So here we are.  4 1/2 years after we first had a design proposal done by Archicentre it looks like we are going to finally do our extension.  Only now it’s not an extension – it looks like we are going to bulldoze and rebuild.  The cost of building half a house onto our existing house is almost as much as the cost to build a new house.  By the time we add in all the other associated costs for each option there is not much difference at all.  I hate the idea of knocking down perfectly good houses, but when you look at the numbers it really is a no-brainer.

This is our house, the one on the angle, and that’s part of the problem.  The angle makes it hard to just add another bit onto the back, even though we have lots of backyard.

We bought the house in 2001 after finding it on the Internet a couple of days before it was due to go to auction.  We couldn’t get in to see it until an hour before the auction, but when we walked through the front door we turned to look at each other, and said “this is it”.  It was love at first sight.  We bought it at the auction later that morning!

Photo from the sale brochure

Initally, there was no need to extend.  Its a 2 bedroom house and there were only 2 of us.  Even when we had the concept done, we had no plans for kids, so it was just about improving the value and amenity of our home.  But since having Oscar there is a definite lack of space.  For the second smallest person in the house (the smallest being the dog), he sure takes up a lot of room!

So this blog is the story of how we are going to probably build a brand new (fully insulated, energy efficient!) home…. and say goodbye to our old one.