Custom Home Design & Construction
Custom Home Builders in Canterbury
Canterbury’s wide, leafy blocks make it one of Melbourne’s most sought-after places to build. As custom and luxury home builders in Canterbury, we start every project the same way: by confirming your block’s heritage grading before a single line is drawn.
What Makes It Different
Canterbury's Heritage Map Has Grown
Many Canterbury homes that had no heritage controls a decade ago now do. In 2016, Boroondara began its Municipal Wide Heritage Gap Study, assessing properties that weren’t already protected.
Canterbury was the first suburb completed. The new controls took effect when Amendment C266boro was gazetted on 30 August 2019.
In practical terms, a Heritage Overlay means you need a planning permit to demolish, alter, add to or build on your property. So if you bought before 2019, or you’re buying now, check your block’s current status first.
What Your Grading Means for Your Plans
Inside a heritage precinct, each property carries its own grading. Here’s what each one usually means for a knockdown rebuild or major renovation.
If your home is graded significant
It's important in its own right. Expect the home to be retained, with careful, well-documented changes. Architect involvement from the start pays off here.
If your home is graded contributory
It adds to the character of the precinct, even if it's been altered over the years. Full demolition is generally not supported, but a substantial rear addition behind the retained front is often achievable.
If your home is graded non-contributory
It sits in the precinct without contributing to its significance. This usually gives you the most design freedom, including a possible knockdown rebuild. The new home still needs to respect the streetscape.
To find your grading, search your address on the Victorian Heritage Database or ask Council. A VicPlan property report lists every overlay on the site.
What We build
Canterbury’s Victorian, Federation and interwar homes often sit on blocks that are generous by inner-Melbourne standards. That space changes what’s possible.
Even when the front of a contributory home must stay largely intact, the rear of the block can often take a substantial, genuinely luxurious addition. Picture a heritage facade on the street, with open-plan living, a pool and garden behind it.
Near the Canterbury Road shops, a Design and Development Overlay also applies. It has its own controls, separate from your heritage grading.
Luxury Homes Behind a Heritage Front
Explore luxury homesWe keep the street presence and build a large, high-specification home behind it. This is the most common path on Canterbury's graded blocks.
Knockdown Rebuilds on Non-Contributory Sites
Explore knockdown rebuildsWhere your grading allows, we replace the existing home with one designed around your brief and your block. We confirm the grading before you commit to anything.
Period Home Renovations
Explore architectural buildsWe restore and extend Victorian, Federation and interwar homes, matched to exactly what your grading permits, and work alongside your architect or ours.
Contemporary Additions
Explore contemporary homesWe add modern rear extensions that sit comfortably behind a period frontage. Clean lines and natural light, without competing with the original home.
Canterbury Heritage Questions
My home is graded contributory. Can I still knock it down?
Generally, no, not in full. Contributory homes are treated as part of the precinct’s character.
A substantial rear addition behind a retained facade is usually still achievable, and on a Canterbury block, it can be a large one.
How do I find out my Canterbury property's grading?
Search your address on the Victorian Heritage Database, or contact Boroondara’s strategic planning team.
We confirm the grading for every site before design work begins.
My home had no heritage overlay when I bought it. Could that have changed?
Yes. Boroondara’s gap study added heritage controls to properties across Canterbury, finalised in 2019.
A current VicPlan property report will show your block’s status today.
My block is near the Canterbury Road shops. Does the commercial overlay affect my house?
Only if your property falls inside the Design and Development Overlay boundary. Check this separately from your heritage grading, as it has its own controls.
Can I build a large luxury home on a heritage-graded Canterbury block?
Often, yes. Canterbury’s generous blocks usually leave plenty of room to build behind a retained street presence.
The grading shapes the front of the home. The rest of the block is usually where your brief comes to life.
How much does it cost to build a custom home in Canterbury?
It depends on your grading, how much of the existing home stays, and the heritage documentation Council needs.
Our guide to custom home building costs in Melbourne covers the main drivers. For a figure for your block, book a site review.
CONTACT US
Planning a Build in Canterbury?
Send us your address. We’ll check the grading and overlays, then talk you through what your block can realistically become.