Three years on from the worst flood in Murwillumbah's modern history, the town is starting to plan its next chapter. The state government's Resilient Homes Program, run by the NSW Reconstruction Authority, has been progressively buying back the most flood-exposed properties in South Murwillumbah and removing the houses. Now Tweed Shire Council and the Authority have appointed specialist consultants to master-plan what comes next — and the answer is going to reshape a meaningful slice of Murwillumbah property for decades.
For anyone living in, buying into, or watching the Murwillumbah property market, this is a genuinely big deal. Below is what we know, what's being decided, and what it means for the value and future of land across town.
What's actually happening
The Resilient Homes Program is a voluntary scheme. Owners of homes in the highest-risk flood zones across the Northern Rivers were offered three options: a buyback (sell the property to the state), a house raise (lift it above the flood level), or a retrofit (rebuild parts of it more resiliently). Across the region, thousands of households engaged with the scheme. In Murwillumbah, a concentrated cluster of buybacks has been happening south of the bridge, on the floodplain along the Tweed River.
Houses on bought-back land are being progressively removed, and the land itself sits with the state. Critically, that land cannot legally be reused for housing or short-term accommodation. So what happens to it next is a planning question, not a property development question — and that's what the master plan exists to answer.
Tweed Shire Council has engaged Hansen Partnership, in collaboration with Leisa Prowse Consulting, to run consultation, develop concept plans, and ultimately recommend zoning and planning changes that lock in safer, more sustainable long-term uses for the precinct.
Where exactly is the precinct?
The first area being master-planned sits south of the Murwillumbah Bridge, hugging the Tweed River. If you live anywhere in town, you'll know it — it's the lower-elevation strip between the river and the railway, including the heritage-listed station that's now the trailhead of the Northern Rivers Rail Trail.
Master plan precinct boundaries
The timeline so far — and what's still to come
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February 2022
Catastrophic flooding hits the Northern Rivers. Murwillumbah, Lismore and surrounds are inundated. Hundreds of Murwillumbah homes go under, many beyond reasonable rebuild.
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2022–2023
The NSW Reconstruction Authority is established. The Resilient Homes Program rolls out across the most flood-exposed parts of the Northern Rivers. Buyback offers begin going to the highest-risk Murwillumbah households.
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2024–2025
Buybacks settle progressively. Houses are demolished or relocated. The South Murwillumbah floodplain begins visibly emptying out — vacant lots multiply along the affected streets.
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2026 (now)
Hansen Partnership and Leisa Prowse Consulting are appointed. Master planning begins. Community consultation kicks off in coming months. A precinct plan for the heritage railway station is also in scope.
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2026–2028 (projected)
Concept plans are developed and tested with the community. Recommended zoning and planning changes go through Council. Construction of new open space, recreation and active transport infrastructure begins on the floodplain.
What the buyback land CAN and CAN'T be used for
This matters more than most people realise. The clearest single fact about all this land is that it is permanently excluded from new housing. But the project isn't a "do nothing" exercise — there's a genuine list of things being actively considered.
- Open space and parkland
- Walking and cycling connections (linking to the Rail Trail)
- Riverfront amenity and access points
- Environmental restoration — native planting, wetlands
- Community recreation infrastructure
- Tourism-supporting facilities at the Railway Station
- Other low-impact, non-residential uses
- New housing of any kind
- Short-term accommodation (Airbnb, motels, etc.)
- Permanent residential dwellings
- Any use that puts people in harm's way during a flood
Why it can't go back to housing: The buyback program exists because the underlying flood risk on these properties is too high to manage with construction alone. Putting houses back — even raised, even retrofitted — would defeat the entire purpose of the scheme and re-expose households to the next major flood event.
What this means for Murwillumbah property buyers
This is where the master plan starts to matter for anyone looking at where to buy in Murwillumbah. The buyback program is reshaping the local market in ways that affect both prices and what's worth buying. Here's the practical picture.
1. Flood-exposed stock is getting rarer (which polarises the market)
Pulling the most vulnerable houses out of the supply pool tightens the riverfront, low-lying segment of the market. At the same time, awareness of flood risk is at an all-time high. The result is a more polarised Murwillumbah property market: flood-free or well-elevated property holds value strongly, while property still sitting in a flood overlay trades at a meaningful discount and faces steeper insurance premiums.
2. Insurance is the new gating factor
Before exchange, get a flood-specific insurance quote on the address. If an insurer declines or quotes you out of the market, that's a hard signal. We covered this in detail in our Murwillumbah and flooding guide — the short version is that flood overlays are public, every Murwillumbah address can be looked up on Tweed Shire Council's planning portal, and walking away from a too-risky purchase is a perfectly reasonable choice.
3. Land near the new master plan precinct may benefit
If the master plan delivers what's signalled — high-quality open space, a connected walking/cycling network linking to the Rail Trail, restored riverfront amenity — properties on flood-free land adjacent to the precinct could see a quiet uplift over time. New parks, trails and tourism infrastructure tend to lift surrounding values, particularly when paired with heritage assets like the Murwillumbah Railway Station.
A buyer's checklist for Murwillumbah property: 1) Pull the flood overlay from Council's planning portal before making an offer. 2) Get the Section 10.7 certificate. 3) Get an insurance quote on the specific address. 4) Use a building inspector who knows post-flood remediation. 5) Look at the land's elevation, not just the house. 6) Browse local solicitors, building inspectors and insurance brokers in the directory — these are the people who'll do this work for you.
What this means for current property owners
If you own land or a home in or near the precinct, three things are worth knowing.
Your value doesn't get worse from this — and may improve. The master plan replaces a slowly-emptying patchwork of vacant blocks with a coherent, higher-amenity precinct. Done well, that's a value-positive change for surrounding property over the medium term. Done badly, it's neutral. Either way, the alternative — leaving the floodplain in indefinite limbo — was the worst outcome.
You will have a say. Council's process explicitly includes community consultation: workshops, surveys, and the chance for residents and local businesses to feed in opportunities. If you have views about what the precinct should become — open space focus, recreation focus, environmental focus, tourism focus — that is exactly what the consultants need to hear. The official channel is yoursaytweed.com.au — South Murwillumbah Master Plan.
The Railway Station precinct is in scope. If you're a business owner near the railway station, the master plan also includes a precinct plan for the heritage station itself — already a tourism magnet as the trailhead of the Rail Trail. Worth tracking closely.
The Northern Rivers Rail Trail factor
It's easy to forget how much the Rail Trail has changed Murwillumbah's tourism profile in just a couple of years. The trailhead at the Murwillumbah Railway Station gets steady foot traffic from cyclists and walkers heading north toward Crabbes Creek and beyond. The master plan explicitly leans into this — it positions the precinct not just as flood resilience infrastructure but as a connection-and-amenity corridor that links the Rail Trail back into central Murwillumbah and South Murwillumbah.
For local hospitality, retail and cycling-related businesses, that's a tailwind worth planning around. New businesses opening in Murwillumbah are already clustering around hospitality and the Rail Trail visitor economy — this master plan supports more of that.
The bigger picture: floodplains as assets
The most consequential framing in the whole project is the reframing itself. Tweed Shire Council's General Manager has openly described the shift as starting to see floodplains as assets rather than liabilities — places that can be high-amenity public space, environmental restoration sites and active transport corridors, rather than land we keep trying to live on and being repeatedly flooded out of.
That's a national pattern playing out locally. Across Australia's most flood-affected regions, similar buyback-and-master-plan exercises are running. Murwillumbah is one of the more visible test cases. How well South Murwillumbah works will inform how the rest of the country approaches this — which is part of why the Council and the Reconstruction Authority are taking the consultation seriously.
How to get involved
Community consultation is expected to start in the coming months. If you're a resident, landowner, business operator or otherwise have skin in the game, the path is straightforward:
- Go to yoursaytweed.com.au — South Murwillumbah Master Plan
- Subscribe to project updates so you get consultation invitations and key milestones
- Attend workshops when they open
- Submit your views in writing if workshops don't suit
Frequently asked questions
Will buyback land in South Murwillumbah ever be redeveloped for housing?
No. Under the NSW Reconstruction Authority's Resilient Homes Program, properties purchased through the voluntary buyback scheme cannot be reused for housing or short-term accommodation. The land is being master-planned for non-residential uses such as open space, recreation, walking and cycling connections, and environmental restoration.
Which streets are part of the South Murwillumbah master plan precinct?
The first precinct sits south of the Murwillumbah Bridge along the Tweed River, bounded by Alma Street, Prospero Street, Colin Street and the Murwillumbah Railway Station including Railway Street. It extends from Max Boyd Park to Buchannan Street and includes the state heritage-listed railway station.
Does the buyback program affect Murwillumbah property prices?
Indirectly, yes. Removing the most flood-exposed houses tightens the supply of riverfront and low-lying stock in town, while flood-free and elevated properties become relatively more valuable. Expect a more polarised market: well-located, higher-elevation property holds value strongly, while property still inside flood overlays trades at a meaningful discount and faces higher insurance costs.
How can residents have a say in the master plan?
Tweed Shire Council has engaged Hansen Partnership and Leisa Prowse Consulting to lead community consultation. Residents, landowners and local businesses can subscribe for updates and consultation invitations at yoursaytweed.com.au under the South Murwillumbah Master Plan project page.
Should I still buy property in Murwillumbah after the floods?
Plenty of people do. Not every part of Murwillumbah is flood-affected — elevated areas, ridges and higher parts of South Murwillumbah carry no flood overlay at all. The key is to check the planning overlay before making an offer, get a Section 10.7 certificate, and confirm flood insurance is available before exchange. Our flooding guide covers this in detail.
This article isn't legal or financial advice. If you're considering buying, selling or developing property anywhere near the affected precinct, get advice from a local solicitor and an independent insurance broker who knows the Murwillumbah market. The directory has plenty of both.