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The changing face of the Australian beach house

The humble beach shack is no longer. What was once a simple and very basic housing affair is now sophisticated one or two-level home with all the conveniences of a city or suburban dwelling.

“People are wanting more of the comforts of city life in these homes.”

Bruce Langford-Jones, managing director of the Victorian-based Langford Jones Homes, says Australian beach houses haves gone “from fibro shacks to very sophisticated two-storey affairs comprising a mix of lightweight materials” in the last decade.

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“I believe this is an Australia-wide phenomenon,” Mr Langford-Jones says. “Over the last 10 years we have seen more elaborate houses built in coastal resorts … As the cost of land in coastal areas is increasing, people are building better quality homes commensurate with the price of land.”

Great Ocean Road house by ITN Architects.

Great Ocean Road house by ITN Architects.

A former Housing Industry Association national president, Mr Langford-Jones says people, including those who enjoy regular holidays by the sea and those who are retiring to the coast, are seeking all the creature comforts they enjoy in the city and the suburbs.

“You have the holiday market and the retirement market,” he says. “And these people are wanting more of the comforts of city life in these homes.”

“Even though it is a holiday house they still want the city conveniences such as heating and cooling. They want en suites, two living areas – one upstairs and one downstairs, and at least three bedrooms, if not more, so the extended family can come down from the city and stay. They also want stone kitchen bench-tops, timber flooring in the main living areas; a high level of fit-out with quality fixtures and fittings.”

Mays Beach House by  Preston Lane Architects.

Mays Beach House by Preston Lane Architects.

The builder says in “the old days” people were prepared to put up with basic amenities in their beach home.

“Now they want the lot – all the trimmings including ceramic toilets and timber flooring,” says Mr Langford-Jones, a veteran of the building industry whose company builds about 120 homes a year around the south-western Victorian coast and the Mornington Peninsula, just south of Melbourne.

He believes the standard of housing in the coastal regions will continue to improve in the coming years.

“There is no question you will see more and more better quality housing built in coastal areas over the next few years, maintaining a coastal feel with a combination of lightweight construction materials including cement panels.”

Ron Roozen Beach House in Margaret River.

Ron Roozen Beach House in Margaret River.

Mr Langford-Jones adds that many of these new homes will be built on the sites of existing properties, part of the knockdown-rebuild phenomenon.

“We (as a company) are doing more of the knockdown-rebuilds where the old beach shack is pulled and replaced with modern beach-style home with coastal-type look,’’ he says.

Mays Beach House.

Mays Beach House.

Mr Langford-Jones says many of those involved in the knockdown-rebuild coastal market are retirees who are selling their home in the suburbs and using that money to upgrade their beach houses or buy homes near the beach.

“The retirement market is a very important and it is a growing market,” he says.


Home decorating ideas inspired by seaside living. Costal Style by Sally Hayden and Alice Whately. Buy it here.

coastal-styleCovering homes from as far apart as the Bahamas and Denmark, the book begins by looking at The Elements that go to make up the whole, including colour and texture, materials, furniture, fabrics, accessories and display. The second part of the book, The Spaces, takes a tour through the home room by room, from Living Spaces and Cooking and Eating Spaces to Bedrooms, Bathrooms and Outdoor Spaces, capturing the distinctive interior style that has evolved from living beside the sea.
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