How this Auckland family revived their '70s home for less than $40,000

Article by Your Home and Garden

When Nita Pearson and partner Francis Scordino were looking for a family home, they saw potential where others saw problems. While nothing had been touched since the Seventies, Nita loved the location of the property and they were able to snap it up.

Meet & greet

Nita Pearson, 49 (administrator), Francis Scordino, 48 (sports club manager), Jordan, 23 (PhD student), Noah, 15, and Raphael, 13, plus Indy the dog, Miss the cat and Birdie the budgie.

When Nita Pearson and partner Francis Scordino were looking for a home, they saw potential where others saw problems. While nothing had been touched since the Seventies, Nita loved the location of the property and they were able to snap it up.

Best lesson learned?
Nita: We had our new kitchen appliances stolen because we’d stored them in our carport, ready for the installers. We’d never had anything stolen from our carport up until then and had just taken it for granted that they would be okay.

What would you never do again?
Plumb in a sink and paint those dirty, dark-stained beams.

Any DIY disasters?
Francis broke his ribs trying to fix a window seal.

One thing you would change about your home if you could?
The exterior cladding and roof tiles.

Most memorable experience in your home?
Christmas Days.

Budget

How did your budget forecast compare to your actual spend? We haven’t had to borrow anything to renovate yet. I try to get a reasonable estimate and add on 10 per cent, then we save towards that. I think that helps you stick to a budget better than using borrowed money. We will have to borrow for the next phase, though.

Where did you save?
Price-reduced laundry cupboards and the flat-pack kitchen.

Any splurges?
Trades and quality paint (cheap paint never lasts with so many kids).

Do you tend to buy high-end homeware or seek out a bargain?
We can’t afford high-end. Quality secondhand suits us.

Best advice when it comes to spending money on a home?
Make a list, set a budget and stick to it.

Cost breakdown

Bathroom $5000
Laundry $2500
Deck and stair rebuild $6000
Plastering and painting $5000
Carpet (bedrooms and hall) $3500
Insulation (to prep for floor) $1500
Kitchen and flooring $15,000
Landscaping $1000
Total: $39,500

See more of this renovation below

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The flooring is Krono laminate in hardy oak from Prime Floors.

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The living space has a double-height feature wall currently in Porter’s Paints Guerrilla, which Nita will have “no problems changing” whenever she tires of it.

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Nita found a large piece of Marimekko fabric (a 1980s design) in an op-shop for $20 and stretched it over a frame to create a colourful focal point.

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The table got a new look with Porter’s Paints Chalk Emulsion and a wax finish.

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Nita also made the bulb lighting using coloured cables from Trade Me and Mr Ralph and op-shopped fittings. Another budget-savvy idea was to up-spec certain finishes in her flat-pack kitchen from Ex-Space, giving her the best of both worlds.

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The woodburner has become an attractive feature with the aid of some pretty baskets and a super-simple plant display using painted trellis. The plants are safe even when the burner is lit because the heat pumps outwards into the room.

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This area, used by the couple’s three boys as a “mud/dump room”, will eventually be reconfigured. The 1980s laminate panels have been painted in a custom colour using Porter’s Paints Interior Satin Finish (“a hardy, quality paint – perfect for in here”). The tiles were a good find at the Tile Clearance Centre.

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The open-plan living area occupies the home’s middle level, with stairs leading up to an open-sided mezzanine containing the boys’ living room, a bedroom and an office.

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Noah plays a tune in Raphael’s room. The bedding is from The Warehouse, the bedside lamp from Kmart and the drawers from an op-shop.

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Nita won two rolls of Milton & King ‘Nixon’ wallpaper on Instagram and hung it herself in the master bedroom. The black and white photograph of wattle blossoms was created by Nita and Sheera Gordon

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The family bathroom was the worst room in the house. It was completely redone for just $5000 with most of the tiles picked up cheaply at the Tile Clearance Centre.