Shabby poorly built and...

[Keith and Linda]

Ewww I'm chucking my toothbrush out tomorrow!

 

and start using your finger?

[Que Sera Sera]

A separate toilet is perfect. I can't remember how many times I've been in the bath back in the UK in our one and only bathroom enjoying a soak when someone will need the loo either one of the three kids or the OH. No such problems here bothe the bathroom and the en suite has separate loos.

[Parley]

Nah toothbrush is okay.

I saw an article where the worst thing for germs was the kitchen chopping board and dishcloth. They had far more bacteria than toilet flush buttons and toothbrushes even when in same room as toilet.

[Guest51810]

Don't talk daft Yorkie lol I brought a packet of them. Your post seems to have disappeared on my phone so it probably looks like I'm talking to myself!

[Keith and Linda]

I was watching a property programme where a flat in Melbourne was viewed and the presenter said 'you'd have to renovate the kitchen and bathroom if you want to live here but it would be OK to rent' There is an assumption that renters are second class citizens who don't expect or require houses to be up to standard. I find this really odd - I'd struggle to rent my UK property to my target rental market without it being of high standard. I have been incredibly shocked by the standard of housing in Brisbane - stuff like balconies sloped into the house which traps the rain. And the use of timber frames to save money despite the termite threat. Quality is so low it all seems a bit temporary - like houses are built for a 50 year lifespan maybe.

 

Timber framed houses are by far the most commonly type of home construction across the world, it is not in general a way to save money, but a more economic type of construction which is also a more environmentally friendly type too.

[flybyknight]

my biggest gripe is how housing has been built for a country where fuel is so cheap it's almost free.

problem is, fuel is becoming a bigger and bigger chunk of peoples income and the housing stock is; well it is what it is!

 

this lack of foresight is going to become very real very fast, fuel poverty isn't something most aussies have heard of, yet alone experienced.

it's gonna be interesting!

[Keith and Linda]

my biggest gripe is how housing has been built for a country where fuel is so cheap it's almost free.

problem is, fuel is becoming a bigger and bigger chunk of peoples income and the housing stock is; well it is what it is!

 

this lack of foresight is going to become very real very fast, fuel poverty isn't something most aussies have heard of, yet alone experienced.

it's gonna be interesting!

 

You've completely lost me on this one mate!:confused:

[Skani]

You've completely lost me on this one mate!:confused:

 

Thanks for that...thinking exactly the same thing. :huh:

[Xenon4017]

Thanks for that...thinking exactly the same thing. :huh:

 

I _think_ the post refers to the general cost of energy going up. We all lead energy dense lifstyles, travelling large distances, leaving the aircon running etc. As the cost of energy increases, we'll have less money left for other things, which will lead to downward pressure on house prices.

 

Just to steer the convo back towards the original topic, I guess the OPs' gripe is that despite the relatively simple construction techniques and materials involved, Aussie houses are remarkably expensive. I know, land prices, labour costs, yada yada, but Australia isn't the only place with a nice coast. I don't think houses in Spain or Greece cost quite as much.

[Parley]

Often you are buying the land and you get the house for free.

 

The land is an appreciating asset while the house is a depreciating asset.

There are lots of factors that determine the house pricing.

 

Until interest rates rise by a significant margin I can't see house prices falling much.

[jasepom]

The houses are still better value for money than those in England. While being shown round a complete hovel by an Estate Agent, you would have thought it was buckingham palace the way he was going on.

 

I think he would get a shock if he saw the new builds in Australia. Regardless of quality, you get the space and the home comforts.

[Sammy1]

The houses are still better value for money than those in England. While being shown round a complete hovel by an Estate Agent, you would have thought it was buckingham palace the way he was going on.

 

I think he would get a shock if he saw the new builds in Australia. Regardless of quality, you get the space and the home comforts.

 

Lots of great houses in the UK, lots of great houses here. Horses for courses.

[Xenon4017]

Often you are buying the land and you get the house for free.

 

 

 

Hardly. If that were the case then building a new house would be very cheap. There's quite a lot of red tape for building here, and, of course, it has to be mentioned that tradies are well paid. In spite of the fact that it takes them three visits to finish a job. (or because of that fact......)

 

At the end of the day, you can buy, you can rent, you can move elsewhere. You can start your own building firm if you want.

[cjscjs]

You've completely lost me on this one mate!:confused:

 

I think what flybyknight is trying to say is. Fuel, power etc used to be cheap. So with all those uninsulated/poorly insulated houses throughout the country it didn't matter if you ran the aircon (in summer) or heating (in winter) 24/7 because everybody could easily afford it. That was then this is now, prices for those aforementioned utilities have sky rocketed whereas insulation and other modern building practices have hardly progressed at all in Australia. Consequently it has become very difficult, impossible even, for some to be able to run these appliances in their homes.

[Parley]

Hardly. If that were the case then building a new house would be very cheap. There's quite a lot of red tape for building here, and, of course, it has to be mentioned that tradies are well paid. In spite of the fact that it takes them three visits to finish a job. (or because of that fact......)

 

At the end of the day, you can buy, you can rent, you can move elsewhere. You can start your own building firm if you want.

 

No. what it means is that if you buy an old house 50s, 60s, 70s. The house itself may be worth bugger all. The value is all in the land and the house may get bulldozed.

Obviously building a new house on the land may cost a few hundred thousand but often this is quite a small proportion of the land value, depending on location of course.

[Guest Guest66881]

No. what it means is that if you buy an old house 50s, 60s, 70s. The house itself may be worth bugger all. The value is all in the land and the house may get bulldozed.

Obviously building a new house on the land may cost a few hundred thousand but often this is quite a small proportion of the land value, depending on location of course.

 

 

Area dependant but correct Parley, some massive blocks with very small houses plonked on them, most houses are only three bed/one bathroom so not really suitable for a growing family.

A modern three bedroom house will have more room to swing your cat in than an established older house usually.

The land usually is worth more as this is the reason when someone is selling they always highlight the fact it can be subdivided to create units or a two storey house.

[Paul1Perth]

Nooooo....for the many reasons I bought the house I did....both our wings of the house have separate toilet/ sink areas..

 

We technically have two en suites to the main bedroom, one is shower and sink..ie mine

 

OH gets a separate room of toilet and sink.

 

then in the west wing is three sperate rooms. One bath and shower, one toilet, and another with sink and basin

 

"In the West Wing":laugh: You sound like the President fifi. Must be a nice place to have a West Wing.

[Guest Ptp113]

I think what flybyknight is trying to say is. Fuel, power etc used to be cheap. So with all those uninsulated/poorly insulated houses throughout the country it didn't matter if you ran the aircon (in summer) or heating (in winter) 24/7 because everybody could easily afford it. That was then this is now, prices for those aforementioned utilities have sky rocketed whereas insulation and other modern building practices have hardly progressed at all in Australia. Consequently it has become very difficult, impossible even, for some to be able to run these appliances in their homes.

Houses here are insulated by law. Must be different in Qld?

[Paul1Perth]

Welcome to Australia, and 'she'll be right' the older properties are just that and were built to suit the economic climate at the time. Even the more modern ones can be poorly built but look good ( for a short time) and many are built just for the investment/rental market.

That is why I was an owner builder for our house, our design too, we even have a solid concrete 1st floor( no squeaky floor boards). We have it on the market at present and trying to get people to appreciate all the differences is very hard going it comes down to the look and price. Linda was at a function yesterday talking to an Aussie lady about it and she had real trouble trying to get the lady to understand any differences, well a house is a house was the final conclusion by her was what does it matter if its wood or concrete, 4mm glass or 7mm laminated!

 

I think most people I've met who are house proud in Aus have been poms. Your average Aussie has grown up in a climate where the house is just a place to go when you aren't out having a good time. The number of places round us that look a bit run down, with a couple of surf skis outside, a boat, a caravan, a couple of 4 wheel drives, bikes, surfboards. It's totally different here and it comes to the point where the land is worth 4 or 5 times more than the house and when a family gets to the point where the kids have moved out or they the house is in need of expensive renovation they just knock it down and whack up a new build on the same plot.

 

In the UK we bought our first terrace which was built in 1898. It needed gutting and we spent a lot of money and time plastering, wiring, new kitchen, papering, new bathroom. When we had finished it looked great inside and we were able to sell it quickly when we emigrated. It didn't change the fact that it was still an 1898 house though and the gable end was sagging and the roof was going to need a lot of money spending on it in the next few years. It wasn't big enough to swing a cat in either. Here they would have just demolished the whole row and started again.

[LKC]

No. what it means is that if you buy an old house 50s, 60s, 70s. The house itself may be worth bugger all. The value is all in the land and the house may get bulldozed.

Obviously building a new house on the land may cost a few hundred thousand but often this is quite a small proportion of the land value, depending on location of course.

 

We are seeing lots of this in our next door suburb. Our suburb is relatively new (maybe 25 years at the most), but the next one over is much older (the school our kids go to is more than 50 years old), so we are seeing lots of the older fibro type houses selling for a fortune, and then being knocked down and subdivided. The area is up and coming, with house prices going over $1million on occasion, so people don't seem to mind paying over the odds for the land only (because the houses are worth nothing) and then re-building or subdividing with the intent to sell.

[Paul1Perth]

So Australia house toilets don't have the sink in them?

 

In general Stacey Aussie houses are a lot bigger than the English equivalent and have one bedroom with an ensuite with a door, with shower, toilet, sink and a fair bit of space. Then there's a separate toilet on its own, better for guests too, and another separate bathroom, usually next to the toilet, with shower, bath, sink and a fair bit of room in that too. I've been in a lot of houses with that layout. On top of that you generally have a laundry room, separate from the kitchen, with another sink, washer, drier.

[LKC]

In general Stacey Aussie houses are a lot bigger than the English equivalent and have one bedroom with an ensuite with a door, with shower, toilet, sink and a fair bit of space. Then there's a separate toilet on its own, better for guests too, and another separate bathroom, usually next to the toilet, with shower, bath, sink and a fair bit of room in that too. I've been in a lot of houses with that layout. On top of that you generally have a laundry room, separate from the kitchen, with another sink, washer, drier.

 

This is pretty much how ours is, although we also have a separate shower/toilet/sink downstairs too, which is fab for guests (we have a downstairs spare bedroom). The upstairs loo does have a tiny sink in it, but to be honest only our girls use that loo and they go through to the bathroom to wash their hands. The main reason for this is that the sink is so tiny, that firstly it is impractical to use, and secondly there is no room for soap around the sink and they always use soap and water to wash. Having said that, since they usually go to the loo with the door open, the door handle problem doesn't really occur!

[Paul1Perth]

I _think_ the post refers to the general cost of energy going up. We all lead energy dense lifstyles, travelling large distances, leaving the aircon running etc. As the cost of energy increases, we'll have less money left for other things, which will lead to downward pressure on house prices.

 

Just to steer the convo back towards the original topic, I guess the OPs' gripe is that despite the relatively simple construction techniques and materials involved, Aussie houses are remarkably expensive. I know, land prices, labour costs, yada yada, but Australia isn't the only place with a nice coast. I don't think houses in Spain or Greece cost quite as much.

 

Spain and Greece have just been through one of the worst financial disasters that's ever happened. I saw an episode of Top Gear a couple of weeks back where they were travelling through Spain. The guys were talking about where to stay and Jeremy said just drive to the next town and pick a house. I wondered what he was talking about but they drove to the next town, where houses and roads and all the infrastructure finished off and no-one lived there. They drove past lots and lots of deserted properties that had been built at the wrong time and no-one had moved into them. They picked one of the nicest looking ones and spent the night there.

 

Next day they found another deserted town and turned the main streets around it into a race track it was deserted apart from the guys and film crew.

 

Sure you can go to Greece and Spain and America and pick up a property that by Australian standards seems a bargain. Would you be able to get a job and make a go of living there though?

[jasepom]

In new build houses, some toilets have basins others don't, depending on the size of the house. Ours didn't, but remember that Aussies like their toilets away from the bathroom which have the basin in it. It's more convenient IMO, since you don't have to wait to have a pee. Better to have a bigger bathroom with everything you need.

[Chortlepuss]

Nah toothbrush is okay.

I saw an article where the worst thing for germs was the kitchen chopping board and dishcloth. They had far more bacteria than toilet flush buttons and toothbrushes even when in same room as toilet.

Apparently sponges are pretty horrific. Hubby uses a scourer/sponge and I use a scrubbing brush - causes a lot of arguments re: what is filthiest