Thanks Jen, It is a great spot. My husband is the hedger and always reminds me when working in the garden, " that we snip, prune and mow so it looks good now !. "Not in a week or a month when it grows back" I'm a bit rough, always in a hurry. Yes we are very lucky to have such a quiet part of the world, it is beautiful. (Sarina Beach) If I could just get council to seal our very short, no through street it would be perfect. The traffic dust can bad. The houzz unfortunately was originally built close to the road so we were limited by council on what we could do out the front, We had to apply for a relaxation in the laws. They granted our plans for 2 meters. We are happy with how the deck has come up and the hedge gives a bit of privacy from the street yet does not obstruct our view at all. (While catching a bit of the dust as well.) It has been hard work, I went and got an owner builder permit and have been bringing in the trades as needed. With both of us still holding down full time jobs we have had weekends where we have gone back to work on Monday for a rest. Sure I'd love to keep you guys up to speed as we plod on to the finish line. Cheers!

I would be looking carefully at your bathroom and powder room arrangements, especially with the shower and water splash distances. I can't see any shower screens to either shower? As it is drawn I hope you like mopping floors after every shower. For a family home there will be privacy issues when someone needs to access the laundry, while another family member is having a shower. I would separate the laundry and family bathroom into two distinct rooms as the current design is a compromise. With space so tight the second shower in the powder room seems excessive, and it is so small it is not very functional. You need to think carefully about the freestanding bath, the space it takes up, and the cleaning around it. A more traditional bath hob will give you fewer compromises in other areas as it will take up less space. Have you considered flyscreening with your bi-fold doors to the rear? Have you considered how you are going to furnish the living room? There is lots more, no doubt other Houzzers will pick up on. If you want a proper, detailed design/review or chat feel free to contact me. Best of luck, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls

Appreciated am coming in late to this conversation, but generally the ideas are there, but I'd be playing with it a bit more.......there are 2 big ones for me here. Firstly missing the opportunity with the master suite. The whole thing should arguably be flipped so the bedroom space is to the rear/outlook to the pool and the bathroom/robe amenity internalised. If you're going that far with extension works arguably a bit of structure/engineering implemented to support the upper level is worth the investment to get the layout working. Design decisions should always be driven from the experience of the space. and 2. Not that convinced about the flow from entry to main living through an internalised dining space. Its like the kitchen/living/dining relationship is similarly not functionally balanced,. It's like the dining should be aligned with the kitchen space and living then separated....How exactly is that living space intended to be furnished?? At this design stage furniture should always be on the plan. You have to design from the inside out, make it work functionally and then deal with the walls/windows/doors etc last What's you're budget? Has your design given you projected costings on this? You want to make sure you don't need up with a conservative design solution that ends up costing you more than you wanted, and you then spend the money anyway but miss the opportunity for a much better resolved, higher value option than makes sense spatially for the way the house will be used and experienced. Best of luck PD :) www.pauldistefanodesign.com

Yep, it sure adds up doesn't it! It's a lot of money for perhaps not an equivalent amount of value gain. But it's not necessarily the builder's fault or issue here. Their pricing here is not surprising, but to clarify not sure how you can isolate the kitchen or what exactly does 30K mean? Is it joinery only, is it including fittings? Is the balcony upper or main level. The question is, is this actually the best way to spend your money? Considering how much you're spending, should you be considering getting proper value for the money and getting more for your money with potentially a different design?. Are you happy with the design? It's going to be super? Is it worth $400K to you for what you're going to get? If the answer's no then a design rethink is possibly in order. Where are you at in the design/doc process? have you used a drafty, designer, architect to help you with the process? What people often get quite wrong with renovation projects is the distribution of budget in regards to HOW it's being spent (you WILL spend it one way or the other), and it always comes back to the design/layout as to how well or not it's spent. Really need to see actual plans to be able to assess and comment further with more accuracy otherwise just speculating on in all. Depending upon your finishing decisions this sort if thing could easily nudge the $450K mark.