Hello @charlie_com Wow, what a great lot of advice and help. The Houzz community always amaze me with their generosity and info in helping homeowners with their project plans. And how exciting that you're looking at renovating! Your home has a lot of potential! I have a few comments to share which may be of use to you ... 1. Getting the design right - so it suits your family now, and into the future, (as well as creating a home that will sell well and quickly when the time comes) is a great way to start any project 2. Whilst your home is lines on a page, change is cheap - so whilst you may want to hurry up and get it built, it's worth taking the time to maximise every opportunity for your design, and to save time and money during construction, in the design phase. 3. Use professionals based on their specialty skills. Choose professionals you feel a good fit with, but that also have demonstrated experience in offering what you need. So builders are great at building ... some have an interest in design, but it's not their role or specialty. I have a blog on my site about the differences I see between building designers, architects and draftspeople - you can read it here as it may help you choose who is the best fit for you and your project. http://undercoverarchitect.com/architect-vs-draftsperson-vs-building-designer-whats-the-difference/ 4. Speaking to local agents is a great start to understanding what will add value and what won't. The Gap is a little bit of a tricky area of Brisbane value-wise (I have owned and renovated two homes there!) as it can have a bit of a ceiling on value. We really noticed that with our places, and our third reno was a home in Ashgrove, which is such a different market, even though it's one suburb over. Buyers in The Gap usually come from The Gap - it seems to be one of those areas that, once people move in, they don't leave ... because they love the bush setting, the amenities, and it is a lot closer to the CBD than most people realise! However, what people pay for in homes varies - so the local Harcourts is a great agency, and Ray White Ashgrove is also good, and Ryan Smith at Remax is awesome ... but yes, getting 3 or 4 agents in to talk about improvements, and value (even if you have no immediate intention of selling) is worthwhile 5. With kids your age, creating flexible, functional spaces that offer the ability to come together (but still feel some sense of privacy from each other) as well as spaces to be apart (but not locked away) is helpful as they get further into their teenage years. I would always seek to get living areas connecting physically to outdoors - it is especially one of the things that sets homes in The Gap apart from the Queenslander homes in neighbouring suburbs. It facilitates easier living in your home, and is great for young families especially. It will always help your home to feel larger too - as you capitalise on all of the block for that feeling of space. 6. Whether you change your entry or not is one thing ... you can change your address, but I would always check if one street has more real estate value over another. Being a corner block, the challenge is ensuring you create privacy on street frontages, so you don't feel exposed (but still get the natural light you need) 7. In Qld, yes, there is lots of sunshine. However, managing the heat load is essential for homes to feel great. So orienting spaces to the north and east, and reducing the access into the home from western sun. Creating overhangs that protect and shade from high northern summer sun, and also creating shady areas outside your home that cool breezes before they enter the house. 8. Working out your budget at the get go is a great start, and factoring in all those fees as well. I recommend that you think about what will add value to your home, and make your experience easier too. As with any industry, there are great architects, and not so great architects. However, choosing the right professional with great expertise - well, the money they save, and the value they build into your design and home - should more than cover their fees. I am very clear (even as an architect) about not pushing people to use architects ... however I struggle with the advice that says "an architect will cost too much - use a good draftsperson". We spend a lot of time in our homes, and a lot of money on them (often a 30 year mortgage!). If you were about to invest $100,000 or $200,000 in the stock market, what level of expert would you speak to about that? Perhaps thinking about it that frame of mind will help. Because you could be spending this renovation money on anything - so it needs to be an investment that adds value to your home, and your lifestyle in it. I have lots of free help and advice on my website, and send out more in my free weekly UA News (which you can get by popping your email address in on my website). Best wishes as you progress with your planning for your home. Warm Regards Your Secret Ally, Amelia, UA x www.undercoverarchitect.com amelia@undercoverarchitect.com ps - here are some before and after shots of a home we renovated in The Gap. You can see more piccies here ... http://undercoverarchitect.com/portfolio/denning-st/

Hi Liana / Louise The home was a single storey and was done approx 9 years ago. It still looks the same as the day it was installed and there are no cracks. It also meant timing was shorter as we went from slab down to lock up in approx 4 weeks (ie roof on, windows in, cladding etc) RE maintenance, a pressure wash every 18 months or so depending on location is all it needs. If you want to keep it looking new, you could re-coat it every 10 years. I do not paint over texture coat but you certainly can do that. RE thermal performance, the entire system far exceeds brick. A standard double brick cavity wall R value is around R 0.5 from memory. The Hebel allows for an R2.0 batt in the stud work which takes you to a total of around R3.0, or approx 6 times greater than brick without the thermal mass. We also found that unlike brick, the walls didn't radiate heat into the house at night and aircon wasn't often needed ( I like it cool at night) As I said previously, the methodology is important. For example, during the design of the house the stud framing capacity needs to take into account the fact that the Hebel is being used. The panel size (height) needs to be selected and laid out taking into account both the set down in the slab (exterior course is lower than internal) and the height to the eaves + 50mm. I always go a longer panel so that I don't have joins everywhere rather than patching short ends Control joints need to be properly spaced (these are the gaps in the panels at long intervals to allow for movement that are caulked) Positioning items such as window in increments of 300mm from each other eliminates extra joins and pieces. In relation to cracks, the use of a textured acrylic such as Acratex means it is an elastic (movable) finish and if it is properly installed you should have no issues. I have seen people just render and paint the exterior and as this isn't flexible enough it will likely crack. I would not do it this way and do not ever recommend a render. Texture coating is the more expensive finish but is far and away the most durable in this case. As an aside, upmarket homes are almost always texture coated here in WA. I would suggest you simply take your plans to your local CSR Hebel supplier and work with them. They will plan the panel layout for the job with you or the builder can do it with them. The supplier will also point out changes that can be made to your advantage ie panel sizes, joint locations in effect all the things I have mentioned above they will do. There is also a web site available called Hebel Matters that is a blog style and you can get lots of info from that. RE the foam, we had experience with that in Melbourne when we lived there and I am not a fan of it for anything other than a second storey. As I said at the outset, if you set it up properly and finish it in a quality texture, you will not regret doing it for the advantages you gain in thermal performance. Cheers

I would ask the builder about the best solution for the windows in the new ens and laundry as it will depend on the wall structure and waterproofing requirements but it should be more cost effective to install two windows side by side in the old laundry window opening as the windows would need to be ready to install as the old Window is removed and new dividing walls installed ..and, as i would be reluctant to remove the external laundry door, i suggest a tall storage cabinet against the bathroom wall with the ironing board on the external wall and if you decide to lose the door add extra storage in front of the door

To be fair @Kate , if your councils are anything like ours this side of the ditch -- they want to control almost everything . Especially considering the smaller sized section , our councils over here will make it so that you have to either have 1.5 mtrs to your boundary or 1/3rd of the section cannot be built on . That seems easy enough to understand , BUT in reality they are basically saying that you have to go 2 storey , and there possibly aren't modular designs that fit that space efficiently . Basically , they will make the rules fit their desired outcome . We have rules like you can't have a garage opening onto the street or footpath -- they must either be at a 90 degree angle , or 7 metres in from the boundary . The 'excuse' given is so that someone doesn't back out and hit a kid or obstruct a footpath , but in reality it is because some developers years ago would have a row of say 6 garages across the front of a section , maybe with apartments above or behind . It meant they didn't have to lose space or spend money on driveways . So councils changed the rules . And as far as modular or any type of construction -- generally people mention it ( like the Original Poster did ) as thats their preferred construction , and thats because they see some percieved advantage . In this case possibly $$$$ . If someone just wants an idea , they post 'Approx what would it cost to get a 4 bed , 2 storey 250 sq mtr house built on my section, -- the OP didn't , he simply asked about 1 construction type , so I ( maybe incorrectly ) assumed it was on price .