It was great to see a show that highlighted that good design is so important, and that good design doesn't necessarily mean bigger. I was also interested to see the egalitarian way design was shared with the 'masses' through project homes and DIY plans. A peculiarity of Australia. It seems such a shame that good design is now considered out of reach of most people. Having engaged an architect to design our renovation, I can understand why people shy away from the fees, however we're now about to embark on a renovation that keeps the best of the old, creates a space that is more contemporary and suited to our lifestyle, and flows so much better! The footprint of the house stays almost the same, so we will have a lovely big backyard. I'm tipping this may be a selling point in the future. Wouldn't it be great to see volume builders adopt these principles and start to offer better designed multi-functional spaces. Smaller houses are less expensive to run. So excited to see Pettit and Sevitt. I'd love to see Merchant Builders back in Melbourne, they were big on the entire concept, working with a hero of mine, Landscape Designer Ellis Stones. Oh to dream.....

I'm in New Zealand ( as a lot of you know ) and our rules are different , and will maybe act as a warning . Councils seem to be left-leaning , and therefore see anyone with property as a continual source of money . They make the rules with that in mind . Of course , what they don't seem to be able to comprehend is thaat every action has an equal and opposite reaction . Anyone subdividing an existing section or doing a subdivision has to pay a 'development contribution' . In most cities this is $50,000-100,000 . Per section/title . so they think they are hitting the greedy landowner , but of course , it is the person buying the smaller property that effectively pays this -- I don't think most councils can appreciate that . As a slight side issue , one large company has bought several hundred rural acres , and are trying to build their own town -- factories for themselves and support businesses , as well as shops and groceries and takeaways and gas stations and the lot . 1000's of houses to buy or rent or rent to own . And they want to pay for their own streets , and sewerage scheme , and power , and water , and parks , and upkeep . The council involved , predictably , has spent $10's of millions of ratepayers money fighting them every step of the way , changing the rules , all the usual tricks . So a tiny home here isn't classed as a caravan , it needs to have permanent water and sewerage and power , so , yes you guessed , needs to have someone pay a development contribution . It needs to comply with all the building regulations , so you can't have it for only 'summertime' use or similar . In Aus , you have a lot of areas that are effectively off-grid , because power and sewerage would be way too impractical , but here you cannot opt-out . And even caravans cannot be 'lived in' permanently , with the exception of some caravan parks , and I think even then technically the caravan has to be moved once every 3 months or similar . Park a caravan at your house , have the grandkids stay for 2 weeks , you probably get away with it . But have them and their Mum live there -- you then need to permanently connect it to your services , and , you guessed it , pay a development fee ! Same with mobile homes and the like . My mobile home I have had it deregistered , and re-registered it as a mobile office , in my businesses name . This is because Mobile Homes are not allowed to park overnight and be slept in , on the streets or carparks in most towns . Of course , if I got a ticket and disputed it , the relevant council may show local CCTV footage , or ask for an accomodation receipt from a nearby business , but at least it will tie them up in court for at least a couple of hours or more -- they probably have lawyers on the payroll , but if they are paying $300 an hour , plus 3 or 4 council employees time , plus the Judge and court people -- its cost them way more than the $200-500 fine . So long story short -- tiny homes are a legal nightmare in NZ , as is almost anything that doesn't look like a conventional house .

I have been a property investor for over 25 years , and this is just my advice . Don't do any of the things you are trying -- it will most likely backfire . If you want 2 units on 1 section , design and build it like that from the start . Anything else is a compromise , you'll have problems with council , neighbours , services , access , parking , all sorts . And treat tenants as tenants . Just because they are renting , that doesn't mean they will live standing up in a wardrobe , sharing a bathroom with 3 other families and 7 random flatmates , just because you want to make another $100 a week . As a generalisation , better tenants will go to a quality house ( and landlord ) -- people with previous problems of damage or debts are the least choosiest , so they are the ones who agree to something weird or small or overcrowded -- and you then have a problem tenant . Basically , buy off the builders plan if the sums stack up , or buy something else that does .

You might find this interesting How many candles does it take to replace a lightbulb? Answer: 61 That's to replace a 60-watt bulb. How is that? A 60-watt bulb gives off 800 lumens of light. A single candle produces 13 lumens. Simple math dictates 600 divided by 13 = 61. Throw in LED lighting and dimming and it's a different result. For instance, LED lights generate far more lumens with much less wattage. With winter closing in, indoor lighting is becoming more important. As you may have noticed with the candle question above, there are lighting units of measurement. The two main ways to measure lighting: Lumen (lm): Measures the total amount of visible light emitted by a light source. It indicates the brightness or light output from the source itself, regardless of where the light is going. Lux (lx): Measures illuminance, which is the amount of light that falls on a surface. One lux is equal to one lumen per square meter. It's used to assess how much light is actually reaching and illuminating a specific area. Foot-Candle (fc): Another measure of illuminance, similar to lux. One foot-candle is equal to one lumen per square foot. It's more commonly used in the United States, whereas lux is used in most other countries. Short version: Lumen is about the total light emitted. Lux and Foot-Candle are about the amount of that light that actually lands on a surface, with lux using square meters and foot-candles using square feet as their respective units of area. Which begs the question... which is a better measurement for figuring out how much lighting is needed for a room? The better measurement is lux or foot-candle because that's how much light falls on a surface. That said, lumens is used for quick and dirty lighting needs. When choosing lighting, you can check out the lumens it gives off. For instance, the average-sized living room needs 1,000 to 2,000 lumens. If a shaded lamp gives off only 250 lumens (shades will impact lumens emitted), you can roughly calculate how many you need to properly light the space. That's quick and dirty. If you have a reading spot, you'll want to measure the foot-candle or lux where the book surface will be. In case you're wondering, 50 foot-candles is good for reading. Which means you'll want to purchase a reading lamp for the spot that delivers at least 50 foot-candles to the reading area (most reading lamps do this but it's worth checking). Keep in mind that you would not want to illuminate a living room at an intensity of 50 foot-candles throughout. The non-reading area of a living room is good at 10 to 20 foot-candles. How do you figure out how many lumens (roughly) to achieve a specific foot-candle In other words, once you know your living room's square footage, and you know that you want it illuminated at 15 foot-candles throughout, how do you figure out how many lumens you need? The formula is as follows: Lumens = Foot-Candles × Square footage For Lux it's as follows: Lumens = Foot-Candles x Square meters If your living room is 250 sq ft and you want 15 foot-candles throughout, you need lighting that gives off 3,750 lumens. Keep in mind that lighting sources usually emit light in all directions so it might be more than that. How do you measure foot-candles / lux? That's easy. You can buy digital light measuring meters on Amazon for $30 to $50. If you're renovating or aren't happy with your current lighting, it's a handy tool to have. Should you change up lighting when adding candles to a space? No, not necessary. A candle gives off 13 lumens which isn't much. Unless you put 50 candles in the room, candlelight will add ambiance but won't over-light the space. Besides, most rooms now have dim lighting. Adjust as needed. Does lighting matter? Yeah, big time. The above lighting information is merely the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more when it comes to planning lighting in a space. IMO, it's one aspect of interior design that many people undermine. TIP: If you're in the process of hiring an interior designer, ask about lighting. If they don't get technical like this, they may not be the designer to hire. It's a good way to vet the good from the bad.