The PipelineDevelopment Pipeline in North Canberra
1 Proposed36applications in assessmentLeading · to June 2026See applications ↓
2 Approved1,289dwellings approved in 2024-25, or 1.13 per 100 existing dwellings a yearOfficial · ABS to June 2026See approvals ↓
3 Building51major projects committed or under construction, 26 of them already on siteForward · completions to 2030+See projects ↓
4 Delivered3,048new addresses verified since the 2021 Census, up 10.3% on the existing baseActual · to June 2026Where it landed ↓
In the 2024-25 financial year the ABS recorded 1,289 dwelling approvals across North Canberra. Right now, 36 development applications are in assessment. AreaSearch tracks 51 major projects here that are committed or under construction, the largest being ACT nbn Full Fibre Upgrade - Braddon at an estimated $3.80bn. On the ground, 3,048 new addresses have been verified since the 2021 Census — growth of 10.3% on the existing address base.
These four figures are deliberately not added together. An application, an
approval and a project under construction are often the same building at three points in its life,
measured by three different bodies with three different lags. Read them as a sequence, not a total.
ApprovedBuilding Approvals in North Canberra
What councils and certifiers have formally
permitted — the ABS series, published about four months in arrears.
Approvals are running at 1.13 per 100 existing dwellings a year, well above the Australian Capital Territory rate of 0.70. Recent approvals are dominated by attached housing — apartments, townhouses and other non-detached dwellings make up 91% of them. Detached houses make up 39% of the homes already standing here but only 9% of the past five years of approvals, so the area is densifying. The average approved dwelling is valued at $398,000 in construction cost.
For its size, North Canberra is adding 1.13 dwellings a year per 100 existing homes — well above the Australian Capital Territory rate of 0.70 and the national rate of 0.71. That is about 13.3 approvals a year for every 1,000 residents. Building intensity has fallen by about 87% across the published series.
Measured against people rather than housing stock, North Canberra is approving 3.66 dwellings a year per 1,000 residents — below the Australian Capital Territory rate of 5.63. The two rate views differ by household size, which here averages 2.6 people per home. Housing the projection to 2041 would need about 8.23 per 1,000 residents a year.
Dwelling approvals a year per 100 existing
homes, with Australian Capital Territory and Australia for comparison. This is the
same activity as the totals view, divided by the size of the area — which is the only
fair way to compare a large SA3 with a small one.
Dwelling approvals a year per 1,000
residents, each year divided by that year’s estimated resident
population (ABS ERP at 30 June), not by today’s — which matters most in fast-growing
areas, where a fixed denominator can understate the early years by half. The most recent periods use the latest published ERP, as the population series runs a year behind approvals. Read it alongside the per-100-homes view: the two differ wherever household size does.
Dwelling units approved each financial year. The dashed line is the five-year average of 925.
How intensively is it building?
Dwelling approvals a year per 100 existing dwellings.
North Canberra1.13
Australian Capital Territory0.70
Australia0.71
What is here, and what is coming
Detached houses as a share of existing homes,
against the share of recent approvals.
Existing homes (2021 Census)39%
Approved, last 5 years9%
Approved, latest year9%
Detached housesApartments, townhouses & other
Approvals mix by year
Share of each year’s approvals.
2022
2023
2024
2025
2024-25
$616m
Residential work approved
2024-25
$681m
Commercial work approved
construction cost
$398,000
Average value per approved dwelling
last two years
159
Residents per approval
Supply & DemandIs North Canberra Building Enough Homes?
The same approvals, measured against the population
they have to house.
North Canberra approves about 13.3 new dwellings a year for every 1,000 residents. Since the 2021 Census it has added 8,148 residents and 3,048 new addresses, roughly one new home per 2.7 extra residents — broadly in step with an average household of 2.6. Housing the population projected for 2041 implies roughly 571 new dwellings a year from here, which puts the recent approval rate of 925 a year comfortably ahead of what the projection needs.
Growth against supply since the Census
People added for every new address verified,
against the size of an average local household.
People added per new home2.7
Average household size2.6
A bar longer than the household average means
the area gained more residents than its new housing could hold, and the extra had to be
absorbed by existing homes.
Approval rate against projected need
Dwellings a year: what is currently being
approved, against what the 2041 population projection implies.
Approved (5-yr average)925
Implied need to 2041571
Implied need assumes the average household stays
at today’s 2.6 people. Approvals are not
completions, and not every approval is built.
What is being asked for right now — applications
collected from council planning portals, before any of it reaches the ABS series above.
AreaSearch tracks applications of material scale; routine minor works such as signage and
fencing changes are not carried, so these are not counts of every application lodged. 85
of them carry an AreaSearch analyst assessment — look for the
Analysed marker in the search below.
AreaSearch tracks 202 development applications of material scale lodged with council across North Canberra, the most recent in June 2026. 36 of them are still in assessment. The most common types in the queue are commercial, multi-residential and mixed-use. Live applications account for about 1,998 proposed dwellings.
Number of applications by development type. This is the clearest
single picture of what kind of place North Canberra is being asked to become. Councils in
Australian Capital Territory do not publish an estimated cost of works in
their planning feeds, so applications here are counted rather than valued. A further 2 applications sit across
1 smaller category,
too few to plot.
Where the applications stand
As reported by the council. Highlighted rows are
applications still in assessment.
Decided160
Under assessment17
On notification14
Lodged7
Under Assessment4
6 applications are still marked under
assessment but were lodged more than
18 months ago. Councils often leave determined or
abandoned applications open in their feeds, so
they are counted here but excluded
from the live queue above.
By local government area
Applications on record within each council area that
overlaps North Canberra. This counts applications inside this
statistical area only — it is not a total for the council.
Unincorporated ACT202
Recent applications in North Canberra
By the number of dwellings proposed, as lodged. Figures are the applicant’s own and are not verified by AreaSearch.
Mixed-use precinct of 4 buildings (4-14 storeys) with 558 apartments and ground-floor commercial.Braddon · Lodged · lodged Feb 2026
558 dwellings
Multi-unit residential development with 418 dwellings across four 6-9 storey buildings.Turner · Under Assessment · lodged Jan 2026
418 dwellings
Lease variation to increase hotel units to 225 and remove a public access easement.Civic · Lodged · lodged Mar 2026
225 dwellings
Amendment to an approved 11-storey mixed-use development to enclose a colonnade, rearrange ground floor layouts, and make other design changesCivic · Under assessment · lodged Feb 2026
212 dwellings
Construction of two 6-storey buildings for a 200-unit retirement village with ancillary amenities.Downer · On notification · lodged May 2026
200 dwellings
Two 6-storey residential towers comprising 72 apartments over two basement levelsLyneham · Under assessment · lodged Oct 2025
72 dwellings
12-storey mixed-use development with 64 residential units, 193 hotel rooms, and retail in Braddon.Braddon · On notification · lodged Dec 2025
64 dwellings
12-storey mixed-use development featuring 64 apartments, a 199-key hotel, and retail spaces.Braddon · Under Assessment · lodged Dec 2025
64 dwellings
BuildingFORWARDMajor Projects & Infrastructure in North Canberra
What is funded and moving — the projects large enough
to change how North Canberra works, ranked by committed value and how close
they are to delivery.
AreaSearch tracks 51 current projects across North Canberra. The largest is ACT nbn Full Fibre Upgrade - Braddon at an estimated $3.80bn, due by 2030. That breaks down as 26 under construction, 4 approved and awaiting a start and 21 still in planning. The pipeline is weighted toward residential development, communities and communities, precincts & urban renewal.
Under construction$577mby 2028
ACT Light Rail Stage 2A (City to Commonwealth Park)
A 1.7km extension of Canberras light rail network from Alinga Street to Commonwealth Park. The project features three new stops at Edinburgh Avenue, City South, and Commonwealth Park, along with a new light…
A transformative urban renewal project along Canberra's main gateway corridor. This redevelopment replaces aging 1960s public housing with modern high-density precincts. The program delivers 280 dedicated…
Construction is underway on Light Rail Stage 2A, a 1.7 km extension of Canberra's light rail network from Alinga Street to Commonwealth Park via London Circuit West. The project will add three stops at…
UNSW Canberra City Campus - Stage 1Under construction · Education & Training · by 2028 · Parkes (ACT) - North
$1.00bn
Australian War Memorial RedevelopmentUnder construction · Arts & Culture · by 2028 · Campbell
$498m
Canberra Lyric Theatre (Theatre Centre Transformation Stage 1)Under construction · Arts & Culture · by 2028 · Civic
$317m
The Foothills - Campbell (Former CSIRO Site)Under construction · Communities · by 2028 · Ainslie
$250m
City Hill Mixed-Use PrecinctUnder construction · Communities, Precincts & Urban Renewal · by 2030 · Civic
$650m
ACT nbn Full Fibre Upgrade - BraddonUnder construction · Telecommunications · by 2030 · Braddon
$3.80bn
Canberra Defence Precinct Tranche 1: ADFA Living-in AccommodationApproved · National Security · by 2029 · Duntroon
$1.02bn
Crystalbrook AuroraUnder construction · Tourism · by 2027 · Civic
$200m
The Establishment WatsonUnder construction · Residential Development · by 2026 · Watson
$110m
Watson Place Precinct Redevelopment (Watson On Aspinall)Under construction · Communities, Precincts & Urban Renewal · by 2030 · Watson
$180m
Botanical TurnerUnder construction · Residential Development · by 2028 · Turner
$184m
220 Northbourne AvenueUnder construction · Communities · by 2028 · Braddon
$171m
36 further projects in
North Canberra are not listed here.
Denotes AI-based impression for illustrative purposes only, not to be taken as
definitive under any circumstances. Please follow links and conduct other
investigations from the project’s source for actual imagery. Developers and
project owners wishing us to use original imagery please Contact
Us and we will do so.
Beyond 2030:
a further $950m across
1 project with completion dates further out — mostly precinct-scale programs whose dates are
indicative. Kept out of the chart so the years you can act on stay readable.
Estimated value of tracked projects by the year they are due to
complete, stacked by how certain they are. The dark band is money already being spent;
the pale band is still an intention. Estimates are indicative and mix infrastructure
cost with whole-of-precinct development value, so read the shape rather than the totals.
Approvals PipelineDevelopment Applications in North Canberra
Development applications around
North Canberra
Development approvals is a new addition to AreaSearch.
We’re actively expanding council coverage and refining the dataset — details and statuses for some councils may be partial. Check back regularly for the latest pipeline.
Applications
—
In the local catchment
Est. Value
—
Where disclosed
Under Assessment
—
Awaiting determination
Determined
—
Approved or decided
Approvals pipelineStatus, location, timing and project scale
Loading development applications…
Lodged
Address
Description
Type
Distance
Status
SOURCE: Planning portals and council registers, compiled by AreaSearch. Distance & bearing measured from the suburb midpoint.
ProfessionalPRODevelopment Map for North Canberra
Applications and major projects plotted where
they are actually proposed, with the
81 projects AreaSearch tracks here on their own tab — filterable by type, delivery stage,
area and committed value. To search every application on record rather
than this sample, use the section above.
DistributionWhere Development Is Happening in North Canberra
North Canberra covers 14 statistical areas. Follow any of them through for a full profile of population, housing, sales and amenity at local scale.
Map builder
Each area below opens a map builder on its own page — a tool for
putting a map and a table into a report. Pick the place types you want plotted
(schools, supermarkets, medical, child care, transport and the rest of what
AreaSearch holds), add development applications as their own layer, drop your own
points, then recolour, renumber and export the result as a table or CSV.
A this area only toggle clips everything to the boundary you are looking at.
Searches are charged against your credit balance — 1 credit per 40
results from AreaSearch data — and setting filters costs nothing until
you search. The builder works on one suburb-sized area at a time, which is why it
opens per area rather than across the whole of
North Canberra.
Collected from council planning portals. The
earliest signal available, but the least certain: many applications are amended,
withdrawn or refused, values are the applicant’s own estimate, and coverage
varies by council. This is a curated set, not the full council feed:
AreaSearch carries applications of material scale and does not track routine minor
works such as signage, fencing or small alterations, so the counts here are lower
than a council’s own total lodgement figure and should not be compared with it. Applications still shown as under assessment more than
18 months after lodgement are reported separately
and kept out of the live-queue figures: the age profile of open applications is
sharply split between a genuine queue under a year old and a long tail of records
councils never closed. Not every state publishes a cost of works — Queensland,
the Northern Territory and the ACT publish none at all — so on those pages
applications are counted rather than valued and no dollar figure is shown
rather than a partial one. Treated here as a snapshot of the current queue only —
AreaSearch does not chart application counts over time, because the history
reflects when each portal was collected rather than when development happened.
Approved — ABS building approvals
The official series, aggregated to SA3 from
ABS building approvals data, currently published to June 2026.
Counts dwelling units approved, not buildings and not completions. The most recent
financial year is annualised from nine months of data wherever it appears and is
labelled as such.
Building — major projects
Projects tracked individually by AreaSearch
from Infrastructure Australia, state infrastructure agencies, developer disclosures
and council records. Values are estimates and delivery dates are targets. Ranked on
this page by committed value and delivery stage rather than by distance.
Delivered — verified new addresses
New residential addresses verified in the national
address register since the 2021 Census. This is the closest available measure of what has
actually been built, though address creation can lead occupation and lags
construction. It is not a completions count.
Boundaries
North Canberra is Statistical Area Level 3 80105 in the ABS Australian Statistical Geography Standard (2021 edition), made up of 14 Statistical Areas Level 2.
It has an estimated 69,336 residents, +13.3% since the 2021 Census.
Currency
Measure
Source
To
Dwelling approvals, five-year average
ABS / AreaSearch
June 2026
House share of approvals
ABS / AreaSearch
June 2026
Residents per approval
ABS / AreaSearch
June 2026
Value per approved dwelling
ABS / AreaSearch
June 2026
Commercial work approved
ABS / AreaSearch
June 2026
Verified new addresses since the Census
Address register / AreaSearch
May 2026
Development applications
Council planning portals
June 2026
Major projects
Infrastructure Australia / state agencies / AreaSearch
Ongoing
Figures on this page are read live from the
AreaSearch database each time it loads, so they update as soon as a source does.
Development in North Canberra — common questions
How many new dwellings were approved in North Canberra?
The ABS recorded 1,289 dwelling approvals across North Canberra in the 2024-25 financial year, against a five-year average of 925 a year.
How many development applications are lodged in North Canberra?
AreaSearch tracks 202 development applications of material scale across North Canberra — routine minor works such as signage and fencing are not included, so this is not a count of every application lodged, of which 36 remain in assessment. The most recent application in our data was lodged in June 2026.
What major projects are planned for North Canberra?
AreaSearch tracks 51 current major projects in North Canberra, 26 of them under construction. The largest include ACT Light Rail Stage 2A (City to Commonwealth Park), Northbourne Flats Redevelopment and Light Rail Stage 2A: City to Commonwealth Park.
Is North Canberra growing faster than the rest of Australian Capital Territory?
On development approvals, North Canberra is adding new dwellings faster than Australian Capital Territory as a whole — 1.13 approvals per 100 existing dwellings a year against the state figure of 0.70.
How current is this development data?
ABS building approvals are published with a lag of roughly four months; this page carries the series to June 2026. Development applications are collected from council planning portals and refresh continuously, with the most recent application here lodged in June 2026. Major project records are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Each section carries its own currency label so the four are never confused.
Development data is provided for general information.
Estimated values, dwelling counts and delivery dates come from the lodging or delivering party and
are not independently verified by AreaSearch. Confirm anything material with the relevant council
or agency before relying on it.
Denotes AI-based impression for illustrative purposes only, not to be taken as
definitive under any circumstances. Please follow links and conduct other
investigations from the project’s source for actual imagery. Developers and
project owners wishing us to use original imagery please Contact
Us and we will do so.