Can you put a lift in an existing house in Melbourne?
Yes, in most houses. Most two-storey homes have a spot for a lift, often somewhere you didn't expect. The lift is the same one that goes into a new build. What decides whether it works, and what it costs, is the building work around it: the floor under the spot, a wall that can take the rails, the ceiling over the top landing, and the permit. This page goes through each one so you can check your own house.
By Liam, founder of Rise Lifts, who has installed 142+ home lifts around Melbourne. Checked October 2026. Updated 30 October 2026. Victoria.
Five places a lift goes in an existing house
These are the places I look first on a site visit.
- 1
A cupboard stack
Two cupboards, one above the other, become the shaft, and nothing else in the room changes.
- 2
Beside the stairs
It shares the space the stair already uses. Check what's under the landing first.
- 3
A room corner
It takes a corner of two rooms, one above the other.
- 4
Through the floor
An engineer checks the joists or the slab before anyone cuts the opening.
- 5
In a void
A tower stands in a double-height space and carries its own rails, so there's no shaft to build.
Wherever it goes, a hydraulic lift's pump needs a cupboard near the shaft. Put it on the drawings. One owner's architect and builder forgot, and found out on install day.
What to check in an existing house
The lift is the same either way. These are the parts of a retrofit where the surprises are.
- What's under the spot: slab or timber
- A slab feels solid underfoot, with no vents low in the outside walls. A pit means scanning for pipes, then cutting and coring the slab, and a waffle-pod slab also needs an engineer's detail. A timber floor sounds hollow and has vents or a hatch. An engineer designs trimmers for the opening, and the pit is a small concrete box on the ground below.
- A wall for the rails
- Cabin lifts fix their rails to one wall. Double brick, core-filled block, concrete or steel will take them. Brick veneer and stud walls won't. Give it a knock: plasterboard sounds hollow, masonry sounds dead and feels cold. If there's no such wall, your engineer adds steel, or you choose a tower that carries its own rails.
- The ceiling over the top landing
- This is the one that catches retrofits out. The top of the shaft usually goes up into the roof space, which works when there's roof above and doesn't when there's a bedroom above.
- Whether the walls line up
- On site visits I often find the ground-floor walls sit off the walls upstairs. A spot that looks easy can be out by 100 mm, and some builders only find out after they've cut the floor. Measure from the same outside wall to the spot on each floor before anyone cuts.
- A heritage overlay, or a shaft outside
- Either can need a planning permit as well as a building permit, and so can a shaft top above the roofline. An outside shaft costs more and corrodes near the coast.
- Power
- The lift needs its own circuit with an RCD, and an isolator. One main switch on your switchboard means single-phase power, which every home lift we checked runs on.
- Getting it in
- A lift arrives as a kit of parts in boxes, and they need somewhere to sit until the install, usually the garage or carport. Check the path from the street, and whether a crane or scaffold is needed.
The eight measurements that decide it
Typical figures for home lifts sold in Australia in 2026. Your lift company's drawing sets the real ones.
| What to measure | Typical in Australia |
|---|---|
| Footprint inside the shaft | Under 1 m square to about 1.6 x 1.6 m. A wheelchair cabin wants about 1.1 x 1.4 m inside. |
| Pit, from the finished floor | None for vacuum and shaftless lifts. Screw-driven 37 to 50 mm, hydraulic 50 to 180 mm, traction 100 to 200 mm. |
| Headroom, top floor to shaft top | 2,225 to 2,600 mm, often up into the roof space. |
| Floor to floor | Tape it down the stairwell. Each model has a travel limit. |
| Door opening on each level | About 900 to 1,000 mm wide and 2.0 to 2.1 m high, plus the door swing. |
| Pump cupboard | A hydraulic lift needs a vented cupboard near the shaft. Other drives use a slim cabinet. |
| Power | Single-phase, its own 15 to 30 A circuit with an RCD, and an isolator. |
| Emergency phone | A 4G SIM or an nbn unit with its own battery. Test the signal from where the cabin will be. |
Every RISE 300 is made to its site, with a shaft from 800 x 800 mm up to 1400 x 1400 mm. The pit is 150 mm, or 50 mm with a ramp into the cabin. See the RISE 300 Series.
Built into the walls, or a glass tower
Built in
Your builder builds a shaft inside the walls, and all you see is a door on each floor. It takes the most building work and changes the rooms the least.
A tower
A glass or steel structure stands on its own in a void, a stairwell or a room. It carries its own rails, so it needs less building work, and the lift costs more.
The RISE 300 goes either way: in a builder's shaft, or in its own glazed structure.
Permits and paperwork in Victoria
- Building permit
- A registered building surveyor issues it for the shaft and the openings. Ask for a pit inspection before any concrete is poured.
- Planning permit
- Only for some jobs: a heritage overlay, a shaft outside the house, or a shaft top above the roofline. Ask your council.
- Engineering
- An engineer designs the openings, the pit floor and any steel for the rails, to the lift maker's loads.
- Lift design registration
- WorkSafe Victoria registers lift designs, and the maker or importer holds the registration.
- Electrical certificate
- Your electrician gives you a Certificate of Electrical Safety for the circuit to the lift.
- Final inspection
- The surveyor's final inspection closes the building permit. Keep every certificate with the house papers.
Ask the surveyor about fire and smoke separation where the shaft cuts a floor or meets a party wall, and whether you need a smoke alarm at the top landing.
The order it happens in, and how long it takes
- 1
The lift company's drawing, made for your house
- 2
The building permit, and a planning permit if you need one
- 3
The builder's preparation: shaft, pit, openings and power
- 4
The install, about a week to four weeks on site depending on the lift
- 5
The certificates: lift, electrical and building
Ours usually takes 10-12 weeks from the assessment to the first ride (October 2026), and most installs take about a week on site.
The builder's side of a retrofit, the shaft, pit and openings, typically costs $5,000 to $20,000 or more on top of the lift, and a hard retrofit costs several times that. Every line of the job is on our home lift cost page.
Free 24-page Straight-Up Guide
Will it fit? What will it cost? Who can you trust?
Everyone asks me these three things about home lifts. This guide has my answers, and worksheets to work them out for your own house. Use it on any lift company, including us.
- Where a lift fits, and the eight numbers that decide it
- The all-in cost worksheet, and ten years of owning one
- 15 questions to ask any lift company, including us
- Who can help pay, and when a lift isn't the answer
It's yours.
Print it, grab a tape measure and work through it at the kitchen table. We've emailed you the link too.
Download the Straight-Up GuidePDF, 24 pages, 4 MB. Ready to talk? Book my free assessment
Want a figure first? Get my instant price
Noted. The next emails will fit your situation.
Lifts in existing homes: questions
Can you put a lift in an existing house in Melbourne?
Yes, in most houses. Most two-storey homes have a spot, often a cupboard stack, beside the stairs, a room corner or a void. What decides it is the building work: the floor under the spot, a wall for the rails, the ceiling over the top landing, and the permit.
Do you need a permit to put a lift in a house in Victoria?
Yes, a building permit from a registered building surveyor for the shaft and the openings. A heritage overlay, a shaft outside the house or a shaft top above the roofline can also need a planning permit from your council. A self-supporting glass tower in an existing void, with no floor cut, doesn't need a building permit.
Does a home lift need a pit?
Most cabin lifts need a shallow one: about 37 to 50 mm for screw-driven lifts, 50 to 180 mm for hydraulic and 100 to 200 mm for traction. Vacuum and shaftless lifts need none. The RISE 300 needs 150 mm, or 50 mm with a ramp into the cabin.
Can a lift go in a brick veneer or weatherboard house?
Yes, with the right support. Cabin lifts fix their rails to one wall, and brick veneer and stud walls won't take them. An engineer can add steel, or you can choose a tower that carries its own rails.
How much space does a home lift need?
Inside the shaft, from under 1 m square to about 1.6 x 1.6 m. A wheelchair cabin wants about 1.1 x 1.4 m inside. The RISE 300 is made to its site, with a shaft from 800 x 800 mm up to 1400 x 1400 mm.
How long does it take to put a lift in an existing home?
The install itself takes about a week to four weeks on site, depending on the lift. Before that come the drawing, the permit and the builder's preparation. Ours usually takes 10 to 12 weeks from the assessment to the first ride (October 2026).
What goes wrong most often in a retrofit?
The ceiling over the top landing, because the shaft top usually needs the roof space. After that, walls that don't line up between floors, a wall that can't take the rails, and a pump cupboard nobody put on the plans.
Will a lift fit in my house?
Most homes have a spot. A free Home Lift Assessment checks yours in one visit, then you get a written lift plan with a fixed price and a list of what your builder and electrician need to do.
General information for Victorian homeowners. It isn't a quote, or engineering, legal or building advice. Every lift has to be measured for its own site.
Will it fit in your house?
One visit, then a written lift plan with a fixed price for everything we do, and a list of what your builder and electrician need to do.