New life by the beach

8 SUNRISE BOULEVARD,

SNELLS BEACH

Scratch any Aucklander and you’ll probably hear a dream to escape the rat race and live a more oldvalues lifestyle. Two years ago, two of those Aucklanders were Jodie and Reece Bell. They found the solution, unexpectedly, in Snells Beach.

“We’d been in Devonport forever and we decided to get out of the traffic,” says Jodie. “We weren’t even looking this far.

“We used to spend weekends up here, Reece and the lads surfing at Tawharanui. We were thinking a big house, as we love to put our mark on it.

“Other people think renovations are a nightmare, but we really enjoy it.”

The house that caught their attention was one Jodie thought of as a classic retiree house — clinker brick on a concrete base, solidly built and well finished.

The bonus was a ground-floor flat, with kitchen, bathroom, two bedrooms and a living room with outdoor area, where the previous owner had lived.

Inside, the energetic couple set to modernising the decor but first Reece was up a ladder for hours chipping the clinker off the brick before the house was bagged with a cool modern white/grey.

Every window and door was treated to a refurbish of hinges, and thermal laminated glass was added. (The house didn’t need double-glazing as Jodie says the brick, and orientation to the sun keeps it warm.)

They removed mossy old brick, replacing the entry to the front door with concrete pavers and modern planting. At the back they levelled the land for a playground and added a terrace. with built-in seating.

The Bells updated with white paint, new woodlaminate flooring, but kept quirks such as the pictures on the sliding shoji-screen doors in the living room, ceiling roses and cornices. Kitchen cabinets and bench were wrapped with a lacquer-type finish commonly used on cars and all appliances were renewed.

The upper floor has three bedrooms and a master bedroom. The shared family bathroom was transformed with wood-look tile on floors and walls, a huge shower and new vanity and fixtures.

There’s another bathroom and toilet downstairs and a roomy laundry to cope with the beach towels and outdoor gear. One of the downstairs bedrooms is used as a study and gym, the other for guests, while the living room has been a great playroom.

The family are selling to buy a property with more land so they can continue living their good life away from the city.