New reality for Aussies in tight development plots – realestate.com.au

As smaller backyards become the norm in a country focused on alleviating the housing crisis by packing as many houses as possible into every new development project, Australians have never been closer to their neighbors. Literal.

But while the tighter spaces can be great for increasing the number of new homes in Australia, the downside is a reduced ability to use backyard spaces for outdoor activities that previously posed no problems.

Sydney man Miguel Andrade found this out the hard way after making a potentially fatal discovery in his backyard while doing laundry.

Miguel Andrade made the discovery next to his clothesline. Image: Facebook

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The 78-year-old had ventured into his garden in Epping to take clothes off the line when he found a metal arrow embedded in a stone path.

“I went to the clothesline and thought, ‘What is that?’ It was a metal thing embedded in the ground. An arrow,” he said told Yahoo News.

“All the thoughts were going through my head. I’m shocked… It could have hurt or killed someone… What if someone from my family came here to pick up clothes from the line?

“That arrow, depending on the bow, could have traveled 200 yards; that’s how fast and that’s how far they go.”

Mr Andrade reported the 70cm arrow to NSW Police, but there was no evidence to suggest a place of origin.

The incident is a wake-up call for anyone who thinks they can carry out work in the yard again as before.

The arrow struck when no one was around. Image: Facebook

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While Mr Andrade’s experience is extreme, it is a lesson in how careful Aussies need to be as property sizes continue to shrink across the country.

In NSW, the minimum distance between houses can vary from 0.9 meters to eight metres, depending on council approval for rear setbacks. “According to the Housing Code, the requirements for landscaping are based on the plot size.

“Landscaped area on a site requires a minimum width and length of 1.5 metres,” the NSW Government Housing Code states on its website.

With some councils approving building to a limit of less than one metre, finds in the backyards of nearby properties are becoming more common than ever.