Family reno turns Ormeau fixer-upper into five-star retreat

Paul, Kirsten, and their three teenage sons bought the home 18 months ago with the intention of renovating it and moving in. But their plans changed, and now the home is on the market with Ray White Alliance agents James Devlin and Jason Atkinson.

“It had been left in its glory days with the same salmon carpet and mint green walls as when it was built.

“It had a lot of terracotta, yellow, and heritage green both inside and outside.”

While Paul and Kirsten are renovation veterans, this was the first time their sons had played a part in the project too.

“Paul does commercial landscaping, so he does the outside and I do the inside,” Kirsten said.

“The kids have enjoyed it as well, we got them involved. They helped Paul and got their hands dirty.

“Our oldest son is doing a school based carpentry apprenticeship, so he got to help the builder with some things.

“We all got to contribute part of it. It was a family project.

“Our youngest son even went in and picked up some palm fronds and did some weeding before the open homes.”

The family renovated and extended the bedrooms, redid the bathrooms, as well as the kitchen and laundry.

“It was seven bedrooms but we cut it down to six and turned one into a walk-in robe.

“It now has a great outdoor entertaining area. It has an incredible pool with a heated spa which was renovated as well. We acid washed it and added new tiles.

“We redid the tennis court. I think the Australian Open really inspired the blue court as a lot of courts seem to be that colour now. It has floodlights so you can play at night.

“There’s also a big shed out the back which could be used as an office space or a teenagers’ retreat.”

The property also has a five-car garage as well as shaded parking for a caravan or boat. The horseshoe driveway also allows ample access.

“You could definitely have a party,” Kirsten said.