With the Federal Government announcing a $25 K HomeBuilder grant, Australian homeowners are now considering pressing ‘Go’ on their ultimate dream home ideas.
From June 4 to December 31, 2020, the government’s gives eligible owner-occupiers a grant to build a new home or substantially renovate an existing home. It’s designed to boost residential construction and you can find out all about it here.
If you’ve ever bemoaned you never have enough room to swing a cat, 2020 is the perfect time to change all that. And a home extension is a great way to do it.
But where do you begin? Extending your home requires a little bit of research and a lot of design inspo to get your project off the ground. You’ll need to consider where your home needs the most help, how to accommodate your future changing needs, and how you can best ensure you get the most value for your investment.
To kick off your planning, here are our top 4 favourite home extension ideas to spruce up your place this year:
- Build a conservatory or sunroom. Take advantage of your home’s orientation by inviting more light inside your home. Conservatories can bring your outdoors spaces in—you can add plenty of indoor plants and casual sitting and dining areas to trap the sun and create your own nature-filled oasis.
One of the most popular home extension projects, you’ll need to consider how to integrate it with your home to reduce energy loss. One way is to keep the conservatory under your existing insulated roof so you can control the temperature whether it’s hot or cool outside.
- Linking the new and the old. If you have a period home, it can sometimes be challenging to add a contemporary extension that meshes perfectly with your traditional architecture. One option is to create a glazed walkway between the old house and your brand spanking new spaces.
This gives you the best of both worlds while reducing the visual disconnect between your contemporary home extension and existing building. It’s a particularly good choice if your home is heritage listed.
- Reconfigure your space. When nothing works in your home, but you love your neighbourhood and don’t want to move, consider reconfiguring your entire existing space. A major renovation like this will allow you to make the most of every bit of space by optimising your layout for maximum utility, amenities, light and vistas.
You can move doorways, internal walls, integrate modern extensions, add storage, and change the relationships between rooms to ensure every centimetre adds to your dream home.
- Go up and out. When space is already at a premium, and you just can’t optimise it further, building a second storey extension will give you value for money and maximum results per square metre.
You could also extend a garage to a second level to provide a retreat away from the house for rowdy teens or add a separate private living area for extended family. You’d effectively be doubling your living space without having to bulldoze your existing home.