We visited Neil and Ronnie in their custom Victoriana home in Doreen.
We are thankful for Neil and Ronnie to share some of their personal stories experienced within their Highview home.
View some of the amazing pictures we took on the day and have a read as to why they chose and love their Victoriana home.
When did you build your home?
Neil: We started in October 2011, that’s when the slab went down. We moved in on the 19th June 2012.
Who do you live here with?
Ronnie: Just the two of us live here but we often have 2 grandchildren who visit. We have 2 extra bedrooms and a study which could be a third bedroom, so we have plenty of room. The way it is set out is great – we don’t need to use that half of the house which is perfect for when we have guests. It gives people privacy when they come and stay.
How did you hear of Highview?
Ronnie: We were driving and saw the display centre – we’d been looking around a whole lot of other display homes but came to this stunning Highview display and thought “this is different, this is really nice.” We came home and then I rang up Gary (Highview Homes Sales Consultant) and he was just wonderful. Neil liked the Seachange, and we looked around the other Highview display homes and loved all the finishes, we then realised how beautiful they all are.
Which style or floorplan did you choose?
Ronnie: We looked at the Seachange originally, but we had a lot of furniture from our old home that was really modern. So we decided that the Victoriana style best suited the combination of our modern and antique like pieces.
Neil: What we really love about it, is the openness. It’s full of light and it’s got that blending of the old and the new. It’s probably bigger than we intended to build – we were wanting to downsize but it’s great for family and entertainment as well.
Ronnie: With Highview the cost was pretty much “what you saw was what you got” – floorboards were an optional extra and we decided to do that. We slightly changed the floorplan to suit our block and requirements and they were happy to do so. We dealt with the same person the whole time, which was fantastic. Gary had so much patience.
What attracted you to this style?
Neil: We lived in the eastern suburbs and my parents lived in Camberwell. In Camberwell there are a lot of period homes that we loved but we could never afford to live down there. I think that is where we first really saw this style…
Ronnie: …and then we just fell in love with the display when we found it.
What is your favourite memory in this home?
Neil: We’ve had all the family here, at Christmas and Easter time. We love that time with the grandchildren and my mother who’s 94…. just the time we can spend here with the family.
Ronnie: You can’t pinpoint one occasion but it is as simple as having your grandsons running with their socks and skidding down the hallway (laughing) – and they have their own room, and I’ve set it up just for them. They go in their and say, “this is our room”. And they love that room. They come and have sleep overs. And that’s one of our favourite times.
What is your favourite room in the house?
Neil: The kitchen and family area. You can be sitting in the family room and still be connecting with the people in the kitchen.
Ronnie: I love the kitchen, it is just lovely – it’s nice to look out of the window to the garden. I always say ‘I love my home and my kitchen.’
What is your favourite feature of the home?
Neil: The brick colour and pattern is something we hadn’t really seen before and something we really love.
Ronnie : I love the finishes – cornices, architraves, lacework – I think it’s beautifully finished. The finishes are the things that really make it for us and people always say “it’s so beautifully finished”.
What do you think of when you hear the words Highview homes?
Ronnie: I think of quality, it’s something you can’t add to the home – it’s something that is a package, and their homes are quality.
I actually worked as a hostess at Highview for about 12 months and it was a great experience. I loved it. I could talk about my own Highview experience and how great it was. I used my practical experiences to help women make decisions for overcoming building issues such as land restrictions.
I was so impressed by my home and the experience with Highview that I was very happy to promote our experience. It wasn’t negative in any shape or form and I wanted to share it with other people – we have a beautiful home and we have a lot of people who come and comment on it too.
