In response to Q1. I love the tiles and think you have a very charming cottage, especially the bullnose verandah- I think it's perfect as it is. The new one will cost lots of money and will not look as nice as the existing. If you want to modernise the exterior I think your money would be much better spent spraying the roof tiles a slate grey colour. Also I wouldn't highlight the gutters with a different colour (I assume you meant monument). They are not an attractive feature so paint them to blend with the walls.

Hi, I think the best option is to paint with a textured paint such as Porters Paint stone paint (or similar) in a matte finish which keeps the charm and texture of the bricks. I think the carport should tie in with the style of the bungalow ie timber posts but should be as "light" as possible so as not to overwhelm the house. I'd probably do a flat roof and open sides.

Please don't paint the brick. Try to keep the façade as original as possible. Tuck pointing, when you can afford it, will really make your home stand out. This will keep the value of your home as high as possible both historically and financially.

Also, keep the veranda roof bull nose. The guttering should blend in with the roof colour and the downpipes the same colour as the brickwork.

Also, if you can afford them, use a tessellating tile similar to what would have been there originally.

Good luck.

Q(2) I have a lifestyle property that we want to update. Any suggestions regarding the exterior would be appreciated.

I have an apartment which I love but I don't think it is finished. It needs something. (apologies for the mess)

I am not planning to sell for a few years.

What would you do?

I have a small balcony that I want to style in a way that will help the space be more usable but also more attractive and appealing in the longer term.

how do we future proof our homes??...multipurpose rooms, downsizing, energy conserving on a budget for young families to retirees...look forward to lots of ideas

HI. I am from Singapore. I have a walk-in wardrobe which is typical of HDB apartments. How could I get more out of the space? I would like a larger mirror and don't need so much hanging space. And could this work be done for less than $5000? Thanks.

I am looking to invest. Let me know if you think that Aussie homeowners these days prefer a good size closet or prefer a bigger bedroom?

New Country, Bellbowrie · More Info

(The photo above is like the one I am looking at buying.)

Hi, My question is, would renovating our kitchen or bedrooms be better for increasing the value of our home for new buyers? Both look pretty tired, TBH. We have 3 bedrooms and one is rather large, The other two are quite small but good enough for kids.

Hi all and thanks for all your questions for this, our first live chat for Houzz Australia!

Keep posting them as we'll be able to cover a fair few in 30minutes (if everything goes smoothly!).

Sally and Julia Anna are with us to provide their answers to anything you want to know about how you can add value to your home. We'll get started in a just a few minutes - make sure to keep refreshing the page. (F5 on a PC, command+r on a Mac).

Q1) @Neryl Hollingsworth on renovating choices - "Would renovating our kitchen or bedrooms be better for increasing the value of our home for new buyers? Both look pretty tired, TBH. We have 3 bedrooms and one is rather large, The other two are quite small but good enough for kids."

(Remember to list your answers as A1 or Q1, A2 for Q2, and so on.)

A1) Generally speaking any renovation will increase the value of your home! If you're thinking of doing one over the other, I would recommend to renovate the kitchen. The kitchen tends to be more of a public space where family and friends gather and for that reason, be more of a priority. Either way, I'd encourage you to think of you're home as a whole!

Q2) @Rachel Lim on maximising space - "I am from Singapore. I have a walk-in wardrobe which is typical of HDB apartments. How could I get more out of the space? I would like a larger mirror and don't need so much hanging space. And could this work be done for less than $5000? Thanks."

A2) Hi Rachel, I can't see much to work with from your photo but if you don't need so much hanging space, you could remove the upper short hanging space and put a mirror in that space.

You could continue the drawer unit under the window into an L-shape that returns under your new mirro and have that as a dressing table for make-up etc. Add some lighting and it would be even better

I would add some shelving to the section above your low hanging since you said you don't need much hanging, that way the shelving is conveniently visible.

Depending on the overall look you want to achieve you could easily do this for less than $5000.00

Q3) @artrato3 on space choices - "I have a 4 bedroom, 1 bathroom. house. Would turning one of the bedrooms into an ensuite and walk-in-robe increase or decrease its resale value?"

A2 - Hi Rachel, I'd encourage you to get in touch with a professional who understands your overall goal and can help you work realistically to achieve it. You may need to consider compromising the quality of the materials to achieve your budget. The mirror is a great start and an old trick to help create an illusion of a larger space. Good luck!

A3 artrato3We certainly do quite a few
conversions of bedrooms to dressing rooms however it is never done for the
purpose of re-sale.

In my opinion a 4
bedroom , 1 bathroom home sounds like the target market for a sale would be
small a family. If they didn’t require the fourth bedroom, I expect a family
might consider a family shared study space to be more beneficial than walk in wardrobe.

An exception to this
would be if your home is in an area predominantly catering to over 50's age
group as they tend to be have a lower requirement for bedrooms and enjoy
indulging in their fashion collections.

An option you could
consider, is a fit out that can be demountable so that you get what you need
now (A WALK IN WARDROBE)without wasting expense on a non investment return at re-sale.. This is
where a product that floats off the wall and requires just a few wall mounting
points such as Elfa can be excellent. Not suited for rental as you need to
screw into the wall, but excellent for a space efficient, ergonomic layout with
minimal construc and de-construct. Cost could be as low as $5000.00 diy Bonus- that you can take it with you to your
next home and use it in the laundry, garage
etc

Loving this! Hope you ask my question!

Do you think I should add a second storey to my home?

Q4) oklouise — "How do we future proof our homes??...multipurpose rooms, downsizing, energy conserving on a budget for young families to retirees...look forward to lots of ideas!"

You need to have a reason Marty! lol

Good point! We are outgrowing our lovely home and it is such a nice heritage home, I am unconvinced it will benefit from a big change.

A3 - Generally, I would say yes. If a buyer is thinking of renting out the house, 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms would be a better shared house situation financially speaking. Think about individuals sharing the bathroom - 1 bathroom between 4 people vs 2 bathrooms between 3 people. You can also potentially get a couple with the room closest to the ensuite. Even from a families perspective, the average amount of kids per family according to the most recent census is 1.8, so 3 bedrooms is more than enough. Hope this helps!

Q5) @Sharon Bouchard - I have a small balcony that I want to style in a way that will help the space be more usable but also more attractive and appealing in the longer term.

A5 - Sharon Bouchard your question is not my area of expertise but I can give you my brief impression. Putting the furniture at one end rather than in the middle of the doorway will feel more inviting to venture to the balcony. Because it is tight and narrow- try to square up the shape by avoiding anything that runs "long way: so add a garden element- possibly a lateral feature on the opposing wall (consider the aspect for the plant's suitability). then I wonder if it would be at all possible to run a planter above the doorway along the length of the balcony and have a pretty trailing plant all the way along - ?

Q6) @hayley on her living room - "I have an apartment which I love but I don't think it is finished. It needs something. I am not planning to sell for a few years"

@italiangal001 what are your other options? pickets?

Thanks for your answers!

Q6 Hayley,

Some of the things I
think are not working at the moment are :

To many horizontal
lines created by the paint detail. The plate rails are a lovely feature but I
think done in white will allow the actual
prettyness of the woodwork lines feature rather than the colour
dominate.

The panelling around
the fireplace is competing with the fireplace instead of framing it.

The ceiling beam is
not a feature and would be better the same colour as the ceiling.

Decide what the
floor colour is going to be then choose the paint colour for the walls and a
white for the woodwork

A4 - Who knows what the future holds! This is a great question. Choosing good quality materials with a natural finish is a good way to simply future proof your home. Overall, this will mean, less maintenance in the future. I generally steer clear of using too much colour and prefer celebrating textures of materials like timber and marble - but of course it depends on each individuals aesthetic. Also, I personally believe in exploring simple ideas on how we live from day to day. For example, finding ways to be more efficient with the space we have, taking up less space and collecting less material possessions!

The roof is Monument - but i really don't want to do Monument coloured slats..i like keeping it light and warm outside. I was thinking Surfmist slats, or Dune (same as house) but thought it would look too dull,,,so if I do Surfmist there will be contrast - and it's light in colour......

Also do i do the slats at 10ml apart? I think 50ml looks too big of a gap and yuk

Marty,

I think if you are unconvinced , save yourself the hassle, money and time. Evaluate what you have and what you love and frequently getting rid of everything you don't need feels better than getting more. Then , when you have really settled on what you love, you will know if you need more.

Q7) Louise - I live in a small federation single fronted cottage in an inner west suburb of Sydney and would like to freshen the façade to modernise it and improve on the street appeal. Within the next month I am planning on replacing the bullnose awning to one that is flat but angled, paint the exterior of the house and lay tiles in the porch and step areas (carport and planting to soften the façade will come later). The tiles that will be laid in the porch are artisan style ones shown in the pics below, steps will be marble. The house is north facing and I am going for the Hamptons look. I would like to know (a) if you think this colour scheme will work and if there is a better colour scheme that you can please recommend - Dulux tranquil retreat for the exterior, trims will be crisp white, surfmist for the awning and momentum for gutters, (b) should the awning have a corrugated or trimdek profile and (c) the tradie will be removing the timber post and replacing this will aluminium ones white in colour - is aluminium a terrible idea?

The houses on the street are a mix of federation, bungalows and modern ones. Some are as-is in pretty much original condition and others freshened up with render and paint in pretty neutral colours.

A6 - How exciting! What a great position to be in. If you're planning to stay their for a while I would recommend for you not to rush into buying too many items for your home. Also ask yourself how you plan to live in all the spaces of your home. Which rooms do you spend the most time in when your at home and prioritise those spaces? Do you like cooking and having people over? I do! So that is what I would work on and invest in.

A7 - I love this federation cottage! I would celebrate it as much as possible and keep a lot of the main elements. If this were my own home I would simply add more plants and work with the planter pot you already have. Good luck!

A7 Louise,

I am a fan of appreciating what the home has to offer- it's a relationship thing I guess. Your home already has it's peronality and I would love it to continue to speak for itself. I see it has leadlights in the windows and the original bricks are gorgeous. I think the gray and white are stark against this old darling. Some warmer colours that sing with the leadlights- perhaps taupes or heading into the mustard depending on what the actual colour of those leadlights are.

Then that sets the tone for the front porch- these homes often went into the terracotta and mustards or greens. I think work up from the pallete that is there.

I also think an neat hedge running along the fence from the letter box will be great to soften

No, no pickets, i want aluminium slats - But just usure of the colour to get

fantabulous22, sorry we didnt get to this in the chat. IN short-Aussie home owners want both.

I think that if they had to choose between a really large bedroom and a small closet or a medium bedroom with a properly fitted walk in closet that would be their preference. That way both needs are served.

There is no doubt that wardrobes are highly valued and if a decent home is lacking wardrobe space there are plenty of people who will strike it off.

Finally, I would not recommend making a decent bedroom feel tiny for the sake of a wardrobe because everyone needs a bedroom, not everyone needs a big closet.