The Aussie desert 'Tardis' home that could be from another world

Behind the “Tardis” entrance is a desert home that feels like it is on another planet.

In Coober Pedy, considered the opal capital of the world, the door the underground property seems to rise out of the red dust.

Lot 1073 Opal Crescent is on the market for $148,000 and comprises two dug-outs with exposed rock walls, both on a single title.

Lot 1073 Opal Crescent, Coober Pedy, South Australia
See photos of the listing here

$78,000

Lot 1073 Opal Crescent, Coober Pedy SA 5723

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Coober Pedy had the cheapest houses of 2022, in Australia’s equivalent of the wild west.

Coober Pedy’s median house price is $69,000, the lowest of any postcode in Australia, Domain’s year-ending 2022 figures show.

The South Australian town, 846km north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway, was the dusty red set of the iconic 1985 movie Mad Max Thunderdome, starring Mel Gibson and Tina Turner.

As an opal mining town in the Great Victoria Desert, many properties in Coober Pedy are nestled underground, or dugout style, to combat the severe heat.

Lot 1073 Opal Crescent has a “Tardis” style entrance, reminiscent of the time travel contraption used by Doctor Who in the long-running television series, the listing says.

This opens and leads down into the main dug-out, which has three bedrooms that extend from the living zone.

A glass sliding door partitions the living spaces to help the occupants control the temperature, which sits naturally at about 23 to 24 degrees, the listing explains. Above ground, the heat can be blistering.

A mixture of carpet, vinyl flooring and tiles are laid throughout the home.

The second dug-out has two bedrooms but was mainly used for a storage and has a workshop as its in poor condition.

The property comes with an annual mining license.