your own lot. Test a direction from a site photo, then verify levels, stormwater, easements, access and approvals before comparing quotes.
Personal homeowners receive 6 free AI generations with no expiry. A concept is not a measured plan, drainage design, asset location, structural design or construction approval.
LOCAL CONTEXT
Use the precinct map for context, then check the exact lot.
Mickleham covers more than one development setting. An estate name does not establish a property's current zone, overlay, title restriction or asset layout.
The Victorian Planning Authority lists Merrifield West as a completed precinct structure plan and provides a Greenfields status map with property search. Those sources help identify the wider planning framework, but they do not replace the issued title, plan of subdivision or current planning report for one address.
- Use the VPA property search to identify whether the address falls inside a precinct structure plan.
- Generate the current VicPlan report for the property's zone and overlays.
- Read the issued title and plan of subdivision for easements, restrictions and authority interests.
- Keep builder handover, drainage and service documents with the garden brief.
BEFORE THE FIRST SKETCH
Record six lot-specific facts.
Give the same measured information to each business. Do not estimate it from the concept image or a neighbouring block.
- 01
Thresholds, boundaries and finished levels
Record doors, weep holes, fence lines, surface falls and every level change. Ask for professional advice before adding fill, raised paving or retaining that could alter runoff, boundary loading or clearance below the building.
- 02
Stormwater route and legal discharge point
Mark low points, pits, downpipes and pooling after rain. Hume defines the legal point of discharge as the approved connection from private property to a nominated drain and says the property owner remains responsible for private drainage up to that connection.
- 03
Easements, water and sewer assets
Order the relevant property asset plan and compare it with the title. Yarra Valley Water says consent is required before placing structures, landscaping or material within an easement or within one metre of its water or sewer infrastructure.
- 04
Side access and delivery constraints
Measure the narrowest gate, path, corner and overhead clearance. Ask whether soil, pavers, turf and machinery can reach the backyard, how fences and finished surfaces will be protected, and what changes when materials must be carried by hand.
- 05
Nature strip and street interface
Keep the private backyard scope separate from the public verge. Hume's residential nature-strip guide excludes private irrigation and lighting, restricts hard hazards and says an existing swale drain must remain grassed. Confirm any proposed verge or crossover work before pricing it.
- 06
Sun, wind, water and upkeep
Track seasonal sun, exposed winds, hose reach, mower and bin routes, play needs and the household's realistic watering and pruning routine before choosing lawn area, screening plants or dense garden beds.
A PHOTO-BASED START
Try one practical visual brief.
Adapt this to the real photo. Keep measurements, drainage, permits and construction decisions with the relevant professionals.
Using this Mickleham new-home backyard photo, show a simple low-maintenance direction with a modest lawn, one compact paved sitting area, a permeable path from the side gate and layered drought-tolerant planting. Keep the house, fences, doors, service areas and existing levels visually unchanged. Leave drainage, maintenance and delivery access clear. Do not add a pool, retaining wall or roofed structure.
COMPARE THE COMPLETE SCOPE
Use four work packages for like-for-like quotes.
Ask every business to quote against the same site facts and to state measured quantities, preparation, disposal, exclusions and approval responsibility. A low material allowance is not the installed project price.
| Package | Resolve first | Ask the quote to show |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Site, water and protection | Levels, thresholds, runoff, legal point of discharge, easements, service locations and planning controls. | Survey assumptions, drainage responsibility, excavation, spoil, asset protection, temporary access protection and excluded reports or approvals. |
| 2. Access and hardscape | Delivery route, path and sitting-area footprint, falls, edging, boundaries and future maintenance access. | Base depth, compaction, product and quantity, cuts, drainage interfaces, structural work, permits, delivery and disposal. |
| 3. Soil, irrigation and lawn | Existing soil, imported depth, planting zones, watering method, lawn area and service clearances. | Measured quantities, soil preparation, irrigation components, turf or seed specification, establishment watering, testing and handover care. |
| 4. Planting and completion | Mature width, root form near assets, exposure, screening, mulch and replacement access. | Botanical names, pot sizes, quantities, spacing, mulch depth, stakes, establishment period, substitutions and replacement conditions. |
Keep the drainage and asset decisions explicit. Hume's legal-discharge information and Yarra Valley Water's easement guidance are property-specific checks; lawn, gravel or permeable paving does not remove the need to verify the actual drainage route and authority constraints.
Compare landscaping quote scopeCHECK BEFORE CONSTRUCTION
A compact backyard can still include regulated work.
Permit and consent needs depend on the exact structure, dimensions, boundary relationship, title, overlays and easements.
Hume says side or rear boundary fencing over two metres needs a building permit, and retaining walls below one metre are exempt only where they are not connected with other building work or protecting adjoining property. A larger permitted project must include its retaining wall. These are useful screening questions, not a complete approval for your design.
- Describe the structure, height, footing, retained depth and boundary distance.
- Check the title, planning controls, easements and service authority requirements.
- Confirm who obtains permits, engineering, consents and inspections before signing.
- Keep the concept image as communication support, not evidence of compliance.
PROPERTY-SPECIFIC QUESTIONS
Before you commit.
What should I check before landscaping a new Mickleham home?
Start with the issued title and plan of subdivision, builder handover and drainage information, finished levels, legal point of discharge, easements and service plans, measured side access and the current planning controls for the exact address. A suburb or estate name does not confirm the rules for one lot.
Why should drainage and levels be decided before turf or paving?
Imported soil, paving bases and changed falls can redirect runoff or reduce clearance below building thresholds. Confirm the lot levels, low points, private drainage route and legal point of discharge first, then have the relevant licensed or registered professionals design any required drainage or structural work.
Can landscaping cover an easement or water authority asset?
Not by assumption. Yarra Valley Water says consent is required for structures or material placed within an easement or within one metre of its water or sewer infrastructure, and its examples include landscaping. Obtain the property asset plan and all relevant consents before fixing the design.
Does RealScape confirm permits, drainage or buildability?
No. RealScape helps create an early visual direction and clearer landscaping brief. It does not survey the property, locate assets, design drainage, verify approvals or replace a landscaper, plumber, surveyor, engineer, building surveyor, service authority or council assessment.
Primary sources and date checked.
Checked 25 October 2026. Sources describe public rules and guidance available on that date. Verify current requirements for the exact property and proposed work before construction.
- Victorian Planning Authority — completed precinct structure plans
Merrifield West is listed as a completed Hume precinct plan; the list does not establish which plan or controls apply to one address.
- Victorian Planning Authority — Greenfields Planning Interactive Status Map
Property search for identifying whether an address falls within a precinct structure plan.
- Planning Victoria — using VicPlan
Current property and parcel search for planning zones, overlays and downloadable reports.
- Hume City Council — planning permits
Property-title and Hume Planning Scheme checks before deciding whether an application is required.
- Hume City Council — stormwater connection points and drainage asset details
Legal point of discharge, drainage asset details and owner responsibility for private property drainage.
- Yarra Valley Water — building over an easement
Consent and property-asset-plan guidance for structures, landscaping and fill near water or sewer assets and easements.
- Hume City Council — fencing and retaining walls
Current local building-permit triggers and retaining-wall qualifications.
- Hume City Council — residential nature strip landscaping guidelines
Nature-strip constraints for irrigation, lighting, retaining elements and existing swale drains.
START WITH YOUR OWN LOT
See the direction.
Then make the brief quote-ready.
Create a free visual concept, add the measured site facts and ask professionals to quote the same scope.