The Beach House

[sailor]

I've just bought my dream beach house. Negotiations started in Aug 06, and after a long and tedious saga, settlement is now 14 Dec 06. (The Laws of Attraction certainly do work...wouldn't have this house without it.)

I want to raise the house, connect the sewerage, change all the rooms around, fix the roof, add a veranda (to take advantage of the ocean views), etc. I'm very excited about this new project, it's my biggest undertaking yet, and would certainly appreciate any advice about renos, project plan, costings, etc.

All comments, suggestions and advice would be most welcome.

 

[sailor]

View from SE

Just thought a view from the side might help...

 

[Hados]

sounds like you've got some hard work ahead of you... Good luck with it all

 

[kaf]

Hi Sailor

Well done!! And do post a picture of the view just to make us all very jealous .

So this is going to be your PPOR? I guess that will dictate a very different budget compared to an IP reno.

We just gone unconditional on a beach house too (well one house away from beachfront) and it will be an IP. Given that it is surrounded by expensive properties I want to make it look $million without costing that.

How will you go about your reno: get an architect for ideas and then find a builder to do it? Also, for a very major reno it might be worthwhile to compare a demolish and new build scenario with a complete reno as (at least here in Brisbane) the cost per m2 of a major reno is more than that of a new house.

I'm sure you thought of all that, just some ideas.

Again, congrats to the house!

kaf

 

[sailor]

Hi Sailor

Well done!! And do post a picture of the view just to make us all very jealous .

ok ... looks like I've got some gardening ahead of me to trim up the view.

So this is going to be your PPOR? I guess that will dictate a very different budget compared to an IP reno.
Yep...PPOR

We just gone unconditional on a beach house too (well one house away from beachfront) and it will be an IP. Given that it is surrounded by expensive properties I want to make it look $million without costing that.
I'd be interested in seeing how you do this...pls post your tips!

How will you go about your reno: get an architect for ideas and then find a builder to do it?
I already have too many ideas! So I've seen an architectural draftsman who specialises in raising houses. Also my builder has a mint of ideas...so happy with that.
Also, for a very major reno it might be worthwhile to compare a demolish and new build scenario with a complete reno as (at least here in Brisbane) the cost per m2 of a major reno is more than that of a new house.
Alas...my budget won't run to demolish and rebuild, I like the idea of a major reno though.

I'm sure you thought of all that, just some ideas.

Again, congrats to the house!
Congrats on yours too!

kaf

cheers
Sharon

 

[Bloss]

Very nice Sharon,you've gotta be happy with that.

Whats the first job Cutting down the shrubbery in your front yard.?

Boat Boy

 

[sailor]

Yes Bloss...it has to goooooo! Its mainly Bouganvillea (which has nasty long thorns), some weeds that are totally out of control (the house has been vacant for 6 months), and a lovely Passionfruit vine that is currently bearing huge juicy purple fruit. I'll transplant the Passionfruit, if I can. Never done that before, so any advice on the transplant would be most welcome.

 

[Tizzy]

Congratulations Sailor!! Nothing like a house by the beach. Its the way I live and I love it. I can't see the sea, but I can hear it but eventually we will build up and get great views.

When you say "raise" the house, do you mean it will go on stilts? They don't tend to do that over here so it sounds like such a novel idea. They build pole homes here but I've never seen an old place lifted up. If you do that, it would be great to see some pics as it happens.

 

[sailor]

Hi Tizzy, yes up here in north Qld, one often sees Queenslanders that have been raised. Takes about 3 days. They back in the truck and lift it up. Put new steel stumps beneath and lower the house down on the new stumps. (At least that's my simple understanding of what happens.)

Tizzy, have you any tips of how to deal with the salt air and corosion of appliances and do dads? Like is there anything I should be aware of, or things to avoid or consider?

 

[willair]

Just thought a view from the side might help...

Sailor.looks like a very straight house and from what i can see
a very simple house to jack up,what are current legal requirements and planning rules
with the height factor on this sort of property?
IF you sit down and work out the refit costs on something like this
and how far you intend to interfere with the original design it may
be a very expensive building per square metre.good luck willair.......

 

[Tizzy]

Ah well you do need to get used to the fact that salt air is very destuctive.

Gutters can start rusting out within ten years. Steel and alumininium are vulnerable but often there aren't alternative products to use. Corrosion is caused by hydroscopic reaction so a fresh water wash down helps to slow the pace. We use a fair bit of "rust rid" (rust converter).

Keep trading your car in regularly.

The glass in the windows facing the sea are going to get that slightly salt corroded look over time. That gets intensified when insect screening contacts the glass.

In terms of the gardening we have to chose plants that can handle the wind. Olive trees are great. All our citrus trees are doing okay. Lavender grows very well. So do agapanthus. Oleander (but they're very toxic). Bouganvillea Lots of the grasses are great (flax). We find palms totally useless here. They always look wind whipped and brown tinged. All our native trees do fine.

Winter storms can be pretty intense too. I don't think you've lived until you've watched your lounge room window bend in a bit. Now my garden is mature it gives some protection to the front windows. I remember the first winter storm very well. I hung doonas up at the windows inside because I was convinced the glass would explode into the room shattering into a million pieces. But it didn't. I got used to winter storms over the years.

There is a bit more maintenance work I suppose with a beach property, but I wouldn't swap the beach lifestyle because most of the year I find it very calming .

 

[Tizzy]

Sailor I just saw the pic of the beach with the palms in it. Maybe your part of the coast isn't very windy, they look healthy!! Tropical. In fact do they wind surf there or is there surfing? It looks too calm. I've never been to Cairns.

 

[Bandita]

Congrats Sailor!! What an accomplishment! Purchasing a dream beach house is certainly one of our (personal PPOR) goals - I absolutely love falling asleep to the sound of the ocean!

Fantastic views! Yep, definitly jealous!

Do you mind saying where the property is located - once settlement occurs?

Cheers,
Jen

 

[sailor]

Thanks Jen. Contract has gone unconditional, so I can tell. It's about 7 mins drive north of Cairns, and overlooks the Great Barrier Reef.

 

[lizzie]

passionfruit plants only live a couple off years before dying off - so you're probably best off just planting another one, and it'll be fruiting like mad also within 12 months.

 

[Brenda Irwin]

Thanks Jen. Contract has gone unconditional, so I can tell. It's about 7 mins drive north of Cairns, and overlooks the Great Barrier Reef.

Congratulations Sharon on your purchase. It is always gratifying to see someone achieve their goal and a beach house is a biggie.

 

[chrispy]

Congratulations Sharon - well done

I had a beach house opposite the surf at Phillip Island and had to constantly wash down the steel poles the house sat on. When I bought it, I got it cheap because the steel posts had rusted completely through and no-one would touch it. I had it fixed within 2 months of buying it at a cost of $10k for lifting the house up, replacing the steel posts and putting in the new ones and it was fixed!!! I made the mistake of painting with rustproofing and then painting them black, so the salt showed up something terrible.

I could never get the salt off the windows, just used to give them a quick hose and realised we had to learn to live with that. The gutters had to be replaced, in hindsight I think I should have replaced them with plastic ones.

I went to the local nursery and asked what I could plant and they were very helpful, I was able to get plants that could take the salt.

We did enjoy waking up to the sound of the surf crashing on to the beach and thats the bit I miss the most.

Enjoy your new lifestyle.

Chris

 

[sailor]

Very nice Sharon,you've gotta be happy with that.

Whats the first job Cutting down the shrubbery in your front yard.?

Boat Boy

Well that's been a huge job, cutting down the shrubbery in the front yard. Still not finished...but I keep going over on the w/ends to do more.

Sailor.looks like a very straight house and from what i can see
a very simple house to jack up,what are current legal requirements and planning rules
with the height factor on this sort of property?
I can raise it to whatever height I like, however, if I want to build underneath, the height has to confirm with LGA regulations (can't remember what that is exactly). I have to put in an application to council.
IF you sit down and work out the refit costs on something like this
and how far you intend to interfere with the original design it may
be a very expensive building per square metre.good luck willair.......

Sailor I just saw the pic of the beach with the palms in it. Maybe your part of the coast isn't very windy, they look healthy!! Tropical. In fact do they wind surf there or is there surfing? It looks too calm. I've never been to Cairns.

There is some wind surfing further up the coast at Ellis Beach (about 20 mins drive), but not off my beach. Tis not windy enough.

Congrats Sailor!! What an accomplishment! Purchasing a dream beach house is certainly one of our (personal PPOR) goals - I absolutely love falling asleep to the sound of the ocean!

Fantastic views! Yep, definitly jealous!

Do you mind saying where the property is located - once settlement occurs?

Cheers,
Jen

The property is at Machans Beach.

 

[sailor]

Raising the house

Well, I have a quote back from the highly recommended house lifter for $30,800 GST inc.
"This price includes house raised, restumped steel, and steel fabrication, BSA insurance".

That's it! That's all he wrote on the quote. It's a flat block of land.

Is this a reasonable price?
Should I try to negotiate the price?
What arguments does one state in trying to negotiate a cheaper price?
Should I ask for more detail on the job he will do?

I've never done this before, so would really appreciate some advice here...help!

 

[karina]

Hi Sailor,

I have been looking at machans waterfront myself , prices are still quite reasonable (in my opinion) for what you are getting but yields are low which is why I havn't snapped anything up there (can't afford the cashflow loss)

I am sure one day prices will catch up to places like kewarra , trinity etc. how lovely for you, congratulations, nothing like a waterfront to make you feel great about life!