Undercover Architect

Helping homeowners get it right when designing, building or renovating their family home.

Financing Your New Build or Renovation | Amy Beattie, Good Green Home Loans

Financing your new build or renovation is an important step in bringing your future home dreams to reality.

So how much harder is it to finance your new build or renovation if your site is challenging? Or you’re building in a bushfire prone area? Or rebuilding after losing your home in a fire?

Amy is a Mortgage Broker and owner of Good Green Home Loans, a mortgage broking business that puts sustainability at the forefront of its lending decisions.

This is Part 1 of my conversation with Amy about what you need to know when financing your new build or renovation.

Good Green Home Loans is not your typical mortgage broking service.

Good Green Home Loans is here to help you find the right home loan at a great rate – using only environmentally responsible lenders who aren’t using their profit and power to support the fossil fuel industry.

Amy Beattie is a mortgage broker. However, she’s not like most mortgage brokers I know. And when I first heard about her business, Good Green Home Loans, I was so excited that it not only existed, but that it was being driven by someone with such purpose and commitment to their mission, they were willing to build a business on it.

It was during Amy’s career spanning over 15 years in one of Australia’s big banks that the idea for Good Green Home Loans came about.

Amy had always thrived on the happiness she’d feel helping people achieve their financial goals. But she wanted to do more! 

Amy wanted her workplace to have genuine purpose, for her days to be filled with meaningful connections and to leave work each day feeling proud and smiling.

As the years went by she began to doubt if the financial services industry would satisfy her desire to have a positive impact on the world. 

However, as she researched other avenues, and learnt more about her own choices and their impact on climate change, waste reduction, and improving the environment … she discovered that the financial services industry remains a significant supporter and enabler of the production of fossil fuels, the number one source of human produced carbon emissions responsible for global warming.

In this episode, I ask Amy questions such as:

  • Do you find that by only offering home loans with lenders who don’t support the fossil fuel industry, it’s difficult to be competitive with the option you present to your clients, that they’re limited then in what they can choose from?
  • How do you see people’s access to finance being impacted when financing riskier properties, or projects in certain areas that are bushfire prone?
  • Are there specifics to know when it comes to financing bushfire prone properties, such as BAL ratings, or how much deposit you’ll need? 
  • When looking at construction loans for new homes or renovations, what things do people need to consider with financing?
Amy Beattie, Good Green Home Loans

Amy believes that Australia’s largest corporations have a responsibility to be leaders when it comes to protecting the environment. 

With their continued investment in the fossil fuel industry they aren’t there yet. 

The greatest way we can encourage change is by moving our valuable business elsewhere. 

This is where Good Green Home Loans can help.

When you’re about to set up a potentially decades-long relationship with a lender for one of the biggest investments in your life, Amy helps you not only achieve a great outcome for your mortgage, but vote with your dollar for a future that improves the environment, reduces your carbon footprint, and she also makes a donation on your behalf to a charity or not-for-profit organisation helping the environment as well.

So, let’s hear more from Amy Beattie.

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE NOW.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:

Good Green Home Loans
Website >> https://www.goodgreenhomeloans.com.au/
Instagram >> https://www.instagram.com/goodgreenhomeloans/

Learn more about Passivhaus design and construct, and how you can have bushfire homes that are sustainable and affordable.

Andy Marlow and Dick Clarke, from Envirotecture, share more.

Envirotecture are specialists in sustainable design, Passivhaus design and construct, and creating fantastic solutions for all types of homes, including bushfire homes.

This episode is Part 2 of my conversation with Andy Marlow and Dick Clarke from Envirotecture. You can listen to Part 1 here.

In this episode, we’re talking about Passive House, and specifically discussing the opportunity it provides to protect your indoor air quality.

The bushfires and smoke pollution that many areas in Australia suffered from really tested the air filtration capacity of the Passive House system.

We’ll also be talking about the active systems you can use to create better fire protection for your home.

And we’ll be talking about Andy and Dick’s other business, Passive House Design and Construct, and what it offers for those wanting to manage budget and sustainability whilst creating a passive house certified home.

In this episode, I ask Andy and Dick questions such as:

  • How Passive House offers opportunities for protection of indoor air quality and what your thoughts are generally on this around your projects.
  • Where do you suggest people start in their rebuilding efforts in assessing what their next steps are?
  • And the strategies that they use to think about what they’re going to build back?
  • For those wanting to rebuild as Passivhaus, how would you recommend that they start that process and that journey so that they’re making the right choices from the get go?
  • How do you see Passivhaus Design and Construct helping people?
  • And what are your goals and your objectives for that business overall in terms of how you see it working to help homeowners all over Australia?

At Envirotecture they will help you create the family home you have always envisioned. A home that works well, feels good, is kind to the environment, culturally appropriate and reduces energy and running costs.

Envirotecture regularly collaborates with different kinds of builders to achieve good results on restricted budgets.

Andy and Dick are both Directors of Envirotecture, which is based in Sydney, NSW.

Dick Clarke, Envirotecture

Dick Clarke is principal of Envirotecture, is an Accredited Building Designer with over 35 years experience, focusing exclusively on ecologically sustainable and culturally appropriate buildings, as well as sustainable design in vehicles and vessels, and has received many Design Awards.

Dick has a plethora of accolades and roles he has contributed in the industry over his career. He has been design director of many hundreds of projects over 35 years, with sustainability as the major driver over that whole period (with the ever-changing understanding of what sustainability is).

He is often called on for expert comment on sustainable design and, due to his experience as a rural firefighter, bushfire resilient design as well.

Andy Marlow, Envirotecture

Andy Marlow is a Director at Envirotecture, holds both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Architecture, is a certified Passive House Designer and has extensive experience in sustainable design at a variety of scales.

Andy is currently a Board Member of the Australian Passive House Association, and he speaks regularly at conferences and events.

Passivhaus Design and Construct Team

And recently, they started a new business, Passivhaus Design and Construct.

Frustrated by the big challenge many experience in their new home journey – that is, creating a sustainably designed home that can be delivered on budget, they decided to marry together the design and construction in a total delivery model.

Currently NSW based, with plans to extend over Australia, Passivhaus Design and Construct delivers complete quality, cost effective design and build solutions. They design healthy, comfortable homes built to work efficiently from the day you move in and for decades into the future.

You’ll enjoy cost certainty, quality design, an excellent build and a certified passive house… because it’s their passion to make homes that are better for everyone.

So, let’s hear more from Andy Marlow and Dick Clarke now.

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE NOW. AND CATCH UP ON PART 1 HERE.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:

Envirotecture
https://www.envirotecture.com.au/

Passivhaus Design and Construct
https://passivhausdc.com.au/

Articles researched and mentioned in the interview
Window of opportunity: Costing the benefits of bushfire design
Bushfires and how to negate them
On the drawing board: Analysis of a bushfire loss
Hempcrete House 2 – Mudgee
Bushfires: Canberra smoke blamed for 31 deaths this summer

Houses of the Future
See all the house types here >>> https://architectureau.com/articles/housing-the-future/
The Cardboard House >>> http://www.peterstutchbury.com.au/cardboard-house.html

How do you design affordable, sustainable homes that are also bushfire resistant? Andy Marlow and Dick Clarke from Envirotecture tell us.

Balancing affordability and sustainability can be challenging when building and renovating.

Add in bushfire resistance, and it can be extra tricky.

Both Andy and Dick have such great knowledge to share, and I’m really looking forward to sharing their wisdom with you.

This episode is Part 1 of my conversation with Andy Marlow and Dick Clarke from Envirotecture.

This conversation is packed full of fantastic advice and insights into how you design a home that is affordable and sustainable, and what to do if it also needs to be bushfire resistant as well.

In this episode, I ask Andy and Dick questions such as:

  • How do you balance sustainability and affordability? And then also the incorporation of Passivhaus into that process as well, in terms of working on your projects and working with your clients?
  • How are you helping your clients and their budgets to get this affordability, sustainability and bushfire resistance in their projects?
  • How does the building form help with sustainability and bushfire resistance?
  • How they approached the design of a bushfire resistant home, and the use of hempcrete as a building material.
  • Whether creating homes that are lower cost and more ‘disposable’ is a better solution in bushfire prone areas.

At Envirotecture they will help you create the family home you have always envisioned. A home that works well, feels good, is kind to the environment, culturally appropriate and reduces energy and running costs. 

Andy and Dick are both Directors of Envirotecture, which is based in Sydney, NSW.

Dick Clarke, Envirotecture

Dick Clarke is principal of Envirotecture, is an Accredited Building Designer with over 35 years experience, focusing exclusively on ecologically sustainable and culturally appropriate buildings, as well as sustainable design in vehicles and vessels, and has received many Design Awards.

He holds a Master of Sustainable Futures degree (by research at the Institute for Sustainable Futures, UTS), on the topic of the effect of state and local planning instruments on the sustainability of the built environment.

He is Director of Sustainability, and Past President of the NSW Chapter of Building Designers Australia (BDA). He is a Past President and Board Member of the Association of Building Sustainability Assessors (ABSA).

Dick has a plethora of other accolades and roles he has contributed in the industry over his career. He has been design director of many hundreds of projects over 35 years, with sustainability as the major driver over that whole period (with the ever-changing understanding of what sustainability is). He is often called on for expert comment on sustainable design and, due to his experience as a rural firefighter, bushfire resilient design as well.

Andy Marlow, Envirotecture

Andy Marlow is a Director at Envirotecture, holds both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Architecture, is a certified Passive House Designer and has extensive experience in sustainable design at a variety of scales.

Andy is driven by a desire for all people to live, work and play in buildings that make them happier. He believes that good design should be accessible to and benefit all, not just those who commission it.

Andy is currently a Board Member of the Australian Passive House Association. He speaks regularly at conferences and events on sustainability issues; design principles, materials specification, community engagement and the future of our cities including the national conferences of both the Planning Institute of Australia and the Green Building Council of Australia.

Mudgee Hempcrete House by Envirotecture

And recently, they started a new business, Passivhaus Design and Construct. 

Frustrated by the big challenge many experience in their new home journey – that is, creating a sustainably designed home that can be delivered on budget, they decided to marry together the design and construction in a total delivery model. 

Currently NSW based, with plans to extend over Australia, Passivhaus Design and Construct delivers complete quality, cost effective design and build solutions. They design healthy, comfortable homes built to work efficiently from the day you move in and for decades into the future. 

You’ll enjoy cost certainty, quality design, an excellent build and a certified passive house… because it’s their passion to make homes that are better for everyone.

So, let’s hear more from Andy Marlow and Dick Clarke now.

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE NOW.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:

Envirotecture
https://www.envirotecture.com.au/

Passivhaus Design and Construct
https://passivhausdc.com.au/

Articles researched and mentioned in the interview
Window of opportunity: Costing the benefits of bushfire design
Bushfires and how to negate them
On the drawing board: Analysis of a bushfire loss
Hempcrete House 2 – Mudgee
Bushfires: Canberra smoke blamed for 31 deaths this summer

Houses of the Future
See all the house types here >>> https://architectureau.com/articles/housing-the-future/
The Cardboard House >>> http://www.peterstutchbury.com.au/cardboard-house.html

What’s possible when working on your bushfire home design and other options available for making your community more bushfire resistant?

If you’re wanting tips for your bushfire home design, or you’re exploring other options to make your community more bushfire resistant, you’ll find this conversation really helpful.

This episode is Part 2 of my conversation with architect, Julie Firkin.

If you haven’t listened to Part 1 of our conversation, head there now.

In this episode, we’re talking about Bushfire Community Centres, working with architects in the recovery efforts, and what it means to help someone after such a traumatic event.

In this episode, I ask Julie questions such as:

  • Why do you see Bushfire Refuge Centres as a potential idea for communities that are regularly impacted by bushfires, and what are the main considerations for this as an approach?

  • Can you tell us more about the process of working with architectural students on a Bushfire Refuge Centre design studio?

  • What did you learn about bushfire design from your work with design students and testing ideas this way?

  • What are your design tips for building a bushfire resistant home?

  • How do you suggest architects work best with people after a traumatic experience such as these recent bushfires?

For over 10 years, Julie Firkin Architects has been bringing creativity and problem-solving prowess to projects big and small in and around Melbourne.

An award-winning firm, headed up by architect Julie Firkin, they pride themselves on a personal and people-focussed approach to architecture. Julie has a hands-on approach to all projects and designs by visualising herself in the space which helps to create homes that are a joy to live in and spaces that are both practical and beautiful.

Julie studied and practiced internationally and worked for several years at renowned practices. She brings this breadth of experience to her private practice, weaving a local approach and an international perspective into everything she does.

While Julie Firkin Architects has the skills and expertise to deliver a range of projects, from residential to commercial, small to large, Julie has a personal interest in both sustainable and bushfire-resistant design. 

Julie Firkin, Julie Firkin Architects

Her design for a bushfire-resistant house was featured by the Bushfire Homes Service following the Black Saturday Bushfires in 2009 and Julie has also taught extensively on the subject.

In the article from MARK Magazine I mentioned in our previous episode, in Julie’s interview with Marg Hearn, Julie said this:

“I’m always interested in innovation and in new solutions, as opposed to architects who find a groove and do what they do well all of the time. It was obvious from media reports that people in bushfire-affected areas had a lack of community refuges to go to. 

In speaking to the CSIRO, I discovered that providing official community refuges is a contentious undertaking, because authorities generally encourage people in high-risk areas to evacuate, and with a refuge to go to, they might decide to stay. Nevertheless, new codes and standards for community bushfire refuges are being developed. 

Following the fires, some 52 locations were identified by the state premier and the chief officer of the CFA [Country Fire Authority] as being at the highest risk for bushfire. These locations became candidates for the development of New Township Protection Plans. 

In setting up the design studio, I selected Forrest, a beautiful hamlet in the Otway hinterlands, as the working site. 

Each student was asked to design a unique concept that would serve as a community refuge during fire season and a public amenity at other times. They explored the broadest possible variety of building types – town halls, schools, visitors centres – and, as part of the process, sat in on a town meeting and sought input from a local council. 

Should the opportunity arise for that township to gain a refuge, both council and community will have access to 15 design concepts as a source of inspiration for further discussion.” 

I wanted to hear more about how Julie had worked with students in exploring what Bushfire Community Centres could offer as a strategy for building more resilient and defendable communities in the event of a bushfire. 

And I was also super keen, given Julie’s experience in New York after 9/11 and in the 2009 Black Saturday fires recovery, to hear her views on how she saw architects could work with people recovering from such a traumatic event. 

So, let’s hear more from Julie Firkin now.

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE NOW.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:

Julie Firkin Architects
https://www.j-f-a.com.au/

Article quoted from MARK Magazine
MARK MAGAZINE Article >>> “BLACK SATURDAY: 5 YEARS LATER” The Bushfire Homes Scheme

What can the past tell us about bushfire home design and getting help with your design?

The Bushfire Homes Service was created in response to the 2009 Black Saturday fires in Victoria, to help those needing to rebuild, and give access to free home designs.

This episode is Part 1 of my conversation with Julie Firkin, from Julie Firkin Architects.

In this episode, I’ll be talking about what’s been done in the past to help homeowners with the design of their homes when rebuilding after bushfire.

I’ll also be sharing some specific resources you can access if you need design help with your rebuild.

And I’ll be introducing architect Julie Firkin to you. She’ll be sharing some insights about bushfire home design, and her involvement in a scheme established by the Victorian Government after the Black Saturday fires in 2009.

In this episode, I ask Julie questions such as:

  • How did you go about creating a design for an imaginary client and imaginary site, whilst tackling the newly released BAL requirements at that time?

  • What drove your design ideas?

  • Knowing more now about bushfire resilient design and building, what would you do differently with that design and its materials?

Julie Firkin, Julie Firkin Architects

For over 10 years, Julie Firkin Architects has been bringing creativity and problem-solving prowess to projects big and small in and around Melbourne.

An award-winning firm, headed up by architect Julie Firkin, they pride themselves on a personal and people-focussed approach to architecture. Julie has a hands-on approach to all projects and designs by visualising herself in the space which helps to create homes that are a joy to live in and spaces that are both practical and beautiful.

Julie studied and practiced internationally and worked for several years at renowned practices. She brings this breadth of experience to her private practice, weaving a local approach and an international perspective into everything she does.

While Julie Firkin Architects has the skills and expertise to deliver a range of projects, from residential to commercial, small to large, Julie has a personal interest in both sustainable and bushfire-resistant design.

Her design for a bushfire-resistant house was featured by the Bushfire Homes Service following the Black Saturday Bushfires in 2009 and Julie has also taught extensively on the subject.

In this episode, I wanted to take a little time to talk about a scheme that was launched by the Victorian government after the Black Saturday fires of 2009.

It was called the Bushfire Homes Service. I’ll be sharing some information on what it involved, and also introducing architect Julie Firkin to you, who will tell us about her involvement, and the house she designed for it.

UndercoverArchitect-JulieFirkin_FloorPlan1

And I’ll also be talking about what’s been done in the design industry to provide support and help to those impacted by the 2019 / 2020 fires, and where you can go for help with your home design and build right now.

The day known as Black Saturday, is when, on 7 February, 2009, fires moved rapidly through Victoria and destroyed 2029 homes, and 173 people tragically lost their lives.

At the time, many parts of the building and design industry rallied together to offer help, and the Victorian Building Commission organised a series of “Built Environment Bushfire Support Roundables” where various organisations from the industry, including the Australian Institute of Architects, got together to discuss what services were needed and what could be offered by those in the industry.

And at the same time, the new bushfire construction standards that had been in the works for some time, were being accelerated to set the requirements for what rebuilds would need to adhere to, in order to be more bushfire resistant.

From those meetings, and the fact that many architects were offering their services pro bono to those who had lost their home, the Victorian Government Architect established the Bushfire Homes Scheme.

In the Bushfire Homes Service, architects were called to create an affordable design for a family home that met the (at that time) brand new BAL40 requirements, and prepare 4 x A3 pages documenting the house.

Eighteen home designs were chosen, costing reports were created by quantity surveyors, and these designs were made freely available to those rebuilding in affected locations.

The Bushfire Homes Service included some fantastic homes, and some big names in the Australian residential design industry. Renowned, award-winning architects like BVN Donovan Hill, Clare Cousins and John Wardle to name a few.

So, let’s hear more from Julie Firkin now.

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE NOW.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS PODCAST:

Julie Firkin Architects
https://www.j-f-a.com.au/

Articles on the Bushfire Homes Scheme
Bushfire-proof houses are affordable and look good – so why aren’t we building more? >>> The Guardian
Bushfire Pro Bono >>> IndesignLive
MARK MAGAZINE Article >>> “BLACK SATURDAY: 5 YEARS LATER” The Bushfire Homes Scheme

Architects Assist
Website >>> http://architectsassist.com.au/
Instagram >>> https://www.instagram.com/architectsassist/

Design Donated
https://www.designdonated.com/

Fire Relief Run + Shed Life
Website >>> http://www.shedlife.com.au/
Instagram >>> https://www.instagram.com/yourshedlife/

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