Deciding what to buy
Terrace, semi-detached and duplex
Shared walls with separate title — what that actually means for renovation, noise and heritage controls, compared with a townhouse's owners corporation.
- Terraces, semi-detached houses and duplexes usually have separate (Torrens) title, not strata — no automatic owners corporation.
- A shared wall still means sound transfer and sometimes shared structural or drainage elements.
- Rear and side access is often limited in older, inner-suburban examples.
- Heritage overlays can restrict street-facing renovation even on privately titled property.
Shared walls, separate title
Terraces, semi-detached houses and duplexes share at least one wall with a neighbouring dwelling but commonly have fully separate (Torrens) title, not strata — meaning no automatic owners corporation, unlike many townhouses. That separate title doesn't remove the practical realities of a shared wall: sound transfer, and sometimes shared structural elements, roof lines or drainage.
What to check specifically
Party-wall condition and any history of disputes with the neighbour; rear and side access, since many inner-suburban terraces have limited or no side access; drainage and stormwater arrangements where they cross a shared boundary; and, for older terraces and semi-detached homes, heritage overlays that can restrict street-facing renovations even though the property is privately titled. For a duplex specifically, don't assume separate title means no owners corporation — if the two dwellings share a driveway or accessway (common for a front/rear duplex pair), an owners corporation commonly exists to manage that shared land even though each dwelling is otherwise separately titled.
Practical checklist
Before shortlisting a terrace, semi-detached or duplex
- Confirm the title type — separate (Torrens) or shared/strata — rather than assuming from the form
- For a duplex, check whether the two dwellings share a driveway or accessway that an owners corporation manages
- Check party-wall condition and any history of disputes
- Check rear and side access for practical everyday use
- Check for heritage overlays before assuming a renovation is possible
Questions for a professional
- Does this property share any structural elements, drainage or a wall with a neighbouring title, and what does that mean for renovation?