\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tUpdated:<\/p>
18.10.2024<\/p><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Share on:<\/h4><\/i><\/a><\/span><\/i><\/a><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\nI<\/span>n this series, we follow a Christchurch couple in their bid to turn their 1960\u2019s fixer-upper, from a retro rental to a modern home.<\/strong><\/p>\nIf you\u2019ve ever considered buying an older home but have lacked the confidence to tackle something totally outdated, this guide is for you. It\u2019s a whole lot of fun, and not as hard (or anywhere near as risky) as you might imagine.<\/p>\n
We show you that you CAN turn a good house into a showstopper home. A home that suits your needs and aesthetic, without compromising on quality and cost.<\/p>\n
Not just-another home renovation story, get the complete, uncut insight on every single step. At the end of each instalment will be a set of takeaway lessons our couple learned \u2013 so you can be armed with real-life, practical knowledge when undertaking your own reno, whether large or small.<\/p>\n
Our week-by-week look into all the ins and outs of the process of a home reno, is your ultimate guide to planning and executing a home renovation.<\/p>\n<\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Who are Jeremy and Alana?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>Alana and Jeremy returned to Christchurch with their dog Lowry after five years on a lifestyle block 1\u00bd hours north of the city.<\/p>\n<\/div>
- <\/i><\/span>\n
We missed our friends and family\u2026. and the mountain-bike tracks! We still visited a lot, and really loved the direction in which the city was regenerating. We wanted to buy back in and continue our life in Christchurch.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul>
What were you looking for?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>Jeremy and Alana regularly work from home, so needed office space \u2013 preferably detached. Jeremy also wanted a workshop to work on all things two-wheeled, which he loves almost as much as riding them. North facing was critical too, for all-day sun. And, with a baby on the way, they wanted somewhere they could feel settled.<\/p>\n<\/div>
- <\/i><\/span>We wanted to be close to the hills so we could get out mountain biking as often as we can, but close to the city centre too, to be near work. A lot of our friends live around the foothills, and we wanted to be near them. This narrowed our search area to a few key suburbs.<\/p>\n
There were few new builds or empty sections in our preferred suburbs within our budget, and the housing stock was mostly earthquake affected. So we knew quite early on that we would probably be looking at a renovation project.<\/p>\n
We looked at a few renovated properties, but the quality of work was really variable. A lot of what we call \u2018as is where is\u2019 homes, had been purchased by people keen to make a quick buck by undertaking shoddy repairs and flicking it on for a profit. (\u201cas is where is\u201d homes are homes where the owners had been paid out an insurance settlement and moved on, selling the house as it sits \u2013 often uninsured.)<\/p>\n
We ended up concentrating on south Hoon Hay. We loved the area, and the houses were slightly more affordable than other homes only a few streets over. We felt like it was on the up.<\/p>\n
There was a friendly vibe, and the neighbourhood was really tidy. It felt, given the timing of the original subdivision, that the area was slowly transitioning over to younger families and we were only too keen to be a part of that. The housing stock was generally pretty good there also, and on budget.<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-1026-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-1026-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-1040-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-1040-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-1013-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-1013-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-1016-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-1016-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>When looking at potential homes, what were the criteria?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>As well as wanting to stick to their budget and location, they had several criteria to meet before they even considered making an offer. To avoid potential complications they wanted a house with low flood risk, no signs of moisture in the roof space or walls, no damage to the foundations, level floors & plumb walls within reason, no asbestos issues and no long term pipework leaks. In post-earthquake Christchurch, even six years on, this was a huge ask.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0934-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0934-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>- <\/i><\/span>We were wary of sub-standard repairs, so preferred a house that hadn\u2019t been repaired yet. It also had to be insured \u2013 for us to be able to secure a mortgage. With that in mind, we made meticulous pre-purchase inspections before making any offers.<\/p>\n
We probably were looking more with our heads than our hearts from everything that we\u2019d learned post-earthquake. Ultimately, we had to feel inspired that we could take the house in consideration to where it needed to be, within budget.<\/p>\n
The cheaper the property was, the more we would need to spend on the home renovation, but with that came a catch. We didn\u2019t want to buy cheap, to then spend more than we had to make it livable. It was a balancing act to find the perfect place.<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0921-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0921-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>What was your budget and how did that effect how you searched?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>- <\/i><\/span>\n
Our ideal budget was around $500,000. For the perfect house we were happy to stretch that up to $550,000.<\/p>\n
When we had been looking across multiple suburbs (before we settled on our buy-to-renovate plan), we found that for that budget we could only get a dilapidated house in what would be described as a \u201cdesirable\u201d area. The problem with that was, we wouldn\u2019t have anything left over to create a quality living environment. The houses we looked at were cold, damp and tired \u2013 and we didn\u2019t want to live in that kind of space.<\/p>\n
We shifted our focus to some only slightly more affordable areas, and a few trends emerged:<\/p>\n
\n- Renovated houses were generally demanding much higher prices, regardless of the quality of renovation.<\/li>\n
- Sunny, warm, well done renovations were scarce, and also very popular, and we felt were selling for more than the cost of the home and renovation, even if they\u2019d been lived in for several years.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The buy-to-renovate route was the natural conclusion. Carefully buying a dilapidated house in a more affordable area would offer us a fantastic home, and if we budgeted carefully we wouldn\u2019t be over-capitalised.<\/p>\n
The key questions were:<\/p>\n
\n- What houses were out there and how much were the vendors asking for?<\/li>\n
- How much would we need to spend to bring it up to the standard we desired?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Of course the answers to these questions were variable. We invested our time in both hunting houses and researching renovation costs.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, the purchase price on the house we settled on was $447,000. We believed the maximum a buyer in this area would be willing to pay up to $550,000 for the \u201cperfect\u201d home. After we discussed our plans with the bank off the back of our research, we set a budget of $75,000 for the renovation and a total price of $522,000.<\/p>\n
Purchase price: $447,000
\n<\/strong>Renovation budget: $75,000
\nTotal cost: $522,000
\n<\/strong>Realistic home value after renovation: $520,000 \u2013 $550,000<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Post a job<\/span><\/a>Full home reno? <\/h2>
I<\/span>n this series, we follow a Christchurch couple in their bid to turn their 1960\u2019s fixer-upper, from a retro rental to a modern home.<\/strong><\/p>\n If you\u2019ve ever considered buying an older home but have lacked the confidence to tackle something totally outdated, this guide is for you. It\u2019s a whole lot of fun, and not as hard (or anywhere near as risky) as you might imagine.<\/p>\n We show you that you CAN turn a good house into a showstopper home. A home that suits your needs and aesthetic, without compromising on quality and cost.<\/p>\n Not just-another home renovation story, get the complete, uncut insight on every single step. At the end of each instalment will be a set of takeaway lessons our couple learned \u2013 so you can be armed with real-life, practical knowledge when undertaking your own reno, whether large or small.<\/p>\n Our week-by-week look into all the ins and outs of the process of a home reno, is your ultimate guide to planning and executing a home renovation.<\/p>\n<\/div> Alana and Jeremy returned to Christchurch with their dog Lowry after five years on a lifestyle block 1\u00bd hours north of the city.<\/p>\n<\/div> We missed our friends and family\u2026. and the mountain-bike tracks! We still visited a lot, and really loved the direction in which the city was regenerating. We wanted to buy back in and continue our life in Christchurch.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul> Jeremy and Alana regularly work from home, so needed office space \u2013 preferably detached. Jeremy also wanted a workshop to work on all things two-wheeled, which he loves almost as much as riding them. North facing was critical too, for all-day sun. And, with a baby on the way, they wanted somewhere they could feel settled.<\/p>\n<\/div> There were few new builds or empty sections in our preferred suburbs within our budget, and the housing stock was mostly earthquake affected. So we knew quite early on that we would probably be looking at a renovation project.<\/p>\n We looked at a few renovated properties, but the quality of work was really variable. A lot of what we call \u2018as is where is\u2019 homes, had been purchased by people keen to make a quick buck by undertaking shoddy repairs and flicking it on for a profit. (\u201cas is where is\u201d homes are homes where the owners had been paid out an insurance settlement and moved on, selling the house as it sits \u2013 often uninsured.)<\/p>\n We ended up concentrating on south Hoon Hay. We loved the area, and the houses were slightly more affordable than other homes only a few streets over. We felt like it was on the up.<\/p>\n There was a friendly vibe, and the neighbourhood was really tidy. It felt, given the timing of the original subdivision, that the area was slowly transitioning over to younger families and we were only too keen to be a part of that. The housing stock was generally pretty good there also, and on budget.<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div> As well as wanting to stick to their budget and location, they had several criteria to meet before they even considered making an offer. To avoid potential complications they wanted a house with low flood risk, no signs of moisture in the roof space or walls, no damage to the foundations, level floors & plumb walls within reason, no asbestos issues and no long term pipework leaks. In post-earthquake Christchurch, even six years on, this was a huge ask.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div> We probably were looking more with our heads than our hearts from everything that we\u2019d learned post-earthquake. Ultimately, we had to feel inspired that we could take the house in consideration to where it needed to be, within budget.<\/p>\n The cheaper the property was, the more we would need to spend on the home renovation, but with that came a catch. We didn\u2019t want to buy cheap, to then spend more than we had to make it livable. It was a balancing act to find the perfect place.<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div> Our ideal budget was around $500,000. For the perfect house we were happy to stretch that up to $550,000.<\/p>\n When we had been looking across multiple suburbs (before we settled on our buy-to-renovate plan), we found that for that budget we could only get a dilapidated house in what would be described as a \u201cdesirable\u201d area. The problem with that was, we wouldn\u2019t have anything left over to create a quality living environment. The houses we looked at were cold, damp and tired \u2013 and we didn\u2019t want to live in that kind of space.<\/p>\n We shifted our focus to some only slightly more affordable areas, and a few trends emerged:<\/p>\n The buy-to-renovate route was the natural conclusion. Carefully buying a dilapidated house in a more affordable area would offer us a fantastic home, and if we budgeted carefully we wouldn\u2019t be over-capitalised.<\/p>\n The key questions were:<\/p>\n Of course the answers to these questions were variable. We invested our time in both hunting houses and researching renovation costs.<\/p>\n Ultimately, the purchase price on the house we settled on was $447,000. We believed the maximum a buyer in this area would be willing to pay up to $550,000 for the \u201cperfect\u201d home. After we discussed our plans with the bank off the back of our research, we set a budget of $75,000 for the renovation and a total price of $522,000.<\/p>\n Purchase price: $447,000Who are Jeremy and Alana?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>
What were you looking for?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>When looking at potential homes, what were the criteria?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>What was your budget and how did that effect how you searched?<\/strong><\/h3><\/div>
\n
\n
\n<\/strong>Renovation budget: $75,000
\nTotal cost: $522,000
\n<\/strong>Realistic home value after renovation: $520,000 \u2013 $550,000<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div>Full home reno? <\/h2>
![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0889-1000x667-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0889-1000×667-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-1001-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-1001-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0993-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0993-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>![](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0977-min.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0977-min\\"")
<\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0863-1000x667-min-320x202.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0863-1000×667-min\\"")
<\/a><\/div><\/div>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-1011-1000x667-min-320x202.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-1011-1000×667-min\\"")
<\/a><\/div><\/div>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0870-1000x667-min-320x202.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0870-1000×667-min\\"")
<\/a><\/div><\/div>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/builderscrack.co.nz\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/Before-Photos-1200-PH-0910-1000x667-min-320x202.jpg\" "\\"Before-Photos-1200-PH-0910-1000×667-min\\"")
<\/a><\/div><\/div>