If you've fallen in love with a classic Queenslander, you'll know exactly what we mean when we talk about their charm. Those wide verandahs, soaring ceilings, and beautiful timber details aren't just features, they're part of what makes Queensland living so special.
Something we hear all the time: "We love our house, but we're bursting at the seams."
With Brisbane land becoming harder to find and more expensive by the day, plenty of families are choosing to stay put and make their existing Queenslander work harder for them. That's where house raising comes in.
House raising sounds a bit like magic, doesn't it? But it's actually a carefully planned process where we literally lift your existing home to create additional living space underneath.
We bring in hydraulic jacks and gradually raise your entire house, bit by bit, until it's sitting at the perfect height for us to build a whole new level underneath. Think of it as the ultimate renovation Jenga, except we're the ones making sure everything stays perfectly stable.
The beauty of this approach, especially with Queenslanders, is that all those character features you fell in love with, the VJ walls, the ornate cornices, those gorgeous timber floors - they all stay exactly as they are. You get to keep the soul of your home whilst adding the space your family actually needs.
Sometimes the idea of selling up and starting over seems simpler. But here's what we've learned from working with dozens of families in your situation:
At Koda Construct, we've done this enough times to know that every house raising project is unique. We start by working with our trusted architects and draftspeople to create plans that tick all the boxes, heritage requirements, council approval, and most importantly, your family's needs.
We handle all the engineering requirements and council paperwork (trust us, you don't want to deal with that yourself), then bring in the specialised equipment for the actual lift. The raising process typically takes several days and requires patience and precision, two things we've got plenty of experience with.
Once your home is sitting pretty at its new height, we install permanent steel posts, pour the new concrete slab, and start framing your additional level. The space we create is incredibly versatile, open-plan living that flows to the garden, extra bedrooms for growing families, or that modern kitchen you've been pinning on Pinterest.
Here's something important to understand about heritage work, it requires a different approach. Usually, council requirements mean keeping the front three walls to preserve the street character, and we work within those guidelines to create something that honours the past whilst embracing the future.
We've navigated heritage overlays more times than we can count, so we know how to get approvals without the headaches. Every heritage home tells a story, and our job is helping you write the next chapter.
Not every home is a good candidate for raising, and we'll always give you an honest assessment. We look at the structural condition, site access, council requirements, and your budget. Timber frame Queenslanders are usually ideal, but each home needs individual evaluation.
The projects that really get us excited are the challenging ones, the irregular sites, the complex heritage requirements, the "other builders said it couldn't be done" situations. Jacob thrives on running organised sites where you can see real progress happening, and there's nothing quite like that moment when clients visit and see their vision coming to life.
Chris loves exploring different approaches and finding innovative solutions to tricky problems. It's this combination of careful planning and hands-on expertise that's helped us build our reputation in the house raising space.
House raising isn't something you want to trust to just anyone. It requires specialised knowledge, the right equipment, and frankly, builders who aren't afraid of a challenge. We've built our business on successfully transforming Queenslander homes whilst preserving their unique character.
Our consultative approach means we're with you from the very beginning, helping you understand what's possible before you commit to anything. We know this is likely your first major renovation, so we make sure you feel informed and confident throughout the entire process.
Whether you're planning, ready to go, or just exploring what's possible, we're here to help. House raising might just be the perfect solution for creating the space your family needs whilst keeping the character you love.
Got a Queenslander that's feeling a bit too cosy? We'd love to chat about whether house raising could work for your family. Hit reply or give us a call, we're always happy to talk through your options, even if you're just at the "wondering what's possible" stage.
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