Gold Logie nominee Andrew Winter reveal amazing renovation

EVEN the experts will admit that pulling off a major renovation can be harder than it looks.

While property expert Andrew Winter makes it look all so easy on Selling Houses Australia, he discovered there was a lot more to it when he did a major renovation on his own home.

Winter and his wife Caroline embarked on a major renovation of their Gold Coast home a year ago in between his busy television filming schedule.

And while it was hard work, it obviously didn’t affecthis working life with Winter in the running for the coveted Gold Logie for his role in Selling Houses Australlia at Sunday night’s TV Week Logie Awards.

Winter and his family lived across the road from the house they bought as a major renovation project.

The Tuscan-inspired five-bedroom house at Sanctuary Cove on the Gold Coast had what he described as an unusual design.

But because of his television career, Winter was used to thinking outside the box.

“We’ve never quite spent so much time focusing on the outside areas,” Winter said

The house is on the river so the pool is at the centre of the home in a European-style courtyard instead of in the back yard.

“Every single bedroom has direct access to the courtyard and pool so it’s really unusual in that respect,” Winter said.

They liked its unusual design and style, so focused on breathing new life into the outdoor areas and remodelling the home’s interior without compromising its character.

“We haven’t really changed anything else layout wise,” Winter said.

Standout features include a daring black ceiling in the kitchen as well as a marble-look front door.

“It’s a solid door but it’s cut in porcelain,” Winter said.

“We were trying to push a few boundaries.”

He said renovations were becoming much more common as homes built in the 1970s, 80s and 90s started to look dated and property prices continued to rise.

He encouraged house hunters looking to get into the property market to start off with an older home in their price range and renovate.

He said it was much easier to climb the property ladder than trying to buy that dream home straight away.

“That’s how I started, that’s how a lot of people started,” Mr Winter said.

The 60th TV Week Logie Awards will be held at The Star Gold Coast on Sunday

Winter offers these tips for would be renovators to consider before they start.

TIPS ON RENOVATING

1. Don’t live in the house through a reno, try and move out.

2. The devil is in the detail. Never forget all council approvals - all those hidden extras that can cost a lot of money.

3. Preparation is key. Plan plan and plan again and avoid ongoing changes.

4. Have a daily site visit.

5. Be realistic with your budget, build in a contingency. And expect things to go wrong and over budget.

Let's block ads! (Why?)