Property of the week: 10 Orient Court, Buderim
This sky-high home on the Sunshine Coast with iconic shipping container pool is a testament to modern design and engineering.
This sky-high home on the Sunshine Coast with iconic shipping container pool is a testament to modern design and engineering.
A breathtaking view and a lush quarter-acre block are high up the wish list with any lifestyle property, but this contemporary Buderim residence takes things to another level.
Designed and built by owners Stu and Nat Faid, the Sunshine Coast home reflects their vision and incredible attention to detail.
As an architect and designer, Nat believes a prime position deserves an incredible project.
“The heart of the house is undoubtedly the living area and expansive deck. At over 100sq m and elevated more than 6m above the ground, you literally feel like you’re floating. We love how the views stretch from the Glass House Mountains along the coastline to Mooloolaba. Across the ocean, you can even see the sandbanks on Moreton Island,” she says.
While the views and the 1024sq m land parcel make their mark, it’s the suspended 12m heated shipping container swimming pool that’s making waves locally.
“When people arrive, the first thing they do is look up,” Nat adds.
After purchasing the property in 2021, the pair knew the existing house wouldn’t live up to their family of four, but they fell in love with the location and outlook so decided to adapt.
Initially, the pool’s unique design was simply a reaction to an everyday Queensland problem, but ultimately became a feature.
“The pool was at first a product of practicality. We wanted to be able to watch the kids in the pool from the house, but to do that required elevating the pool more than six meters off the ground,” Stu says.
“When we looked at the engineering required, it conflicted with our minimal-touch ethos in preserving the land and the visual aesthetic of the finished design. What followed was a lot of searching for a solution, and as luck would have it, the answer was almost on our doorstep.”
Shipping Container Pools seemed like a no-brainer answer to the pool problem. Having moved internationally multiple times, the couple saw an opportunity to weave their personal story into the fabric of their new home.
“The opportunity to incorporate a nod to that chapter of our life into the build was too good to miss,” he says.
“It also unashamedly reinforces the origins of the pool construction, which ties into the rest of the design in the house. Throughout the home, we have embraced where the old meets the new, we have not tried to blend, cover or hide the origins of the home, we have chosen instead to make sure the evolution of the house is clear to see.”
The Faids’ global family journey is evident throughout the home, from the grand Middle Eastern entry doors sourced from Dubai where the couple once lived, to the remarkable views from the Glass House Mountains to Mooloolaba.
Created to enjoy every season, the house has a space for all eventualities with an open plan living area spilling out to the full-width deck and pool, a sleek kitchen with an Ilve integrated fridge and freezer, Bosch ovens, an induction cooktop, built-in coffee machine and microwave, two dishwashers, filtered water and a butler’s pantry.
Four spacious bedrooms each have built-ins, the main features a large ensuite with twin vanities and two more bedrooms share a“Jack and Jill” style bathroom. There is also a third full bathroom.
The Buderim home is 12.5kms from Mooloolaba and the Mooloolaba River National Park with the Sunshine Coast Airport 13.5kms to the north, however Stu adds that there is rarely a reason to leave.
“It would be fair to say that apart from popping down the hill to go to the beach, we often go days without ever leaving the village. It’s really is a wonderful spot.”
Packed with mod cons, the Buderim home also features six-zone ducted air-conditioning, engineered oak floors and a double-sided Stuv wood-burning fireplace, a mudroom, heated floors and sensor lights in the bathrooms. There is also a private elevator, solar power and battery, as well as landscaped gardens and a large lock up garage and shed.
The property at 10 Orient Court, Buderim is listed with Zoe Byrne and Greg Ward from Ray White Buderim and will go to auction on September 22 at 9am at Mercedes-Benz Sunshine Coast, 65 Maroochy Blvd, Maroochydore.
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Award-winning Byron hinterland estate Amileka returns to market, blending architectural pedigree, celebrity history and lucrative luxury retreat appeal.
A Byron Bay hinterland trophy home that once starred on Love Island Australia has resurfaced for sale after making a brief appearance on the market last year.
Amileka in Federal, 24kms from the famous shores of Byron Bay, was listed for a short time in July with a guide of more than $8m, but is now asking $7m to $7.7m with Sotheby’s agent Will Phillips via an expressions of interest campaign, closing on March 12, at 5pm.
The contemporary homestead on 10ha last sold for $9.5 million during the regional post-pandemic boom in 2022. Since then, the iconic house has been earning its owners thousands of dollars a night as a glamorous short term rental.
Built in 2008, Amileka took home the Australian Institute of Architects (NSW country division) Architecture Award in the same year. The minimalist design on secluded Blackbean Lane was crafted by architect owner Sharon Fraser and her husband, Steve Esson.
Tom Lane, of the Oroton fashion family empire and his stylist wife Emma, then bought Amileka for $4 million in 2011. They sold up in 2015 for $3.5 million to the Johnson family, who offered up the compound to feature as the Love Island home for the Channel 9 dating show’s third season in 2017.
Later, in 2022, the remote residence was snapped up by Mikaela Lancaster, Spotify Australia managing director, and her husband Mark Britt, founder of video-streaming platform Iflix. Lancaster and Britt are now seeking Amileka’s next custodians.
The main home has a large sunken lounge room and a spacious dining zone seamlessly connected to the gourmet kitchen and multiple outdoor terraces. In the designer gas kitchen there are stone surfaces including a big island bench, and a discreet but large butler’s pantry.
Created for grand scale outdoor entertaining, Amileka’s alfresco options include a central courtyard, level lawns with rolling district views punctuated by ancient Black Bean, fig and pandanus trees, plus an 18m by 5m pool and a fire pit.
Internally, the house features a stately formal entry, honed concrete floors with solar hydronic heating, bespoke cabinetry, walls of windows to capture the leafy outlook, a dedicated media room, and five bedrooms.
Off the primary suite there is a large walk-in wardrobe, an ensuite with bidet and a private hot tub, plus the house has two more family-friendly bathrooms.
Additionally, the estate also has a three-bedroom caretaker’s cottage with its own swimming pool.
Famous for its legendary lush vistas, untouched rainforest and waterfalls, the Byron Hinterland is also known for picturesque sleepy villages such as Bangalow and eclectic fine dining options.
Federal is home to a small general store, the popular Doma Cafe, and is approximately a 25-minute drive from Byron Bay, 35 minutes to Ballina Airport and 50 minutes to Coolangatta International Airport.
Amileka in the Byron Bay hinterland is for sale with Sotheby’s International Realty via an expressions of interest campaign, closing on March 12, 5pm.
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