A feasibility study assessing all costs (purchase and renovation cost) relative to potential sale price is imperative so you have a firm grip of your finances. Understanding the demographic and their lifestyle desires will determine what you need to turn the property into for it to be an appealing purchase once the renovations are complete. Hope this information is helpful to you.

If you can avoid it keep to a single storey. The costs for adding the second storey far outweigh the benefits on most projects. As for the facade I would argue that its could be kept but there isn't much there to promote you to keep it. That being said engage a great designer with a good knowledge of renovations. The money that you spend on a designer will save you thousands down the line.

Hello!

i love brick homes for the potential they have to be totally transformed in quite simple renovations - but yes, having a good base to work from will help you prevent overspending.

I wrote a blog on how to buy a renovator - it's here >>>

http://undercoverarchitect.com/how-to-buy-a-renovator/

In my experience, the main thing that enables simple renovating brick homes is when the layout works with the orientation, and the ceiling heights are more than 2400mm in the living areas. I find then that there's usually a way you can open them up more and create better connections with outdoors.

We did a low cost reno of a 1960s brick home in Brisbane and it was amazing what was possible in transforming how it looked. It was double brick externally and single brick internally - but similar principles apply >>>

http://undercoverarchitect.com/portfolio/denning-st/

Best wishes in your search!

Warm Regards

Amelia Lee

Undercover Architect

www.undercoverarchitect.com

First rule of renovating - you will not make money from renovating in the short term unless you have snaffled a bargain.

Second rule - look at all the options. Just because a space is called 'bedroom' does not mean it has to remain a bedroom.

Third rule - Space is relatively cheap, fit-out costs money. Moving bathrooms and kitchens is expensive but my quick impression is that the existing bathroom may have to go.

Forth rule - the final plan may not end up perfect, especially if you want to save money. Just relocating a door could cost $1000, depending upon how much work you did yourself. My adage about this is ' When a cave man moved into a cave and the was a huge boulder in the middle of it he just lived around it. If you have to live with a less than perfect plan your brain will soon accept that situation and, if you don't ruminate on it, the addition will still work.

Rule five - Get a good designer you can work with and do not be afraid to change things, but also be willing to listen to alternative suggestions.

Good luck

Ask yourselves 'who wants to live in this neighbourhood?' before even looking at the house. I think 50's houses have few appealing aspects: windows crowded up near the roofline, dreary brick colours, cramped interiors & If this house is west of the city, note that many of the brick structures there have signs of subsidence (sandy soil) or crumbly mortar due to cheap builders etc etc. Look for a suburb that has good features & old trees. I feel if the trees are old, the councils will have integrity & houses will be built for longevity.

The plan looks a nightmare - bedrooms facing the street, a tiny internal bathroom with no window to the outside (is that legal?) and a "lounge" that looks like it was meant to be a third bedroom. If the internal walls are stud and don't support the roof you're in with a chance, but I'd say to do a proper job the cheap option is NOT going to work.

I'd put two bedrooms where the current family room and lounge are and extend the bathroom into the boot room to give window access, or scrap the current bathroom altogether and use some of the space in what is now the kitchen for a new one. Keeping the WC separate is a good move.

If you make the street side the social side of the house you can open it right out and create a big front porch that's a social spill-over from the kitchen/dining area, creating indoor-outdoor flow. Planting (two or three shade trees and some stands of tall perennials rather than a "green fence" hedge) keeps your front garden private yet inviting and stops your front porch becoming a stage set for the street.

Good luck! I think you'll turn this very ordinary house into a much nicer place to live!

Actually, if I was redoing the floor plan, I'd try for something like this:

renovating this house to live in you'd consider your own personal tastes but if you want to make a profit you need to spend less and sell for more so quickly do the least amount of work to create a fresh new look with a flexible floorplan..

Hi there,

I have personally renovated a 1960s brick veneer for my own home and i love it. Many people urged us to render over the bricks but I am very happy I stuck to my guns and ignored them.

In my professional experience, I have found that many of these houses were better laid out and certainly more substantially constructed than a lot of the 'project homes' that get chucked out in todays market.

There are obviously exceptions to every rule but, because these houses were designed before a time when cheap electricity and power was so readily available (so pre-1980), they could not rely so heavily on air conditioning and mechanical means to ensure they were comfortable as many of the more 'modern' homes do. They are also usually a lot more compact which means they have had to employ better design to make them work.

I agree with undercover architect above, if you can find a house that has the layout right in respect to the orientation and specific benefits of the site them you are onto a winner.

I hope this helps!

Yeah I agree with Cooper

Old post! I'm sure they would have made their decisions after 4 years.