Do you have to use the smaller front boundary for the garage? Is the noisy living space going to work with all bedrooms coming off this space? If the garage went to the south and can it be on the boundary in Sydney, that would leave the middle for bedrooms and the northern aspect for living, as most Australian houses benefit from northern light. The front setbacks would make an ideal outdoor space which high fences or high shrubs if not allowed high fences, if on a busy road most councils allow you to have sound barriers, leaving the entry to the house to come in off the long boundary, which you can make more of a feature. You have a corner block which is always a bonus. The beds will then have a quite zone, the living can have that northern end and cars can be pushed to boundary. Always look at the site before you look at plans. Always make sure the living aspect overrides the plans. Always make sure that living in a space overrides the plans, always.

Such a great opportunity for a project! We've done these before, and like everything it should always be all about connection to the site and celebrating the lifestyle that comes along with this location. Here is a (larger) residence we developed for a similar golf estate context, with restrictions on setbacks and an odd shaped allotment: And the floor plan, although the plunge pool/landscaping changed a bit: The thing is on yours, it feels like it's missing opportunities and could (should!) be better.. You're on the right track with your instincts about the entry, and the living kitchen dining, as well as the front....... The issues I see are about distinguishing of the private and secondary spaces. Eg You shouldn't be walking past a bathroom or laundry to get into the main space, or approaching a kitchen from behind. Do you entertain / have friends over? The BBQ is so clunky - on to a wall that BACKS onto the beautiful view (!!!???!!) The approach into the kitchen/dining is particularly poor, and it like there are aspects of the house that don't capitalise on the best outlooks to the golf course, like the kitchen & master bedroom. This outlook needs to be maximised and if the master is to outlook more privately, then fine, but the view needs to be given to something better than the walk in robe..... The kitchen/dining should be "speaking" to the view, not tuning it's back on it like it is Without picking it completely apart I'd suggest considering perhaps a bunch of broadform concepts that are rough, but quickly look at options of how to configure the spaces in different ways, before then honing in on fine detail. you need to get the main "skeleton" in regards to zoning and connection to place/outlooks and north light properly sorted first. With such a fantastic small scale brief and amazing context there is really no excuse not to have this close to perfect from a design point of view, and to do this the design needs to be more responsive and tuned in to connection to the context and outlooks and simultaneously managing/distinguishing the main living from the private spaces. this is the type of house that should "embrace' and "open up" to the outlook/environment, with expansive southern glazing aspects and views from the entry through, interesting little internal pockets, and perfectly balanced and discretely managed private zones considering the scale I'd be thinking about the value factor in that if this ever needs to be sold then the hobbies and study can function as a true 2nd or 3rd bedroom and so the bathroom needs to be managed accordingly. It's kind of on the right track, but my feeling is that whilst it "ticks the boxes" with the spaces on paper, it's needs rethinking in terms of the overall and the key will be in sorting the flow and zoning with sensitive consideration and prioritisation given to the specific outlooks from every single aspect internally As you say , this is your "forever" home, and so it deserves to be exactly that, which at the moment, conceptually, it's falling well short of. Apologies if it's bit harsh/firm, comments well intended & hope considered helpful :) Best of luck PD :) www.pauldistefanodesign.com

I'd say it's an easy min. $250K minimum flagfall on a relatively basic/not fancy spec/fit-out in a super good package deal. You're essentially renovating an entire house including moving plumbing, walls replastering, new floors throughout etc....not to mention lights, rewiring etc etc, it goes on and on.......This scope would still cost a builder themselves $150K, not factoring in their own time/labour, paying cash for sub-trades and getting super deals on all materials....and then you could only really potentially roll this type of operation out if you actually have the money in the bank. If you need to borrow then you'd need a building contract which then brings in market rates, profit margins and GST. Take profit and GST out from $150K and there's barely enough left to cover materials alone, when the labour/materials ratio (of a construction cost) these days, particular for renovations is labour being the most significant cost involved.............you can fine tune and perfect a floor plan like you have (which I reckon is pretty good as a plan), but when push comes to shove it always comes back to budget and costs, which is why we always are encouraging people to utilise design professionals who manage the challenge of designing within budget limits. If you separate budget/costs from the design process (rather than integrate it) more often than not it will leads to disappointment and misalignment of your expectations of what is realistic.

Our house has the same tiles throughout the halls, kitchen/living, bathrooms and laundry. They are very neutral, a bit bland for me but not offensive. Sometimes I get bored with it all (usually after a good session of Houzz inspiration) but I think it gives the home a very cohesive feel. Our kitchen and laundry have the same cabinetry, which I don't think is necessary as they are quite far apart but again, it all flows nicely. If I were building, I'm not sure that I would be able to settle on just one tile for the whole house but I must say it is quite calming to live with. With the different orientation and lighting through the house, the tiles look a bit different in different rooms eg floor in living area looks almost white whereas in the bathrooms, it looks greyish-brown.