Areas we serve / Mornington Peninsula / Somers
Lawyers and solicitors for Somers
Holiday homes, renovating older houses, coastal property, and wills and estates for Somers clients, from our Frankston office about 30 minutes away.
What we do for Somers clients
Choose what you need help with. Each one opens the detail further down this page.
Legal services for Somers clients
Somers is a Western Port village, subdivided from 1925 and named after Lord Somers, Governor of Victoria, who founded Lord Somers Camp, held there since 1931. Coolart, with its homestead and wetlands, and Lord Somers Camp are on the Victorian Heritage Register, and HMAS Cerberus adjoins the village to the east. About 40% of homes were unoccupied on Census night in 2021.
We act for owners of holiday and permanent homes, for buyers and sellers, for owners renovating older houses, and for families with wills and estates. Radek Dajer, our principal solicitor, acts personally on each matter, in English or in Polish. Much of the work can be done by phone, video and email.
Local note
The Somers Coastal Reserve is part of the Western Port Ramsar site, listed as a wetland of international importance in 1982.
Holiday homes, older houses and estates in Somers
Choose a topic to see what it involves and how we help.
Taxes, registrations and agreements for holiday houses, whether you use them yourself, rent them out or share them.
- Short stay levy: since 1 January 2025 a 7.5% levy applies to bookings of less than 28 days, unless the property is someone’s principal place of residence. The booking platform collects it, or the owner for direct bookings.
- Shire registration: short stay rentals must be registered each year under the Shire’s Short Stay Rental Accommodation Local Law 2022, with a contact person and the registration number in your advertising.
- Empty homes: vacant residential land tax applies to homes left empty for more than six months of a year. A holiday home used by the owner for at least four weeks may be exempt, but the conditions need checking every year.
- Land tax: a holiday home is not your principal place of residence, so it usually counts towards your land tax.
Heritage checks, permits and contracts for renovating older and postwar houses.
- Proposed heritage listings: the Shire has asked for Heritage Overlays on several places in Somers, including postwar houses (Amendment C302morn). The Shire is still waiting for the Minister’s authorisation to put it on public exhibition.
- Permits: under the Heritage Overlay, a planning permit is needed to demolish, build, externally alter a building or paint an unpainted surface, and in some heritage places to repaint a building or remove a tree.
- Checking a property: the planning property report shows whether an overlay applies, and the Shire offers a free pre-application meeting for heritage advice.
- The building contract: for a major domestic building contract you can usually withdraw within 5 clear business days after receiving a signed copy.
Planning checks for buying and building near the Western Port coast.
- Coastal hazards: since 9 January 2025, an Erosion Management Overlay (EMO6) and updated Land Subject to Inundation Overlays have applied to coastal hazard areas on the Western Port coast, and development there typically needs a coastal hazard vulnerability assessment.
- Ramsar coast: the Somers Coastal Reserve is part of the Western Port Ramsar site.
- Bushfire: parts of the Somers settlement are outside the Bushfire Prone Area, but land near bushland may be inside it. The planning property report shows what applies.
Probate, wills and powers of attorney where the family owns a house in Somers.
- Is a grant needed? A holiday house in the deceased’s sole name usually needs a grant of probate before it can be sold or transferred. Property owned as joint tenants passes to the surviving owner.
- Family provision claims: must generally be filed within 6 months after the grant of probate or letters of administration.
- Planning ahead: if you want the family beach house kept or sold after you die, say so clearly in your will, to reduce the risk of a dispute.
- Enduring power of attorney: appoints someone to make financial or personal decisions for you, or both, and continues if you lose capacity. Made under the Powers of Attorney Act 2014 (Vic).
Owners who live elsewhere
Many Somers owners live in Melbourne or further away. Much of the work can be done by email, phone and video, so you may only need to come in to sign documents.
Building near the coast
Building or renovating in Somers, step by step
From the first check of the land to handover. We review the contracts and explain each stage, in English or in Polish.
01
Check the land
We check the zone and overlays, including any coastal erosion, flooding or heritage overlay, with the section 32 statement before you buy.
02
Assessments
Development in a coastal hazard area typically needs a coastal hazard vulnerability assessment. Your designer or planner arranges it.
03
Permits
Your designer or building surveyor confirms the planning and building permits the work needs.
04
The contract
We review the building contract before you sign. For a major domestic building contract you can usually withdraw within 5 clear business days after receiving a signed copy.
05
Handover
Final payment is not due until the work is complete and you have the occupancy permit or certificate of final inspection. List any defects in writing.
How we work
Visit us from Somers
435 Nepean Highway, Frankston VIC 3199
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:30pm, by appointment
From Somers
About 30 minutes by car via the Frankston-Flinders Road through Hastings.
By phone or video
Much of the work can be done by phone, video and email, so you may only need to come in to sign documents.
Parking
Wilson Parking at 453 Nepean Highway, street parking on the Nepean Highway, and the car parks at McDonald’s across the road and at Dan Murphy’s.
Common questions
Can’t see your question? Call 1800 776 529 or send us a message.
If you rent it out for short stays, yes. The Shire’s Short Stay Rental Accommodation Local Law 2022 requires yearly registration, a contact person who responds to neighbours’ complaints within two hours, and the registration number in your advertising. The state short stay levy is separate.
Possibly. The Shire has asked for Heritage Overlays on several places in Somers, including postwar houses, and is still waiting for the Minister’s authorisation to put them on public exhibition. The planning property report shows the current controls, so check before you buy or renovate.
Often. Since 9 January 2025, erosion and flooding overlays have applied to coastal hazard areas along the Western Port coast, and development there typically needs a coastal hazard vulnerability assessment.
Start with how the title is held and anything you agreed. A written co-ownership agreement covering costs, use and a buy-out avoids most disputes. If co-owners cannot agree, VCAT can make orders about co-owned land, including an order for its sale, under the Property Law Act 1958 (Vic).
Our office is at 435 Nepean Highway, Frankston, about 30 minutes by car. Much of the work can be done by phone, video and email, so you may only need to come in to sign documents.
Yes. Radek Dajer speaks Polish and can take your instructions and explain your documents in Polish. See our Polish-language services.
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Talk to us about your Somers matter
Tell us briefly what has happened or what you are planning. We reply to every enquiry within one business day, by phone, email or text, whichever you prefer.
What happens next
- Send the form.
- We reply within one business day.
- We arrange a time to talk, or ask for any information or documents we need first.
Prefer to talk? Call 1800 776 529, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:30pm.