Home Modifications FAQ — Central Coast

Yes, if your plan includes home modifications funding under Capital Supports. The NDIS groups home modifications by cost and complexity. Low-cost, low-risk items such as grab rails can often be approved more simply, while larger or structural work, such as a full bathroom rebuild or widened doorways, generally needs a full OT assessment and formal quotes before funding is released. The NDIS Guide to home modifications sets out the categories.

For most funded modifications, yes. An occupational therapist assesses the home and the person's needs, then writes a report recommending specific changes. The NDIS and Support at Home generally need that report before they approve and pay for the work, so arrange it before booking trades. Tell the OT about the property as well: a steep entry, a flood-affected lot or a strata building can change what is practical to recommend.

It depends on how much of the room changes. Adding grab rails and a shower seat is a contained job. A full accessible bathroom with a level-entry shower, non-slip flooring and relocated fixtures costs considerably more, because it involves plumbing, waterproofing and layout changes rather than just new fittings. In a strata unit, villa or townhouse, bathroom work may also need the owners corporation's approval. Any quote is based on your bathroom and any OT recommendations.

It can. Since 1 November 2025, Support at Home has replaced Home Care Packages, and home modifications such as ramps are funded through its separate Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM) scheme. You reach it through a My Aged Care assessment, and an OT recommendation is generally needed. Ask your provider what your AT-HM funding covers and what paperwork the quote needs to line up with.

It varies. Funded work moves from OT assessment and report to quotes to funding approval, so allow weeks rather than days, and longer for a full bathroom rebuild or structural work that needs several quotes. If Council flood information is needed for the lot, Central Coast Council's planning and development within flood zones page says a standard flood information certificate is delivered within 15 business days of lodgement, or 3 business days for an urgent one. Order it early so it does not hold up approval.

It depends on the work and the lot. Where internal work needs approval, Central Coast Council's complying development page lists internal alterations as an example of complying development, which a council or registered certifier can approve instead of a development application. Council also says some properties cannot use it, including those in high-level bushfire-prone areas, affected by acid sulfate soils or in environmentally sensitive zones. Check flood status before a pathway is chosen. Council says a lot is a 'flood control lot' if its section 10.7 planning certificate says flood-related development controls apply, or if any part of it falls in the Flood Planning Area on the Flood Precincts tab of its online mapping tool.