The Mango Hill Home

My role: Renovation Strategist

The Roadblock: Homeowners planning for the future of their growing family, not sure what is possible, what the options are, what the process is and how much it will cost. They love their location and have recently invested in the improvements of their backyard with a great landscaping project. Their initial thought was to construct a second storey on top of their existing home.

The (Re)Work: I met with the homeowners on a Saturday morning to talk through their hopes for their family and how they would like to live in their home. We spoke about possible approaches ranging from additional storey, large extension to the rear of the dwelling (single or double storey), internal reconfiguration, do nothing and combinations of the above. We then discussed the target spend for the project. Based upon the target spend we gave an honest assessment of a viable approach to the renovations, which was to undertake an internal renovation with a modest extension to make some improvements that they can live in for the immediate future and look to the future improvements as needs require and available funds allow. During our meeting, I was able to communicate to the homeowners the relative costs and consequences of choosing each of the possible approaches to the renovations.

Money Saved: Approximately $20,000 of consultants fees and application fees - $200000 – re-allocation of spending by not pursuing project.

The Result: With their newfound knowledge and our unbiased advice, the homeowners have been able to take the time to consider their options and have decided not to renovate but to look to purchase a new home in a couple of years time that better suits their growing needs and to rent their current home After careful consideration (we) have decided that we are going to rent our house out and buy another property circa 2024/25. We really appreciate your honesty throughout the whole process