DPUs – dependent person’s units
Some councils that won’t allow granny flats for rental purposes will allow people to build a DPU (dependent person’s unit) to accommodate a family member subject to certain structural and situational conditions. This has been the case with getting a DPU in Melbourne, for example, until some changes in rules for some areas in Victoria.
Many customers have successfully built a compliant DPU using flat-pack building kits from Backyard Pods, saving lots compared to conventional construction. We can also do prefabricated DPUs, delivered complete to your property ready for connection to services, etc.
We can help with your DPU or granny flat when you’re ready, including with the approval process if needed. Just ask for our latest prefab brochure for prices on 24 most popular designs. Otherwise, you can click below to send us a detailed enquiry and we’ll get back to you shortly.

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DEAR CUSTOMERS: Please send us more pics and stories because other customers love learning from what you’ve achieved, like these examples:
Many mid-life adults need to house their own parents with independence and more interaction and security on their own property. Granny flats and extended family living arrangements are the answer and with Backyard Pods, it costs less to create the privacy and security of a secondary dwelling.
David and Mark have a beautiful property not far from Ballina in northern NSW, where they provide family respite accommodation. They had one respite cabin on the property, made from an upcycled mining donger (pre-used demountable building). But when the time came to create a second and even better cabin, their options were limited. Their…
This small granny flat in Melbourne was built for a teenager to live independently (with visiting friends, entertainment, etc) yet still on the family property behind the main house. The granny flat design is contemporary and fully approved. Engineered floorboards, plenty of storage, practical kitchenette, custom stairs, and entry porch.
Granny flats Blue Mountains – how a customer at Katoomba easily built a low-cost backyard garden studio apartment or granny flat. But “don’t call it a granny flat,” he said of his deluxe ‘bachelor pod’ shared with his Golden Retriever. N4 wind rating for Backyard Pods complied with the Blue Mountains building regulations.
Many people want to find out how much it costs to build a granny flat in Melbourne now that granny flats are allowed in areas of VIC. This custom granny flat behind a lovely home in Mornington Peninsula was permitted as a DPU but recent changes allow backyard rentals as well as independent living for family members.
Our customer needed a budget granny flat so an elderly mother could be cared for close to the family home, whilst still maintaining her independence and privacy. The list of needs included a spacious bathroom with plenty of storage for linen and towels. A queen-sized bedroom, with ample wardrobe space, and an open plan living/dining…
How to build a low-cost granny flat in Melbourne – three generations, one suburban property In Melbourne, the challenge of extended family living was resolved by cost-effective completion of an approved affordable and future-ready granny flat (DPU) in a Backyard Pod. A working mum with a young son was living with her mother and grandmother.…
A family in Brisbane needed a ‘tiny house’ for a grown-up daughter still happily living-at-home, yet there was no space available in the yard behind the house. Our challenge was to come up with a backyard pod design that would fit neatly into the property’s driveway-width side lawn area. After viewing the property via Google Satellite,…
A parent was quick to recognise that an adult son, soon returning from overseas travel to resume studies, would benefit in many ways from having a separate backyard studio flat with kitchenette, bed, wardrobe, and ensuite built for him on the family property in a trendy inner-Melbourne suburb. He could occupy it for a few…
At Mermaid Beach, a couple with an established home wanted to explore the option of building a granny flat in their backyard. They could rent it out for the time being, and use it themselves if the maintenance of the main house and swimming pool ever became too onerous. This idea is gaining popularity as…
What are granny pods? They are small secondary dwellings in the backyard, intended to accommodate elder relatives. We’ve been saying it for ages, so it was no surprise when Channel Nine News featured Backyard Pods with the headline: “The mini real estate boom emerging in Queensland”. It’s not just in Queensland, but all over Australia…
Sometimes people need backyard pods to be a flexible space – one that can be used for extra sleeping or guest accommodation but not quite as self-contained as a proper ‘granny flat’. Anyway, not everyone needs a bathroom in their sleep-out pod if there is easy access from the pod to a main bathroom or…