Renovating Queenslanders: we're getting smarter and grander

Renovating a Queenslander has almost become a rite of passage for Brisbane home owners.

Once deplored for their maintenance and upkeep, these days they are revered for their gorgeous character and original design principles, which make the most of prevailing breezes in the hot weather.

As Queenslanders came back into fashion, they were renovated with fervour; all across Brisbane, homeowners were lifting them up, building underneath and restoring them to their former glory.

And though renovating Queenslanders is still as popular as ever, Kerrie Campbell, architect at Brisbane firm Tim Stewart Architects, says the way people want to live in Queenslanders is changing.

Homeowners are moving away from the traditional kitchen/living upstairs with the lower level as a “built-in” afterthought, instead focusing their attentions on moving kitchens and living areas to the lower level, which then spill straight out to the backyard, she says.

“It’s the way people want to live now; it’s more outdoors, more connected to the backyard – and that often means dropping the main living to the lower level,” she says.

“People, particularly those with children, want to be able to easily access the backyard, the pool, have that visual connection to the outdoors. It’s definitely something that everyone seems to want these days.”

Retaining a sense of the property’s grandeur is also extremely important to renovators now, she says; double-height voids are becoming the norm.

“That has become the hallmark of this era in Queenslander renovations – that double height space – which gives a property a grand sense of spaciousness, a greater sense of light, ventilation and a connectedness from the upstairs to the downstairs,” she says.

“That’s a distinct difference from jacking the house up and simply adding in extra bedrooms, which is what we saw a lot of five to 10 years ago.”

According to Alexander Shean, agent at Ray White Ascot, demand for Queenslander properties like these is huge.

“Everyone loves the character Queenslanders but they also want a home that works on a practical level, and these days, it’s all about having that main living spilling out to the backyard,” he says.

“That shift is 100 per cent; this is what people are asking for these days.”

A perfect example of this modern architecture is 61 Goodwood Street, Hendra, a spectacular Queenslander home designed by Tim Stewart Architects.

Set on a large 1012 square metre allotment, the house features a traditional Queenslander facade with a contemporary extension. Downstairs, an open plan living and dining with double storey ceiling height flows out to the entertainment terrace with built-in kitchen and BBQ, pool with its own pavilion and sprawling grassed backyard.

It features luxury cutting edge finishes, soft wooden tones and is flooded with natural light from all aspects.

“Something like this showcases perfectly how people are wanting their renovations these days,” Mr Shean says. “They want the character but they also want the modern luxury and floor plan. It’s the best of both worlds.”

And the expense and effort is worth it, he says.

“Once we list properties like these, they sell. We had 45 groups through the house at Hendra for the first open house,” he says.

Jim Waller, of Century 21 Ascot, is currently marketing a Harry Poulos-designed residence at Lancaster Road, Ascot.

Featuring high, vaulted ceilings with banks of glass throughout and a double height void which fills the home wth natural light, it’s a show stopping masterpiece of epic proportions.

Mr Waller says the days of simply lifting a Queenslander and building in a few rooms are gone.

“What people want these days is, well, everything really. They want a floor plan that works for them, that works for a modern lifestyle,” he says.

“They want the best of everything; luxury fittings, excellent entertaining spaces, lighting and the big one: luxury European-style kitchens.

“Ultimately, the architecture is the real drawcard, as is the case here with this house at Lancaster Road. What they’ve done with the house is incredible.”

Mr Waller says that while renovations on this scale are costly and time consuming, they’re also rewarding when it comes time to sell.

“The demand for properties like these is enormous. They’re so sought after, the minute we list one my phone’s ringing off the hook.”