An approval is a snapshot of the market on the day it was designed. Two Sydney applications reported on 9 November show developers going back to schemes they already hold, one of them while the cranes are up, to make the numbers and the product fit the market they are building into now.
Epping: same towers, different apartments
The Urban Developer reports that Dasco has asked the state to amend its Senso project at 242–244 Beecroft Road, Epping, a former Sydney Metro tunnelling site within walking distance of Epping station. Construction began last year.
The project was approved in 2023 for 374 homes. A 2025 amendment added 105 homes and four storeys, taking the tallest building to 18 storeys. The new request would add another 60, for a total of 539 apartments, a 44% gain in three years.
The way it gets there is the interesting part. The modification would split 33 three-bedroom units into studios and one-bedroom apartments. Studios and one-bedders would rise from 94 to 183, two-bedroom units from 238 to 242, and three-bedroom apartments would fall from 147 to 114. The amendment documents describe the approved apartments as "oversized", with an unbalanced proportion of one and three-bedroom units.
"Affordability has decreased since approval of the application. Construction has already commenced, however, there is still an opportunity to modify Buildings B and C to respond to the affordability issue," the amendment document says.
Just as telling is what would not change. The massing would stay the same. Residential floor area would rise by only 247 square metres, to 49,257 square metres, and the floor space ratio would move from 4.91:1 to 4.94:1. Parking would stay at 556 spaces. Affordable homes would rise by three, to 84.
Macquarie Park: going back for a bigger envelope
Deicorp's approach at 161 Herring Road and 13–15 Lachlan Avenue, Macquarie Park, is the opposite end of the scale. A scheme approved in October 2025 for a part 16 and part 17-storey building with 181 apartments would be replaced by a 34-storey tower with 343 apartments, 39 of them affordable.
Urban Digest reports that the application is a State Significant Development lodged through the Housing Delivery Authority pathway, with a concurrent rezoning to lift the maximum building height from 45 metres to 120 metres and the floor space ratio from 4:1 to 10.84:1. The site is about 300 metres' walk from Macquarie University Metro station.
What developers should take from this
Design for the buyer you will settle with, not the one you planned for. Dasco's changes target the units that are hardest to sell when affordability tightens. If your approved mix leans towards large apartments, it is worth testing whether a smaller-unit mix would sell faster and at a better rate per square metre before the floor plates are locked in.
The smaller the change, the cleaner the path. The Epping amendment keeps the building envelope, height, parking and floor space close to what is already approved. Changes that stay inside the approved form tend to be easier to justify. Changes that need a new envelope, like Macquarie Park, usually mean a fresh assessment and a rezoning, with more time and more uncertainty.
Know which buildings you can still touch. The Epping changes are limited to buildings where there is still room to modify. On a staged site, sequencing construction so that later stages remain flexible keeps that option open.
Count the trade-offs. More homes rarely come free. At Epping, rooftop communal space would shrink by 64 square metres, and the share of apartments meeting the solar access measure would slip by about two percentage points, from 347 of 479 to 379 of 539. City of Parramatta Council objected to the original proposal and the 2025 amendments, citing traffic and parking concerns. Every resubmission reopens those conversations.
Factor in what happens to the rest of the program. Redesign work, consultant fees, assessment time and any trade variations all need to be weighed against the extra yield. A modification lodged mid-build needs a plan for keeping the site moving while it is assessed.
The takeaway
An approval is a starting point, not a finished product. In a market where affordability has shifted since many schemes were designed, the developers who revisit their mix early, keep changes within the approved envelope where they can, and go back for a bigger envelope only where the location supports it, are giving themselves the best chance of delivering homes that sell.
This article is general information only and does not take account of your circumstances.
Sources
- The Urban Developer, "Dasco Plots Mid-Build Yield Boost for Epping Apartment Scheme", 9 November 2026: https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/dasco-amendment-seeks-additional-homes-senso-nsw-epping
- The Urban Developer, "Deicorp Makes Bid to Double Homes, Heights of Macquarie Park Project", 9 November 2026: https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/articles/deicorp-proposes-doubling-yield-macquarie-park
- Urban Digest, "343-Apartment Development Proposed for Macquarie Park" (SSD-127808491): https://urbandigest.com.au/ssd-127808491-343-apartment-development-proposed-for-macquarie-park/