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What would you do with a tenanted two-bedroom house, a $30,000 budget and two weeks’ notice? DevelopHer member Anita Whittle had exactly that in Montrose, in Hobart’s northern suburbs. Ninety days of work later, she walked away with $74,850, all costs in.
On the latest episode of Building with BuildHer, Rebeka sat down with Anita to talk through how she did it. If you have ever told yourself this only works in Melbourne, or only with a big budget, read on.
Buy with a safety net
Anita bought the house while she was selling her last flip, so she could stay in the market, and it came with a tenant whose rent already covered the mortgage.
That gave her two things: time, because she had a whole summer to plan before the tenant moved on, and a worst case she could live with. If the renovation never stacked up, she still had an investment that paid for itself.
Do you know what your worst case looks like before you buy? Anita did, and that is what let her take the deal on with confidence.
Run the big options, then choose the small one
Anita looks for houses she can turn into three bedrooms. Montrose had two big bedrooms and two bathrooms, so the obvious move was to turn one bathroom into a third bedroom.
She ran the numbers on that, and on a full extension out the back. The extension failed the simplest test there is, because no buyer in Montrose would pay for that house. The bathroom conversion came with conflicting advice and a possible council process.
So she kept the floor plan exactly as it was. Her fallback was clear: if the price was not there, she could hold the house and plan a bigger renovation later. She never needed it.
Spend where the buyer feels it
With $30,000 to work with, every dollar had a job, and the kitchen took about a third of it. Anita removed the peninsula bench that cut the room in two, but left the sink, oven and fridge where they were so the plumbing and electrics did not move.
She chose flat-pack cabinets with a short lead time, Tas Oak benchtops she could cut on site, and reclaimed timber for a little custom joinery. The splashback tiles were left over from a past project. The fridge and dishwasher came from Facebook Marketplace.
The bathroom kept its tiles, toilet and shower, while a new vanity and black tapware made it feel like a different room. Then came paint throughout, a new deck, a gravel fire pit and native planting front and back. The outdoor work came in at around $5,000, and Rebeka called the backyard one of the biggest uplifts in the whole project.
“Look at what needs to be done, and also look at what doesn’t need to be done.”
Make it look loved
Looking at the before photos, Rebeka described the house as having good bones but feeling cold. The kitchen was cold, and the yards were big but under-loved.
Anita’s answer was to bring out the character of the house instead of fighting it. It is a 1950s weatherboard with original timber floors, and she chose not to polish them. Instead she leaned into the feeling of an old farmhouse cottage, with an old dresser, a timber dining table and plants in the old fireplace nook.
She designs for what she calls an imagined client. It might be a young family, a couple or someone ready to settle down. She pictures who will live there and what will make them feel at home, then designs for that person.
“The difference between a house that stays on the market for months and a house people actually want is a house that looks loved.”
It worked, too. The house was advertised for one day before a couple asked to see it ahead of the first open and made an offer.
The lesson she is taking into the next one
Anita had planned to hold the house for twelve months for the capital gains discount. What she had not checked is that the clock runs to the contract date, not settlement. When money got tight and the market started turning, she listed early and sold inside the twelve months.
She would not change the timing, because she got a great price in a turning market. But she will check the tax dates first next time, and so should you. Will you talk to your accountant before you set a sale date?
Key takeaways
- Know your worst case before you buy. A tenant or a long-term hold can be your safety net.
- Run the big options, then pick the one a buyer in that suburb will actually pay for.
- Keep plumbing and electrics where they are. Spend on what people see and feel.
- Do not skip the outside. A deck, a fire pit and planting can lift a whole house.
- Design for the person who will live there, and make it look loved.
- Check the capital gains dates with your accountant before you list.
Listen to the full episode
Catch the full conversation with Anita on Building with BuildHer, on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen. You will hear the $150 fridge that cost a whole day of work, the 1920s birthday party in a half-finished kitchen, and why Anita thinks your transferable skills matter more than your postcode.
Ready to run your own numbers?
Anita did not need a million-dollar market or a big budget. She needed a plan and the numbers to back it. Watch our free Profitable Renovation Framework masterclass and start working out what your first project could look like.
