Walk through any new subdivision around Perth, or anywhere in Australia, really, and you’ll see the same story: rows of 4x2x2 homes crammed onto 350sqm blocks. Developers are squeezing every last drop of value from land, but in doing so, they’re draining value from the way people actually live.

We’ve normalised boundary-to-boundary construction, dark interiors starved of sunlight, and metre-wide side setbacks that cost homeowners $10–20k yet serve no real purpose. It’s wasted money, wasted space, and wasted opportunity.

Yes, densification is necessary. Land is expensive, demand is high, and small blocks are here to stay. But density doesn’t have to mean poor design. The problem is not densification itself, it’s the outdated playbook still being used to deliver it.

The Cost of Cookie-Cutter Thinking

The current housing model is built on repetition, not innovation. Designs that might have worked 20 years ago are still being churned out, despite massive shifts in how people live, work, and connect.

We’re seeing the fallout in two ways:

• Social isolation – Houses built too close together with no real communal areas, amplifying the sense of being boxed in. Add technology and social media into the mix, and people are more disconnected than ever.
• Poor value – Buyers are paying upwards of $1,000 per square metre for unusable strips of land, creating financial waste in a housing market that already feels out of reach.

A Better Alternative: Units and Townhouses

Instead of forcing oversized houses onto undersized blocks, why not embrace unit and townhouse arrangements? Done well, they offer:

• Shared courtyards and green spaces – European-inspired layouts where backyards become collective gardens, creating space for connection and interaction.
• Simpler, smarter rooflines – Designs that improve stormwater management, ease construction, and reduce costs.
• More natural light – Homes that are designed to breathe, not suffocate, with opportunities for skylights, courtyards, and well-positioned windows.
• Better construction outcomes – Faster, more efficient builds with less complexity than the current cookie-cutter “big roof on a tiny block” approach.

Codes That Reflect Reality

The root of the issue lies in outdated development codes. They’ve helped create the housing crisis by embedding design practices that no longer make sense. Reforming these codes isn’t about blocking growth; it’s about enabling density that people actually want to live in.

Mandatory shared outdoor spaces, better stormwater requirements, and incentives for communal green areas would shift the balance from profit-driven repetition to livable, human-centred design.

It’s Time to Evolve

Australians deserve better than dark, cramped boxes with wasted side yards. Housing should be about more than squeezing “bums on seats.” It should support health, connection, and long-term value.

If we’re serious about solving the housing crisis, we can’t rely on the same outdated solutions that created it. The way forward is clear: embrace smarter design, reform the codes, and create homes that actually work for the people who live in them.