I have been in my share of derelict places, and this is by far the most derelict. Which is what makes it so cool.

It’s a Victorian terrace in a quiet street of Newtown that has never been renovated, and has not been kept in the best condition.

It is creepy.

The photos explain it better than words can, but walking through the place you identify a few things – the inside has had years and years of indifferent living piled on it, with wallpaper peeling to show more wallpaper and an old kid’s rug covering the kitchen floor. It’s been bashed about. Then there’s what looks to be squatter’s writing on the wall of the living area. And there’s the odour upstairs, which was mildly scarring.

It’s exciting and scary to walk through, and it’ll be exciting and scary to renovate. It’s got a good location, a facade that will scrub up nicely and some original features worth saving – the fireplace downstairs is bricked up but has a very pretty frame.

It harkens back to old school Newtown grit, which is another plus point. On the other hand, it will soon be a sparkling refashioned respectable home. It’s currently on the market, so someone will assuredly pick it up and have fun with it. The day I saw it I was late (no surprise there), but the inspection had been busy and there was an overflow of investors exploring it with me. It’s also been listed in SMH‘s ‘Smart Buys’ section (billed as a ‘haunted house’), so I’m not the only person paying attention. Nor should I be.

I love terraces. My fascination with them was one of the reasons I started this blog. What makes featuring this house so interesting is that I was able to explore a pretty rare Victorian terrace – one located at Mosman. Mosman isn’t renowned for terrace housing. It has short semis, large (super-large, oh-man-why-can’t-I -afford-a-place-like-this?-large) Federations and modern homes, but to be honest I didn’t even know it had terrace stock (and I love finding out new things about Sydney’s architecture). There are some suburbs in the lower north shore where terraces are bordering on common (Neutral Bay, Waverton, Kirribilli, McMahons Point), but this isn’t one of them.

So this place excites me.

It’s three storey and right near Mosman Bay, one of the suburb’s most coveted spots. Mosman, for the record, is pretty massive (it’s divided up into unofficial precincts), and the sections near Mosman Bay and Avenue Road are very pretty and worth a walk, if you don’t know the area.

The house is mostly unrenovated (one of its bathrooms has been updated), but that’s one of its best features – firstly as I love looking at homes in original/semi-original condition, and secondly as it means the character has been retained (there’s nothing sadder than a terrace that has had all its trimmings ripped out and is just a modern husk). There are multiple ornate fireplaces and lightfittings, plus the original floorboards, high patterned ceilings and sash windows.

It’s an end terrace, which means that it has more light (and space) than your average terrace – makes renovating easier, as the main priority when reconfiguring a terrace is often getting access to more light. The floorplan is closed, and I imagine that the downstairs living/kitchen areas will be opened up, leading onto a timber deck facing the direction of the harbour. There is a second kitchen in an upstairs bedroom that I presume will be pulled out when the house is renovated. The current staircase is narrow and tall. The fact the terrace already has two bathrooms, an internal laundry and parking (…just try to park nearby for any significant amount of time and you’ll see how useful this is) is handy as it means that renovation can be focused primarily on restoration, especially if the new owners don’t choose to dramatically change the floorplan (and I’d argue that the floorplan only really requires substantial alteration on the ground floor).

On the property side of things, I found 15 McLeod Street as it’s on the market. It’s for sale (not auction) for around $1.4m, which, given the fact it’s such a unique find in such a covetable location, makes it well worth scoping out for anyone looking in the area, in my mind.

Disappointingly, I couldn’t find this terrace on the heritage register. I find this a really strange omission given there are houses far less worthy of conservation that have the notation. I’m confident that its new owners will keep it mostly intact, but I hope they keep ahold of all the little bits and pieces that make character homes so … well, characterful. When polished, this house will be seriously amazing, and even moreso if all the intricate details it has now are still there at the end.

Two sets of French doors lead out to the front terrace from one of the bedrooms.

Just one of the many excellent fireplaces still on display.

This one’s exciting. Seriously exciting. Take a nip of brandy and get comfortable, because this is one you’re going to savour. It’s a duplex in Cremorne – and oh, wow, what a duplex. This is the kind of place that prompted me to start this blog in the first place – it’s stare-worthy, mesmerising, in its way.

Let’s get some initial facts out of the way: a two bedroom, one bathroom, one carspace lower duplex at Cremorne, with a sizeable terrace and around 100 square metres of interior space. It was built in the 1940s, and it’s fairly clear it’s had no renovation work done since. The property is located on the north side of Cremorne, perched on a high-up street that offers nice district views.

Now to the good stuff: photographs.

As an aside, this home was extremely difficult to photograph as it was packed full of potential renovators. It’s on the market and there is serious competition. Disappointing for me, as in my pipe dream fantasy land in which I have enough money to make another property purchase, I was very keen on this one. In any case, it’s popular. I’m impressed that people see the magic of the place, although I also hope that its character is retained.

Speaking of character, it has 1940s charm in spades. The curved wall in the above photo is a prime example, as is the fireplace in the living area you’ll see below.

The bathroom is a particular treasure, but also is the room that probably requires the most work. It’s in a parlous state, and is a tad spooky to stand in, but is somehow, at the same time, utterly gorgeous. The Art Deco-ish yellow tile/sea green combination is actually so catching that I’d consider reviving it in the restoration – even if that means gutting the bathroom and ‘re-doing’ it in its former style. It was once a very handsome mid-century bathroom, and now it has a totally different type of appeal.

The floors are timber, and are in better condition in some rooms than others. The living room is the best example of this, and is also probably the room that’s in the best condition. It occupies prime position at the front of the duplex, and leads out onto an expansive terrace.

The living area is also a good example of how the home would feel as a ‘lived in’ property, as it’s the only space with a notable amount of furniture – all of which, pretty and charming, suits the property perfectly. The fireplace appears to be in outstanding condition.

One door leads to a sunroom, the other to the terrace.

Sunroom.

Eerily beautiful.

The kitchen is a retro fan’s fantasy, right down to the seriously awesome oven, which epitomises the mid-century appliance design ethos. Kitchens have always been important, but it seemed like it was mid-century in Australia that they really took off as the ‘heart’ of the home, forming the nucleus of a family’s social activity.

Can whoever renovates this house please donate this oven to me?

The bedrooms follow the same trend as the rest of the home – timber floors with peeling paint. The rooms are generously proportioned, and have high ceilings (always a massive plus on this blog).

One bedroom.

This home is a renovator, and it’s a thrilling prospect because it gives the lucky owner the opportunity to restore it and frame it with their own character. However, I’m happy I’ve had the chance to preserve it in its current form, which presents a type of exquisiteness that’s impossible to replicate.

The St George region is home to a reasonable amount of character homes – unfortunately, not as many as it once was, given residents’ penchant for bulldozing them, which is what makes this Victorian sandstone a real gem. It’s been modernised but its best features remain intact – patterned tiles, ornate ceilings, elaborate fireplaces. Good stuff!

Unfortunately, I can’t find much heritage information about the home – but hopefully the pictures give you a sufficient idea of its charm. The living area has polished hard wood floors, stained glass windows looking out into the garden and looking through to the kitchen, a sandstone feature wall, a tiled fireplace and an ornate ceiling. The furniture is classic and complementary.

Original ceiling

The high ceilings are benefited by the design choices the owner has made, particularly the large mirror in the drawing room (which, incidentally, is my favourite room).

The home is currently on the market for offers over $1.15 million. For those wanting a character home with plenty of space, it provides good value for money 14km out of the CBD – just south of the inner-west.

Thomas the Tank Engine!

This Georgian house at Ryde is very imposing on Victoria Road, so I stopped by to have a look. A knock at the door produced no results, but at least we can appreciate its magnificent exterior. It was built around 1841 by a local magistrate, according to the City of Ryde, which now owns the property. The council describes the home as being in fair condition, with most of its features intact.

Ryde District Historical Society and the City of Ryde Art Society now use the site. Unsurprisingly, it was once on a much larger plot, which has been progressively subdivided over the past two centuries. Like many historical houses, it’s had an at times turbulent history – for a period it was used as the grounds of a service station! … Because that’s appropriate. Luckily, Sydney now acknowledges the significance of heritage buildings; there was a period in the mid-to-late twentieth century in which no one seemed to care either way.

It’s a true beauty – the popping red is instantly recognisable from the busy main road and the rear of the house, with two adjacent wings, shows off its size and character. It’s located in Ryde, a middle class suburb in Sydney’s northern suburbs (wedged between the north shore and the north west) that boasts many of the city’s best historical homes due to its background as one of the area’s earliest commercial hubs.

View of the Parramatta River