Original subtitles

- From its barren beauty...

to lush landscapes,...

the Australian countryside is as beautiful as it is breathtaking.

Many Australians are discovering rural life and making the move.

So I'm on the hunt to help everyday Australians find their perfect country house.

Captions by Able.

Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air.

www.able.co.nz Copyright Able

- I am in beautiful Newcastle,

helping Deb and David return to the area that has always had a hook on their hearts.

- It's just a surprise, surprise, surprise. So every room is magical, really.

- You walk around the corner, and bang, water as far as you can see.

- We are going to explore three homes with each offering something quite different.

- I have been involved in some renovations in my life,

and so I can certainly appreciate the energy that's been put into it over the years.

- But will Deb and David find their dream home?

What do you think you'll do?

Stay with us to find out.

You will love today's couple, Deb and David.

Both of them grew up in Newcastle, moved away for various reasons,

and now for business and family, they are returning home.

Now, they absolutely love the water.

They're looking for a place that they can happily entertain,

and with a budget of $3 million and the weather behaving like this,

I think Newcastle is going to turn it on.

Newcastle is a town that Deb and David have long had a deep connection to.

So when it came to moving away from Sydney, this town was always calling their name.

- My father was on New South Wales Railways.

This is one of the areas where he used to work, controlling trains around Newcastle.

So to actually inside here is... Is quite something.

We grew up in a very similar area. We went to the same high school.

- We sort of knew of each other but we didn't know each other. - Yeah.

And as we traced back on history, there was a number of Sliding Doors moments

where at one stage we both lived in the same street. Never met.

We'd gone to the same school, yet we'd never met.

And then we met at...

High school reunion.

- I'm relieved to come back home so that I can be supportive to my family, my parents.

I wanna be here if― if and when they need me.

- I like sailing. Deb likes a beach, so being close to a beach would be good.

And that it'll be a place that... - That feels good. It feels like home.

We need to know that we feel the vibe. The vibe. Yeah.

- Newcastle is the largest coal-exporting harbour in the world,

but there is so much more to this city than just coal.

During WWII, Newcastle assisted Australia's war effort significantly,

being the industrial hub of the country.

But in 1942, in the early hours of the 8th of June, a Japanese submarine shelled Newcastle township.

Thankfully, no lives were lost.

Today, the city is seen as one of great opportunities ― there is so much optimism here.

I just know that Newcastle is the perfect fit for Deb and David to prosper in.

Welcome into the atrium. - Oh, wow. - It's quite beautiful.

- It's absolutely amazing. - And you haven't even seen what's on the other side of this house.

- Yeah, that atrium is quite something. And that glass that is pretty impressive.

- You've got the beach a few minutes down that way. You've got the lake out this side.

So are you ready to leave the big smoke and move to a smaller community like this?

- For me, the answer to that is yes. I've got a reason to move back

in terms of moving here to― for work and opening a new office.

- And you've got family already here as well?

- Yes, so I'm really happy to be returning so I can look after Mum.

- What's on your wish list? What are you looking for?

- To be near the beach would be wonderful. - OK.

- A house that has a room so that when our older children visit, there's somewhere for themto stay.

Or if we have guests from Sydney. - And for you?

- Yeah, water views would be good. - Oh, water views. Absolutely.

- OK. The houses that we are going to show you today will be completely different,

but this one, there's quite a few bedrooms, and I think you might like the view too.

Shall we take a look? - Absolutely. - All right. Let's go through.

I just wanted to quickly show you this room. It's sort of like a cosy snug.

It leads out on to a protected courtyard. Do you ever do meetings at home?

- Yeah, yeah. We often do meetings and calls. - Could that work?

- Absolutely. - What do you think?

I think it's amazing, all the wine in there. That'll be great.

- It'll be hard to keep him focused on the work, but it is amazing.

- What about this sort of long, narrow home?

- I think it feels too narrow for me.

We've come from a house that's a lot bigger, a lot wider, and so the neighbours are quite far away.

So this feels a little bit narrow. So I'm hoping that when we get...

- Come on through. Come on through.

So, this...

is what I was leading you to. - Oh, gosh. Look at it. It's stunning.

It's a surprise. A big surprise. - You walk around the corner, and bang, water as far as youcan see.

- What do you think? - That's a water view.

That is unbelievable. - Wow. It's incredible.

- Do you see yourself here in this beautiful, open living space?

- Yeah, this is a fabulous open space. It just flows outside,

and, yeah, that view is just amazing.

- We walked past a theatre room. We've got the snug. Haven't even shown you the bedrooms yet.

What do you think of this open space? Of the kitchen? Are you cool with that kind of cabinetry?

I think I'm accustomed to having a new kitchen.

I like to have the white, the fashionable white white. - Yes.

- I think we would love to entertain in this house.

If we did purchase this house, I couldn't wait to invite all our friends.

- I will send you upstairs. When you're ready, I'll meet you outside.

I want you to sit on the bed in the main bedroom and just think about waking up in that space, OK?

- Will you do me that favour? - Yes. - OK. Off you go.

- You're selling this hard. - And I'll meet you outside.

- That is just a remarkable view. You know, we talked about having water views,

and it's right around us. It's like we're already on a boat. - It is.

So where does the sun... - Sun rises over here in the east. - OK.

- Come around, and west is over there. So it's perfect. - And there's the marina.

So there's our boat that we're going to buy.

It's just a surprise, surprise, surprise. So every room is magical, really.

- I can certainly see us being here. So how much do you think this place is worth?

- Well, I guess we need to go and ask Catriona. Then we can really give it some true consideration.

- I just organised for the ducks to turn up.

Could you get used to that view? - Absolutely. I wouldn't get out of bed if I had that view.

- Yeah, I don't― I'm not sure we need to see more houses. That is really just...

- Really? But let's play the game right now. How much do you think this place is on the market for?

- Three and a half? - It is on the market at the moment for three and a half,

but I think they will accept something a little bit closer to 3.3.

- Three and a half might be... - We might have to figure that one out.

- That's way above what we were feeling comfortable with.

But as time goes on, less and less property for sale on the water.

- So it's just over your budget, but, I don't know, do you think it would be worth it?

- I think so. I think what it's worth will increase in value as the years progress.

- There's not many places that look like that.

- There's nothing really that I don't like about this house now.

Cos maybe it's above our budget.

- OK. A couple more places to show you. Keep your minds opened.

Next up, we tour this fully restored Federation-style home.

And later, we'll see this house, that is filled with warmth and character.

- I am in Newcastle with Deb and David, who are returning home.

The first house I showed them was a modern home right on the water which they absolutely adored.

But now for something different. Will this house be the one for them?

Now I've brought you somewhere that is totally different.

There are things that are on your wish list where I'm about to show you.

However, how do you feel about coming to a Federation home in a neighbourhood like this?

- It feels fabulous. - Does it?!

- Just green. It looks really, really good.

- I have been involved in some renovations in my life, and so I can certainly appreciate

how exquisite the house is, and the energy that's been put into it over the years.

- It is walk-in ready. It has a fresh renovation. Lockwood is in the beautiful Hamilton neighbourhood.

I think you were saying before it's the posh part of town.

- It's two minutes to the harbour, and it's close to the office. It's close to university forthe kids.

- So it's not far from the water. It just doesn't have the water view that we would perhaps have―

well, we've seen in the other house. - However, we do have beautiful parks,

and the house that I'm about to show you is over 100 years old. Wait until you see...

Let's go inside.

I just wanted to show you the master before we enter the rest of the home,

because at the front here, you can see this is where the history is.

This is where all these beautiful period pieces are. The beautiful plaster ceilings.

The tessellated tiles. Did you notice the tiles as we walked in?

- We could definitely live happily here.

- You'll love the fact that just in there is a very schmick walk-in wardrobe, en suite as well.

So there's four bedrooms in the house, but come and see where I think you'll do most of your entertaining.

What do you think of that kitchen? I think the fact that you are colour-coordinated is a good sign.

- Very lovely. - I think having that beautiful light come through,

you can keep an eye on your dogs, possibly your children,

and then of course this is your incredible entertaining space.

Really easy to keep clean. You have a beautiful beam.

That has actually been brought in from the waterfront, from down by the harbour,

and that kind of separates the old to the new.

Do you wanna check out what they've done into the roof? And when you're ready, I'll see you outside.

Don't peek too early.

- Oh, this is an escape, isn't it? For― - A teenager.

- For me, for you. A teenager. - It is. It is.

- This is close the beach. It's close to work. It's really close to the office.

- Close to the uni. - Close to the uni.

- See if we can have look at the pool area and see if that influences our decision.

- That's what you wanted to see. - I did. I'd love to have a pool.

- Something that might please you is the fact that it's self-cleaning. - Oh.

- I told you. - It's saltwater. The whole thing can be done from your phone.

- The pool is amazing. It also matches the kitchen in that it's new.

It looks fabulous for entertaining. - I also wanted to show you, though,

this granny flat that's been placed out the back.

- And I can see that it's set up as a gym, is it?

- Today it's set up as a gym. There is a bathroom there as well.

What do you think about coming out to this totally different mood out the back here?

- It's sensational. It's period house, period features, really tastefully redone.

- It's only just come on to the market. There is a huge amount of interest. So what do you think?

- It's gotta be... It's gotta be 3.6.

- It's actually just over your budget at the moment. It's about 3.3.

- I thought the price was pretty reasonable.

It's literally two minutes to the beach, close in to town for a four-bedroom house.

- All right. Are you ready to see house number three? - Absolutely.

- We're doing very well so far. Two out of two ain't bad.

Next, we visit Fort Scratchley to visit more about this historic city,

and then we will tour this recently renovated home that offers warmth and charm.

- Now, locals agree that the very best view of Newcastle is from Fort Scratchley,

which was originally a coastal defence fort and now functions as a museum.

I spoke with Carol, who provided some Newcastle backstory.

It's a bustling port here, all happening, honouring the foreshore down there.

- It is an incredible working port, and the second oldest city in the country,

and still a very busy working port, as you can see.

This city was a pivotal part of the WWII effort in protecting the steel industry.

This is one of only two locations in Australia that was shelled, and it landed just over there.

And our stories are everywhere around us in this city, you know?

This fort is a story. Our lighthouse is a story.

The coalmines under where we stand are a story. - Really?

And it is the story of mining, of course, that created this city.

So, you know, for history lovers, for storytellers, there's a wealth of riches.

- And go and have a dip while you're at it.

The family that we're working with today, they grew up here, they went away.

They're like most people. They're coming home. They wanna come back.

- But we are now offering in this city opportunities for younger people to have careers that,

you know, people like us, we had to go to Sydney or Melbourne for. - Mm.

- We don't have to do that now. You know, our kids are growing up here,

and they're only leaving if they want to, not because they have to,

because now the opportunities are created here.

The economy is supporting that. The innovation and the infrastructure around that is supporting it.

And I think it's amazing watching a new generation coming through going,

'I can be anything I want in this city.'

- Our final property is a recently renovated home with water views.

Will this one be the property that wins over Deb and David?

We're on a main road.

A main road with a great view.

So just bear with me, OK?

Where are we going to park?

- This is a brand-new home. It's almost like what your life is heading towards.

It's new. It's lock-up-and-go. I thought you might be intrigued

because the current owner is a former kitchen designer. - Wow.

- So... - Good thinking. - Yeah. Yeah.

OK. Apologies for the weather. It's closed in today, but that's fine.

Let's head inside and see what you think.

- Oh, wow. It's so impressive. Oh, my goodness. It's really amazing. Look at the light.

- I'm speechless. Speechless. - What can you hear? What can you hear?

- Nothing. - That's very surprising. So they're obviously double glazing?

- All double glazed. - See, there was the question, what will the road noise be like?

That's been looked after in the design.

- There's a beautiful courtyard out the back

which is a really lovely place to capture the sun in the morning and the afternoon.

And then, of course, everything is designed to look out on that lake. - Really impressive.

Like, this is most impressive kitchen we've seen so far.

- Can you tell that the owner was a former kitchen designer? It is schmick.

- It sure is. - Caesar stone. Blackbutt flooring.

We've got the pull-out pantry, double fridge.

- It has a sense of warmth. It feels like a home already.

I do feel like we would really fit well here. I could happily stay.

- The marina's right there. The views look great.

- I love it. I do love it.

And I have lived on a main road most of my adult life, so it's not really a problem.

- And the natural light in here is fabulous. - Is it your style?

- Yes, absolutely. It is. It is. - I could take this kitchen and put it in any house...

It's just spot-on. - It is very incredibly designed.

- Take a little look around. Master's down this way. - OK.

- Oh, look at that view. - Yeah, straight across the lake.

- Imagine waking up to that every morning. We would be so spoilt.

- It's brand-new. Everything is... Everything is done.

The kitchen, the bathrooms look fantastic.

You know, we've still got the view of the lake, trees, and surprisingly inside it's quietas.

- And it's similar to what we've come from.

What did you think? Am I way off the mark here,

showing you something that's quite different from the other two? - I think you're way on themark.

I actually like it. I like that it's a little bit more compact than the first one that you showed us.

I was considering a lot of cleaning in the first one, I'm imagining. - Water views. Quiet.

Design is just speechless. - It is. There's so much thought gone into this house.

- Considering your budget is three, you may like the fact that it's just hit the market for1.5.

- Oh, my gosh. - Wow.

- So I'm seeing European trips. I'm seeing loads of holidays. - Maybe less mortgage.

- A boat. Less mortgage. Exactly. - Sorry, forgot about that one.

- It's a lot of house for that price. - Mm.

Three totally different homes. Have a chat and when you're ready, let's come back together.

What do you think? - Perfect. - OK.

- I've given Deb and Dave a little time to think about the three properties on our house hunt.

So let's see if they have made their decision.

Did your dad used to actually work here? - Yeah, so in the signal box.

He used to operate the lines for the trains coming in out of the station.

- You've come back to Newcastle, and you're looking at $3 million homes.

Is that a little bit of a pinch-me moment? - Yeah, absolutely.

It's absolutely beautiful in this beautiful town.

- So I was really curious about the three houses,

because I felt that you saw the positives in all three of them.

- You've made it really, really tough. - Sorry.

- There were three places that were completely different and were all possibilities.

- And with the first place, the one with the multitude of bedrooms that was right on the water,

and then the third place that was the duplex,

they are representing two different stages of your life in a sense.

So, I suppose the question is, at the stage of life you're at now,

is there one of those that will stand out for you? What do you think you'll do?

- The third house is fabulous sometime in the future for us. - Yes.

- I really felt that. I think that― - House one is fabulous now. - Yeah.

We can't really deny that house one meets all of our needs for now and into the nearest future,

where maybe grandchildren can come visit. Maybe my parents might need― both parents, or ourparents

might need a place to stay at some point. - You've got the space.

- Cafes that are walking distance, and standing at the front door, you said, 'How quiet isthis?'

And you went, 'It really is.' And then that fabulous view.

- And the architect was a genius. I have to say that the house is just amazing.

It sings to you every step of the way along that corridor.

- You get to pick this glorious home. I wish you all the very best of luck with your family.

Thank you so much for joining us. It's been really lovely, hasn't it?

Deb and David made an offer on the house on the water,

and I am thrilled to say that they were able to secure their home of choice.

Congratulations to you both. We wish you the very best for you and your family.