Searching for the perfect family home generally involves compromise. New homes are nice, however modern block sizes can be tiny and new estates are not for everyone. If you find the right property in the right location for the right price but the existing home isn’t quite right, ETA Constructions can help.

Our own situation matches the above scenario exactly. We fell in love with a 30-acre property on the NSW Mid North Coast. It was the ideal location and the price was right, however the existing ‘home’ was a tiny fibro shack in poor condition. With our two young children growing rapidly, we knew we would need to do more than simply re-paint some walls and replace the carpet.

Before moving to the Mid North Coast, we lived in Byron Bay where many homes are sympathetic to the surrounding environment. Our vision was to transform the ‘shack’ into our own country retreat, taking advantage of passive heating and cooling principals to minimise our environmental footprint. We wanted to build a comfortable haven where we could set down roots and watch our children grow.

Ezra put pen to paper and extended the home in two directions. A new garage would be created at one end of the new dwelling, with a parent’s retreat at the opposite end. The old and the new would be tied together with an integrated roof and a full width veranda to enjoy relaxing, sunny afternoons.

We removed internal walls to create a spacious and modern kitchen and living area, plus the two original bedrooms and bathroom were extended and completely renovated.

The existing shack had a skillion roof so we replaced this with a cavity roof that now integrates seamlessly across the entire building. In the parent’s retreat, the internal ceiling rises to five metres at its highest point with louver windows allowing the hot air to escape, cooling the room naturally.

There are certainly challenges to face when turning a 2-bedroom shack with a tiny kitchen, small dark rooms and a tired bathroom into a modern, eco-friendly family home, however the end result is testimony to what’s possible with an exciting vision and the right builder.