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Hello!
We have found a home we love and see a lot of potential. We are first time home owners and have never renovated. We have an idea of what we want to do, and have worked out a rough budget. We would do as much as we can ourselves. I guess our fear is - this is a huge job and is it a reasonable expectation of first time renovators?
Renovation/work;
- New flooring (possible existing floorboards/replace laminate and carpet areas)
- Add cooling and heating
- Possible update insulation
- New bathrooms
- Possible asbestos removal
- Curtains and blinds
- Window treatments
- Painting
- Eventually kitchen - gut and remove wall to open space between living and kitchen
- Knock down wall between study and bedroom to open space to second living area
Built in the 70s, features we love include;
- raked ceilings
- timber wall and ceiling panel
- large master and ensuite
- sunroof in the second bathroom
I have attached some photos. If there are any veterans or experienced renovators, please let me know your thoughts! We also had an idea to find a renovator (how though?) To walk through and provide an opinion. This home has been for sale for 6 months now, and has had a price reduction. It does make us wonder why has it not sold, surely we are not the only ones who have noticed the potential?
What an adorable house! I would consider doing things in stages to see how you go.
New flooring, paint and curtains will make the biggest difference and are not difficult to do. Lucky for you the layout of the house is great so you wouldn't need to do any structural changes to make it livable.
When you get around to doing the bathroom or kitchen I would suggest that you try to keep them in a 70s or midcentury style. Replacing them with what is considered modern today will end up looking like a tacky reno a few years down the track.
Don't rush, live in it for at least a year before making any decisions. The bathroom will obviously be first but don't over capitalise on other areas. Also don't make plans and set your heart on visualised changes that involve removing walls without first knowing whether they are load bearing and the costs involved.
The kitchen is a good design but just be aware that you are restricted for your fridge size. Is the microwave cavity ventilated?
Also look at the energy efficiencies. How good is the ceiling insulation? Look for draughts. What type of lights are there? Would some skylights or solar tubes improve ambience and reduce energy use? Also look for water savings etc.
Re the fernery; I designed a home in the early 90s with a fernery on the south side bordered by the first and second bedrooms and which the lounge also looked out onto. From mid-late hot summer afternoons, we operated misters (micro sprays) and opened the door (there was a flywire door) as well as the house back windows on the east side and the afternoon sea breeze would pick up the cooler air and flow through the house. We rarely needed air con. While your fernery is not located on the south side, you may still be able to make similar use of it with a bit of thought.
Good luck.
EDIT: I just noticed that you have posted a duplicate thread in another sub forum. Just be aware that this is against the forum's community guidelines, Posting Rules: 4.
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=61847
Don't rush, live in it for at least a year before making any decisions. The bathroom will obviously be first but don't over capitalise on other areas. Also don't make plans and set your heart on visualised changes that involve removing walls without first knowing whether they are load bearing and the costs involved.
The kitchen is a good design but just be aware that you are restricted for your fridge size. Is the microwave cavity ventilated?
Also look at the energy efficiencies. How good is the ceiling insulation? Look for draughts. What type of lights are there? Would some skylights or solar tubes improve ambience and reduce energy use? Also look for water savings etc.
Re the fernery; I designed a home in the early 90s with a fernery on the south side bordered by the first and second bedrooms and which the lounge also looked out onto. From mid-late hot summer afternoons, we operated misters (micro sprays) and opened the door (there was a flywire door) as well as the house back windows on the east side and the afternoon sea breeze would pick up the cooler air and flow through the house. We rarely needed air con. While your fernery is not located on the south side, you may still be able to make similar use of it with a bit of thought.
Good luck.
EDIT: I just noticed that you have posted a duplicate thread in another sub forum. Just be aware that this is against the forum's community guidelines, Posting Rules: 4.
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=61847Hi, thank you so much for your feedback! Definitely our biggest question mark right now is energy efficiency and something we will be considered carefully. I like idea of skylights. Also great advice on the fernery, we really had not even considered what to do with the it. Might need to research how to care for as it is a beautiful aspect of the home.
My apologies for duplicate threads, I'll delete my first one sorry I put in the wrong forum. Thanks for pointing that out!
I saw the three overhead lights in the kitchen, I had the same when I bought my present house but back then there were 3 x 60W globes. Hopefully yours are more modern. The latest LED globes are fantastic.
There are several variants of skylights now.
Have a look for Sanctuary magazine, it has a lot of good ECO and design ideas. It is published by Renew, formerly the Alternative Technology Association which is a non profit group that does a lot of good work.
https://renew.org.au/
Read carefully and plan thoroughly before starting, and make sure your relationship is on a strong footing. Start here:
http://yourhome.gov.auBest resource available, and your taxes paid for it.
Read carefully and plan thoroughly before starting, and make sure your relationship is on a strong footing. Start here:
http://yourhome.gov.auBest resource available, and your taxes paid for it.
Thank you so much - this is so helpful!
What an adorable house! I would consider doing things in stages to see how you go.
New flooring, paint and curtains will make the biggest difference and are not difficult to do. Lucky for you the layout of the house is great so you wouldn't need to do any structural changes to make it livable.
When you get around to doing the bathroom or kitchen I would suggest that you try to keep them in a 70s or midcentury style. Replacing them with what is considered modern today will end up looking like a tacky reno a few years down the track.
Thank you so much for your feedback! I actually love the bathroom tiles 😆 bf not so much, however you're so right. Embrace the quirks and let it make the home I say.
That is such good advise to go in stages. We are thinking first insulation is a must, then flooring as the carpets are pretty dank and might be contributing to the old smell. And then go from there.
Hi we have just done exactly what you are describing, we are 18 months down the line. We brought a 70's house that needed loads of renovating, which we had never done before. I could not agree more with one of the comments above... live in it for a year before making any big changes, ie, the layout! We already regret some of the changes we made early on, we rushed in too quick. After a year you will have a better idea on how you use the spaces... how the light, heat and weather affects the rooms in different parts of the day (and seasons). You will change your mind multiple times before fully settling on a layout. Regarding the asbestos, personally, I had no issue tackling this myself. Just use the correct PPE and bag it up. Its only 80 dollar per tonne to get rid of at my local tip, it costs thousands if you get a company in. Disclaimer: - Make sure you fully understand the risks, take precautions and operate within the law.
Hey Phoebe how did you go? Did you end up buying? We bought a 1970's renovator at the end of 2016, few similar features to the one you are looking at, I've started a thread 'Renovating a 70s Monstrosity' - this is our second reno, so if you are on the reno train now...happy to provide our experiences if needed.