If you love your existing home we'll help you make the most of it while avoiding the cost of moving. We live here, work here and have done so for years. We design, renovate and extend homes to deliver beautiful, functional results that complement our clients' lifestyles and budgets. Whether you're renovating, extending or building a new family home we'll make the process feel effortless and the results warm, welcoming and elegantly simple.
We've worked with our builders for years because they solve problems rather than make them. You can also choose your own builder. If you want to save your time and your sanity, leave the project management to us. We deal with consultants and tradespeople every day so we know how to keep things running smoothly.
For decades, my focus has been purely on family homes as I wanted my design work to have a positive impact on how families live in their own homes. My foundational experience in commercial design and architecture has given me strong principles and craftsmanship in design.
We've worked with our builders for years because they solve problems rather than make them. You can also choose your own builder. If you want to save your time and your sanity, leave the project management to us. We deal with consultants and tradespeople every day so we know how to keep things running smoothly.
For decades, my focus has been purely on family homes as I wanted my design work to have a positive impact on how families live in their own homes. My foundational experience in commercial design and architecture has given me strong principles and craftsmanship in design.
Services
My first employer was a renowned Danish architect, a truly inspiring mentor, from whom I learnt the importance of excellence in design and interpersonal skills. Since the late 1990s, my focus has been purely on family homes as my ambition is to have a positive impact on how families live in their own homes.
If you love your home and it's in a great location for schools, transport, work and friends, then renovating it is probably a smart, cost-effective solution. Conversely, if your home's not great but the location is, you might want to start again. If so, see our "New Homes" section. By sitting down together we'll be able to ensure that all your needs - even the ones you may not have thought of - are taken into account.
On Sydney's North Shore, many older homes are exceptionally well built but relatively small compared to their land. This characteristic makes them ideal for enhancing and enlarging rather than replacing. Therefore, extending your existing home can be a smart and economical way to create more space for the whole family.
Sam's foot was in severe agony after stepping on yet another piece of Lego while carrying a bowl of soup to the dining table. Meanwhile Jessie was trying to complete her homework in the living room to the sounds of her brother practising his trumpet. They had been arguing over whose tasks took priority for the past hour.
Reviews (10)
Ranil Perera
May 19, 2021
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We met Martin soon after purchasing a new property and we were quite uncertain whether to go ahead with some home modifications or not . He patiently listened to our ideas regarding what we want to do versus what is needed while carefully exploring the property. He managed to put our minds at ease by helping us to set priorities and being realistic about what we need to do with our house .My wife and I were both impressed by his honest and professional opinion on the matter. I think he saved us from getting into something we would have regretted, had we started off without a consultation with him
Maryam Kolahdouzan
Mar 09, 2021
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David Hewitt
Dec 16, 2020
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Martin was a pleasure to work with, bring professionalism, great ideas and an awareness of every fine detail throughout the design process. He was able to help us achieve our current goals for extension of our home, but also ensure this worked with a longer-term plan for our future wish list of changes.
We are incredibly happy with the result and are enjoying the space, light, and practicality it has brought to our home.
It's clear in hindsight that without Martin's expert knowledge we would almost certainly have made mistakes with the first extension stage that would have proved costly in the
We are incredibly happy with the result and are enjoying the space, light, and practicality it has brought to our home.
It's clear in hindsight that without Martin's expert knowledge we would almost certainly have made mistakes with the first extension stage that would have proved costly in the
Harriet Pearson
Dec 15, 2020
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We highly recommend Martin - he literally made our dreams come true! He took our very woolly ideas, our outdated floor plan and our bushfire rated house and came up with some interesting design options which met all our criteria. He guided us through the entire process with grace and good humour and his technical expertise ensured that our plans were approved by council without a hitch.
Sharen Downey
Nov 12, 2020
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We had an excellent experience working with Martin on the renovation of our home. He was very accepting of our vision to create an "echo of deco" look for our very dated and dark home. He was enthusiastic about the challenge and met our brief with some wonderful ideas to make an open plan, bright and individual looking house. Thank you Martin and your team, we are delighted with our finished product.
David Nevell
Dec 04, 2019
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I have no hesitation in recommending Martin Kolarik. Martin came to my house and after a discussion about what I was looking for he came up with a number of different options or concept plans. Martin understands the processes involved in getting plans approved by council and he is reliable with respect to estimating the time frame of the steps over which he has some control. We are very happy with our new home which is a vast improvement on the dysfunctional floor plan I had lived with for years.
Peter N.
Nov 01, 2019
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I cannot recommend Martin high enough, based on his professionalism, his technical knowledge and skill and the ability to manage a project from start to finish, without us having to worry about anything other than colours etc. We have had several engagements over the past 18 or so years and would not embark on a project without consulting him as a first step.
Oh, and he also possesses that enviable quality of carefully managing a guy who kept saying: I can do a lot myself. . . . He is the ultimate gentleman and we regard the cost of engaging him as an investment, not a burden.
Dolien and Peter
Oh, and he also possesses that enviable quality of carefully managing a guy who kept saying: I can do a lot myself. . . . He is the ultimate gentleman and we regard the cost of engaging him as an investment, not a burden.
Dolien and Peter
Sonya Choi La Rosa
Jun 09, 2018
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Miriam Lees
Dec 04, 2014
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We we introduced to Martin through a friend who had used him to 'fix' the issues caused by another designers poor work on their renovation. Based on this recommendation, we used Martin's services to design an extension to a 1940's fibro house. We wanted the design to look like it 'had always been there' and to maintain the original feel and features of the house. We are very happy that Martin's design managed to do both of these things while creating a modern, usable space for our family. The end result is exactly what I imagined from Martin's drawings. Martin was always available for consultations
Thomas Brand
Aug 27, 2013
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Martin is an exemplary home designer. He takes great care with his advice and really listens to his clients needs. He advises how to save money and how to prevent over-investment, We arrived at a design that not only suited our budget but also got approved by the council (we're in a bush-fire prone area) with minimum difficulty. What astounded me is how great the result looks - and when it was all paid for we were exactly in budget!
