At what point does a house become "newer"?

Discussion in 'Renovation & Home Improvement' started by The Y-man, 17th Oct, 2020.

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  1. The Y-man

    The Y-man Moderator Staff Member

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    I had an interesting thought responding to another thread - at what point does a house become newer?

    We have a couple of old houses (a few built in the early 20th century, a few in the mid 20th century).

    I am sure that at some stage, as we keep fixing things, there will come a time when there is almost nothing of the original left :eek: .... kitchen, bathrooms redone; window frames would have rotted; weatherboards, framework timber, stumps, roofing replaced..... can you still say the house is X years old when only a few bit of timber remain of the original? :D

    The Y-man
     
  2. thatbum

    thatbum Well-Known Member

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    Didn't the philosophers solve this one with the ship of Theseus? I can't remember what their answer was.
     
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  3. The Y-man

    The Y-man Moderator Staff Member

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    Awesome! Makes for interesting reading :)

    The Y-man
     
  4. The Y-man

    The Y-man Moderator Staff Member

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    I assume then that something like a Heritage Overlay exists only over the perceived building and not the tangible building itself - as none of the original parts might remain.

    So even if there was a fire, and the whole building was restored (as has happened to many historic buildings - eg castles and temples in Japan), the HO would still apply?

    More interestingly, as per the Ship of Theseus exercise, if we build a second brand new house identical to a heavily worked and restored original period home (right next to it say), would it be considered by buyers to be a "period home""? Would it be a "period style" home? Would it have the same value?

    The Y-man
     
  5. Millie

    Millie Well-Known Member

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    Paganin House in Perth is an iconic example of mid-century architecture, and was damaged extensively by fire in 2015.

    It was rebuilt to its former glory, and featured on Restoration Australia.

    Can google it for further info, pictures and news articles on the home and story.
     
  6. wylie

    wylie Moderator Staff Member

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    We have two old Queenslanders. We've replaced the roof on both. Replaced the original kitchens and bathrooms. Windows, walls, floors are all original (but we've moved some walls to allow living area enjoy a city view where there once were bedrooms).

    These would not be allowed to be removed, even with some new/replacement bits and pieces.

    I wonder about our house, built in 1959, but extensively remodelled (by us) so it looks like a 1930s house. Under BCC rules, we could bulldoze it (and perhaps we should have). The fact it looks older than it is makes me wonder if a future buyer might be forced to keep it.

    The rules (my understanding) is that anything there between the wars must stay. And I'm told that is because BCC has aerial photographs of what was there due to the newfangled aerial photography taken at that time.

    I've been sent recently an aerial photo from the 1930s of the house that originally was on our block. The owner had three blocks, with our house sitting on two of them, and some empty land beside.

    Now those three blocks have been made into two blocks and two houses built. The original house was put on a truck and moved to the local Catholic school (apparently) but isn't there now.
     
  7. BunnyXiao

    BunnyXiao Well-Known Member

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    Is this a classic ship of Theseus ruse or a tax/depreciation question? I am unclear on what the nub is
     
  8. The Y-man

    The Y-man Moderator Staff Member

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    Hmmm... is that like taking a house built in the late 90's and revamping it to look like a house from the 70's? :D:D:D:D

    The Y-man
     
  9. The Y-man

    The Y-man Moderator Staff Member

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    A thought exercise as I am fascinated by people wanting to buy "brand new" - and wanting to know whether "brand new" is driven by perception or physical/tangible items.

    For example, if a developer builds a modern shoebox house and a realistic replica of an Edwardian period home - would one get a higher price than the other (assuming they fit the neighbourhood - eg many inner subs now have shoe boxes next to period homes)? Would they come up different in valuations?


    The Y-man
     
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  10. wylie

    wylie Moderator Staff Member

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    Nothing like that LOL... We had to choose ultra modern, or back to match what is in the street. Sometimes I wish we'd knocked it down and started again.
     
  11. BunnyXiao

    BunnyXiao Well-Known Member

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    That's a personal preference question as in your examples both are new builds in the same area.
     
  12. MTR

    MTR Well-Known Member

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    My primary residence is a period home, over 100 years Old
    Houses that are not period homes in my area are not as desirable, and harder to sell and impacts on selling price

    Also our Council will not allow period homes to be demolished. Today, It Just wont happen, many streets are designated historic precincts.
     
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  13. Ketsle

    Ketsle Well-Known Member

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    Drive past this quite often and its an absolute beauty. The restoration australia episode was great also. The pedantry of the marble wall tiles at the front entrance was insane. I dont even want to imagine the cost...