22 June 2018
Australians pave way for mancave trend with supersized sheds
A dramatic change in Australia’s suburban form has seen an increase in the sale of large land lots to keep the man cave dream alive.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, in 1993-94 the average home site area of new houses was 802sqm.
In the 2017 UDIA State of the Land Report, this figure has since halved with the national median lot size fixed at 407sqm.
QM Properties General Sales Manager Damien Ross said many tradies are beginning to purchase their own outer-city mancaves to keep expensive equipment and machinery safe.
“Up until the last few decades, nearly all suburban properties in Australia had large backyards and by world standards we still do,” said Mr Ross.
“What we’re seeing now though is that the average backyard across Australia is dramatically shrinking.”
“For professional tradesmen, who often require large shed space, this has created a big issue. If their equipment is damaged or stolen, it can cost them work or even their business,” said Mr Ross.
“Rather than cluttering the family home or risk storing equipment in the back of the ute parked on the street many are choosing to purchase larger blocks and build custom-made sheds.”
In addition to this, the number of passenger vehicles in Australia has reportedly increased by 43 percent since the turn of the century while the human population only increased by 27 per cent, creating an increasing and real need for vehicle storage.
Mark Patton from DJ Homes agreed storage had moved up higher on the list of ‘must haves’ for prospective buyers.
“Increasingly, we are seeing sheds the size of 100sqm being built on large-scale properties,” said Mr Patton.
“Just the other day I was looking at a popular display home which featured a five-bay shed on 2000sqm block of land.”
“As most families now have two or more cars, and some hobby machinery, investing in large space with extra undercover garaging can add considerable value to properties.”
QM Properties is currently offering large land lots of up over 2000sqm at their River Oaks estate in Logan Village.
House and land packages start from $546,000.
