Two Units in Under 11 Months: A Blackburn Dual Occupancy (Surrey Rd)
Umesh had bought the Surrey Road property as an investment years before he reached out to us. On the block stood an old home that had had its day. His plan was to knock it down and replace it with two architecturally designed units, built to sell.
For a developer, the numbers only work if the build does: on time, on budget, and finished to a standard buyers will pay for. That was the brief.
Building on a main road
Surrey Road is a busy main road, and that brought challenges from day one. Parking was scarce, traffic was constant, and tight site access made every delivery a logistics exercise.
None of it was solved on the fly. We planned how the site would run before work started, with dedicated traffic management and careful staging of machinery and deliveries, so the build kept moving safely without disrupting the road or the neighbours.
Two homes, not a copy-paste
Both units share the same well-thought-out layout, designed for how families actually live. Downstairs, open-plan living flows through the kitchen, dining and living areas, and the master suite has a walk-in robe and ensuite. Upstairs, a retreat sits alongside three bedrooms and two bathrooms, giving each home ample space.
The two units are deliberately different from the street. Unit 1 has a cantilevered front entry. Unit 2 is anchored inside by a 1,200 mm-wide staircase stained in Vic Ash. Powder-coated exposed steel beams run through the alfresco areas, and the mix of external materials gives both homes real street presence rather than a repeated, matching façade.
Materials and finishes
Outside, we finished the ground floor in textured Hebel render and clad the upper level in James Hardie Axon cladding, and each home has its own garage.
Inside, each unit was finished to a standard that sells:
Calacatta stone benchtops in both kitchens
Blackbutt timber flooring throughout both ground floors
Floor-to-ceiling tiles in every bathroom
A feature Vic Ash staircase
Built in under 11 months
The whole project, from demolition to handover, was completed in under 11 months, Christmas shutdown included. Weekly in-house meetings kept every milestone on track without rushing any trade.
Every finish and material was mapped out from the start. That's what made a fixed contract possible on a project this complex, and it gave Umesh certainty on his costs from day one.
The result
Two quality homes delivered well within the programme, and both units sold. For a developer, that's the outcome that matters most.
Hear from Umesh in his own words.
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