What’s permitted in R3 Medium Density Residential
Penrith Local Environmental Plan 2010 · as at 19 August 2026 · Penrith City Council
This comes straight from the Local Environmental Plan (LEP) that applies to this exact address, not a general state guide.
The land use table
These are the planning scheme’s official terms. A close match tells you the rule for that term; whether your project counts as that term is a judgement call.
Permitted without consent 1
No consent required
- Home occupations
Permitted with consent 31
Development Application (DA)
- Attached dwellings
- Bed and breakfast accommodation
- Boarding houses
- Building identification signs
- Business identification signs
- Centre-based child care facilities
- Community facilities
- Dual occupancies
- Dwelling houses
- Emergency services facilities
- Environmental protection works
- Exhibition homes
- Exhibition villages
- Flood mitigation works
- Group homes
- Home-based child care
- Home businesses
- Home industries
- Information and education facilities
- Multi dwelling housing
- Neighbourhood shops
- Oyster aquaculture
- Places of public worship
- Recreation areas
- Respite day care centres
- Roads
- Secondary dwellings
- Semi-detached dwellings
- Seniors housing
- Shop top housing
- Tank-based aquaculture
Anything not named below is treated as “Prohibited”. That is not the same as being on the list.
Objectives of this zone
- To provide for the housing needs of the community within a medium density residential environment.
- To provide a variety of housing types within a medium density residential environment.
- To enable other land uses that provide facilities or services to meet the day to day needs of residents.
- To provide for a concentration of housing with access to services and facilities.
- To enhance the essential character and identity of established residential areas.
- To ensure that a high level of residential amenity is achieved and maintained.
- To ensure that development reflects the desired future character and dwelling densities of the area.
Some state-level housing and precinct policies sit above council rules and can override them — those aren’t included here.
A council’s LEP can also grant extra permitted uses of its own on top of the standard list — those aren’t included here either.
Check a property in Penrith
This page is the table for the zone. Search an address to see whether this zone actually covers the lot, or open the Penrith zoning map.
Other zones in Penrith Local Environmental Plan 2010
Building rules
Frequently asked questions
Does this R3 Medium Density Residential table apply to my property in Penrith?
Only if this zone and this planning scheme apply to the land. Search your address — that is what names both.
Can I assume my project is one of the terms listed for R3 Medium Density Residential?
No. The list uses the planning scheme’s official names. Whether your project counts as one of those names is a judgement call — that’s what a planner is for.
If a use is not listed in R3 Medium Density Residential, is it prohibited in Penrith?
Not by itself. Unlisted uses follow this zone’s fallback (“Prohibited”). That is different from being named on the list.
Sources
General guidance only — not planning advice. This is the land use table from Penrith Local Environmental Plan 2010, sourced 19 August 2026. It does not decide what your project is, and overlays can still change what you need to apply for.
Talk to a town planner in Penrith
This page covers the general rules. A qualified town planner can tell you what applies to your actual block — the zone, the overlays and the approval path — before you spend money on drawings.
- Qualified, practising town planners
- Advice on your property, not a generic rule
- No cost, no obligation