Revealed: Beach shack’s big glow up

With two kids under two and a reno underway, this couple’s coastal project came together just in time.

Rebecca and Mitchell Kekwick are taking their renovated beach shack to auction. Picture: Glenn Hampson

Its crisp apex roofline nods to the classic child’s drawing of a house – but this striking new home is anything but basic.

A builder couple’s reimagining of a tired Gold Coast shack, the property at 4 Alpha Ave, Currumbin is going under the hammer on June 14 with Coastal agents, Ed Cherry and Cooper McCormack.

Named Aeri, the home is the fourth local project from Mitchell and Rebecca Kekwick, and one of few new builds in a tightly held pocket close to the creek, schools and beach.

Before and after: 4 Alpha Ave, Currumbin

Its peaked roof and single-level layout are about all that remains from the original cottage, with the couple creating a four-bedroom floorplan around a landscaped internal courtyard.

“We had a decent settlement so we spent a lot of time planning. We wanted to keep the original apex shape as a bit of a homage to a home that you would draw as a kid — that being said, the existing apex was only 2.4m,” Ms Kekwick said.

Raked ceilings now soar to 5.3m, enhanced by skylights filling interiors with natural light.

Designed foremost as a functional family home for the Kekwicks and their two young children, the home’s clean lines and neutral palette are softened by warm timber finishes, walnut joinery, and creamy Italian marble.

The design combines coastal and modern farmhouse elements

The barbecue terrace and pool zone

Large sliders open onto a covered alfresco barbecue terrace and pool zone, while inside features include a designer kitchen with high-end appliances and a butler’s pantry, wet room-style bathroom, office space, and a media room.

Ms Kekwick, 31, was pregnant with her youngest when they took on the renovation, having spent more than a year scouting for the right site. Records show they paid $1.15m for the 569 sqm property in November 2023.

A former lawyer and self-described “Type A” personality, Ms Kekwick traded corporate life for full-time renovating — managing the design, schedules and selections while raising two children under two.

Large windows frame an internal courtyard with an olive tree as its centrepiece

Walnut cabinetry and Italian marble in the kitchen

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“We’d settled on our last house 10 days before I was due with our daughter who is now two, so we were navigating becoming parents for the first time,” Ms Kekwick said.

“We had previously renovated a few houses and I loved working with my husband, so I saw it as a bit of an out from a career I didn’t love.”

The couple pulled off their latest project just in time to move in together as a family of four – but not without overcoming a few major hurdles.

They were hit with a surprise $25,000 quote for asbestos removal partway through the build, and later told they could face a wait of up to three months to get power connected.

High raked ceilings crown the hallway

The home has four bedrooms

Freestanding bath in the wet room-style bathroom

Then came the challenge of bringing the house in line with recently tightened building codes, adding complexity and cost to the already ambitious project.

Now, Ms Kekwick is enjoying the days she has left in the property she describes as a “dream home”.

“The house is really unassuming from the street, but I think we have created a real wow factor with the ceiling height over the hallway,” she said.

“Nothing compares to someone coming into the house and saying, ‘oh my gosh, I wasn’t expecting that’.”

Currumbin’s median house price rose 9 per cent over the past year to $1.69 million, according to PropTrack.

Originally published as Revealed: Beach shack’s big glow up