I agree with moving car parking to the other street. That way your extra space will be under the same roof.

The lounge is not a bad size , the dining is smaller , as is the kitchen . then you have a family room out the other side , and it looks like there is a full bathroom there , not just a toilet ?

And then Bed 2 is used as a hobby room .

Add to that a double garage and a downstairs cellar -- how cold and dark is that ?

And then there looks to be terrace areas under the same roof line too ?

Really , you'd need pictures and even a compass and window style and placement to really get a feel for the place , but some suggestions just off the floorplan --

-- Can the family room get a 'solid' door from the kitchen , and become a bedroom , possibly even Master , as it has a small bathroom ?

-- Can the kitchen be opened up -- for example , does it need that hall into the family room , or can everyone head through a ( possibly redesigned ) kitchen ?

-- Can all or some of the garage be converted to living areas -- i.e. is the wall load bearing , is the garage built as part of the house , same style etc ? Maybe go down to single garage , but build a carport where you show for caravan parking in a similar style to your house roof ?

-- How open is the porch onto Banara , and is the wall set back in , and brick , or is it fibrolite or similar ?

Probably no real help , but might spark an idea or two ?

where does the downstairs space fit under the house and what is the height of the downstairs ceiling..if possible it could be worthwhile to incorporate any extension to include an internal stairs to a downstairs rumpus and/or hobby space space and how do use all the rooms now and is there any part of the house that is more or less used

downstairs cellar sits underneath the bedroom next to the toilet and bathroom. very dark - concrete cellar. house is on a slope so the cellar is built into the ground with a stairwell leading to it. we use it for storage but its had drainage issues at times due to the design so can't be used as a living space

concrete slab floor underneath the house (also forms roof of cellar) - except for the meals/ family which was an extension in 76

front porch is under roofline in line with bedrooms

covered patio and stairs at back are now a decking

• although the existing cellar is nor suitable for living space i have to assume that the ground is lower on that side of the house and an extension could be two storey or split level to take advantage of the slope but you should first check with council to ask about the legal setback from the eastern side and if, as has already been suggested, you could change the driveway to the lower side and have a garage downstairs, steps up through the door on the existing side of the old master bedroom that could be used as a kids playroom and have a new master suite in the garage, use the old hobby bathroom as laundry powder room and include dining room in an enlarged kitchen but first find out the limitations of the block

To me, the flow of the house is totally blocked by the entryway creating a bottleneck and by the placement of the kitchen right next to it. I would we looking to demolish both completely and reposition the kitchen, either to the dining room or the meals room. The bathroom on the back porch is very awkward as it stands. The suggestion of converting it to a laundry would make sense if the kitchen was moved to the meals area. If you moved the kitchen to the dining area, however, you could have a big galley kitchen along the wall to the garage with an island in front, and the rest of the space could be configured how you want. This would give you more usable space and could have that wow factor as you walk in the front door.

Thanks for all the great suggestions - definitely food for thought.

We have considered using the land down the side past the bedrooms to extend but have been told by a few builders it wouldn't be possible due to street frontage issues? We've also had drainages down that end (have just replaced the stormwater pipes and removed a tree) so we have some worries that if we built there it would lead to more issues, versus changing around the existing space without extending?

Could I turn the meals/family area (which we currently use as a dining room) into a master bedroom, close it off, and then use the existing entrance/lounge/dining/kitchen as an open plan space (with internal walls removed) - or would it be too small?

I would start with moving master to family meals and redo the bathroom there as ensuite. Bed 1 becomes tv room. No extension. Use the money for new en-suite and kitchen, opening it up to the living and dining areas, could even move it. Retank the cellar so it can be used properly for storage and hobby.

I think if you were willing to lose the back covered porch next to the bath, you could extend the bathroom and just have a walk way to those stairs. What concerns me about using the meals area, however, is how you would access the stairs to the cellar. That is something you need to figure out. Walk around your house, consider the options and walk the spaces to see how they might work for you. If you have trouble visualising it, you may need to measure it all out and draw up a plan of the space yourself. measure your furniture and cut little shapes to scale and move them around the plan to see how they fit. The bigger your plan, the easier it will be to figure it out. You need to think, too, about how you live in the spaces at the moment and what works for you as well as what doesn't. We lived with our kitchen for three years before settling on a layout we both agreed would work for us. We totally renovated our downstairs, changing the layout of the spaces and putting up walls to define spaces in what had basically been a walled in under house area. We discussed, changed and drew out the layout about 4 times over about 18 months, until we got the one that just felt right. We have lived with it for 18 months now and it is working very well, enhancing the way we live just as we wanted it to. My point is, don't rush to a decision. This is going to cost you a lot of money and you are going to have to live with the result for a number of years. Think it through carefully and figure out what will work for you and your family.

first check with council about minimum steback from eastern boundary as my suggestions include a new kitchen, pantry, laundry and powder room in the old family room and covered porch.. space for a good size dining suite and study nook, internal access from the garage (a sink in the garage is always useful and would use old laundry plumbing) a family room/kids' space and no changes to the living room walls although the door between entry and dining has been altered to allow for storage wall and study nook...there's a new master bedroom suite that could be at the same level or, depending on suitable setbacks, could include stairs up to the master suite and downstairs to a waterproof rumpus room for when the kids need more space

but, if there's not enough space to extend past the bedrooms, then you could consider adding a master suite behind or above the garage..my concern with converting the family room to a master suite is that you've crowded the whole family into a smaller space and blocked best access to outside without improving the kitchen..possibly OK while kids are small but not very comfortable as they grow older