subject to enough available space down the side an extension to include a new bathroom and kitchen extension with a north facing verandah might be worth considering

I really like this! I had been thinking more of opening up the back to the garden but I think this is a great alternative.

always depends on precise measurements but the northern aspect to the side would make a great verandah as well as allowing space for a bathroom near the bedrooms (needs about 3m from side wall to side boundary) and would need careful planning to create the best look from the street) and afresco is an easy addition and you could consider swopping the kitchen and dining for more connection to the garden

We will measure when we visit next to see how much space there is at the side. Thanks again!

Hi there Jules,Not knowing what the house is built of I was thinking more like this, (not drawn so well.)

The passage ways are a total waste of space, so make use of it.

Open up the house to the side and rear with verandahs & pergolas with lovely big openings, this will make the house feel twice as big

Run the kitchen/Laundry/Bathroom on the left hand long wall. cheers

Sorry Jules the ensuite at the front could be made a bathroom to serve both bedrooms and then just add an additional toilet/powder room in the big space, always good to have an extra toilet, but then you already have the outdoor Loo in the back yard, priceless

Thanks, I guess this is probably a bit more of an expensive option as there are a few more walls to move but it's good to at least see what can be done. It's just a matter of how much seeing how much we'd have to spend to get the property and how much we'd have left to do the works. Any ideas how much we should be budgeting?!

Ps this is the exterior

Love Love Love it, the the good news is because it's timber it's easy to move walls!, extending would cost more. Also being timber and on stumps easy to change plumbing. You would need to get a builder/s to cost it for you, reminds me of our first house but it was brick cheers

Ok great, that's encouraging! Just the small matter of an auction then....

what a gorgeous looking house and luckily the building should be relatively simple to add to in a sympathetic style especially as there doesn't appear to be any brick walls but price is always challenging... i'd guestimate at least $50,000 for a mid range renovation of the kitchen, laundry and bathroom in their present locations (with no unexpected surprises) but my suggestion is adding about 15 sqm of extra building plus the verandah and would probably double that price or more... so any renovation is only worth doing if you think the purchase price plus the cost of this improvement is worth it for this house in this location and you should arrange for proper building inspection and quotes before deciding ...although it would be possible to make the changes in stages ie adding the new bathroom, then new laundry, kitchen extension, then verandah etc and it could also be worth considering an extra bedroom at the rear with the powder room shared as ensuite

I was going to comment that that's a whole lot of hallway from the entrance, past the bedrooms to the living area. Hallways are often considered to be wasted space (especially in a small build), so it's a good idea to minimize them. I was going to say, push the bedroom back (to the south), moving the hallway to the north. This will leave space, to be utilized for the bathroom. Looking at Siriuskey's plan, this is what she's done. Great idea SK.

Depending on your laundering needs (if you have no grubby kids), & if you don't want to increase the footprint of the building envelope, you say consider a European laundry. A great space saver!

if you also measure the width of the hallways (minimum 1500 width for small bathroom with doorway from the short end) we could make specific suggestions about how the space can be used but moving walls and doors also means replacing ceilings and cornice and this could sacrifice some original features although they can sometimes be carefully salvaged and reused

OP, as soon as I saw the floorplan & block, I thought what a great home layout, incorporating many "passive solar design" elements. What are these? A rectangular building envelope, with longer faces looking north & south, perfect! Designing with living areas (& a large proportion of glazing) facing north, perfect! Minimizing (or even eliminating) western windows, perfect!

These elements will mean you'll have a nice bright home, & will help insure that you have a comfortable energy efficient home, that is warm in winter & cool in summer.

Read more about passive solar design on this government website,

http://yourhome.gov.au/passive-design

I wouldn't advise adding a verandah to the northern side of the house (unless you're in a very warm climate that requires no heating in winter), as the verandah will rob your house of sunshine in winter, making it cold. Adequate northern eaves are a much better idea, admitting winter sunshine (when the sun is lower in the sky), while shading summer sunshine (when the sun is higher in the sky). A pergola to the north (with deciduous vines) is OK, as it doesn't lock winter sunshine too much.

If you are going to open up towards the backyard, to the west, this would be the perfect place for a verandah (or pergola). This is because western windows are not shaded very well by eaves. A larger verandah does a better job at keeping the hot afternoon summer sun out of the house.

One other thing I might advise. It might be a good idea to add a couple of small south facing windows to your living area. Nothing too large, just something to promote cross ventilation. This will ensure you will get cooling breezes through your home in summertime.

The dreaded Auction, fingers crossed for you.

Moving the bedroom to the south wall and adding the bathroom to be shared by both bedrooms would be a simple cost effective way forward.

A new kitchen and laundry cupboard (Ikea/bunnings) also on the South Wall using existing plumbing and power, this would really open up the space

By adding some french doors along the northern wall opening out to a simple pergola.

A Veranda or pergola on the rear west for alfresco and an outdoor kitchen/BBQ

Doing this and keeping original features or matching where needed will keep the charm of your house and all within the current footprint will certainly be the most cost effective way to proceed when you are ready.

One other thing to consider is if there will be enough space for an attic bedroom and ensuite, (using plumbing from lower bathroom for this) another cost effective way to add rooms, you will need to allow for a staircase if you decide to do this we had ours built and slipped into place.

Add to this the outdoor Loo to service the future pool.

Good luck with the auction hopefully it will become your future new home and armed with what you can consider doing when you are ready is a big plus. Hoping for a great result.

Thank you so much everyone for your very helpful advice. You have given us lots of food for thought, really interested in the passive solar options ddarroch. If we are successful at auction I'm confident we can make this house work for us

Best of luck at the auction ☺️