Overcoming asbestos at Horrocks, Western Australia on Selling Houses Australia
Selling Houses Australia headed to Horrocks to rescue a homeowner who impulse bought a beachside shack without ever seeing it – and when he did, he realised it was a project larger than anticipated
Photography Selling Houses Australia/Lifestyle
Wendy Moore, interior designer and host on Selling Houses Australia at Horrocks, WA.
There are beach shacks… and then there was Clinton’s beach shack in Horrocks, Western Australia. When Andrew first hinted that this episode would be “compact,” I assumed he meant charming. Beachy. Maybe a little rough around the edges. What he actually meant was leaning, sinking, asbestos‑lined, and containing a bathroom so confronting even Dennis needed emotional support.
But here’s the thing: even the saddest shack on the West Coast deserves a great redemption arc — especially when the ocean is literally across the road. I knew that with the tiniest sliver of budget, a whole lot of creativity, and a pinch of retro ’50s optimism, we could turn Clinton’s impulse buy disaster into something buyers might actually want to spend a holiday in – or at least enter without tetanus concerns.
“When a house gives you asbestos walls and a lumpy floor, you lean into the chaos – and wallpaper over it!” ~ Interior designer Wendy Moore, Selling Houses Australia
The renovated kitchen at Horrocks on Selling Houses Australia is now pretty and functional.
Kitchen makeover in Horrocks: breathing life into a beach shack
The original kitchen was a hotbox with a personality crisis – half camping setup, half archaeology site. But surprisingly, the cabinetry bones weren’t a total lost cause. So instead of blowing the budget, I focussed on elevating what was already there.
We replaced all the door fronts with BonaLex Antique Satin thermolaminated doors in a soft creamy tone, perfectly matched to Taubmans Milk Cloud — all supplied by The Kitchen Door Company. For warmth and a retro surf‑shack nod, we added a timber benchtop from Bunnings, which instantly made the space feel handcrafted and intentional.
To finish the look, we added Kethy brass handles, mixing the HT013 and HT208 styles for subtle variety. It’s amazing what a bit of shine does – suddenly the kitchen felt less “camp stove on life support” and more coastal chic.
New floating floors throughout tied it all together, levelling out the tripping hazards.
Living room transformation, Selling Houses Horrocks
In a tiny home, the living room has to work hard – it’s the lounge room, dining room, reading nook, board game zone, and sometimes spare sleeping quarters. So it needed light, flow, and personality without clutter.
First stop: Taubmans Milk Cloud on the walls and Crisp White on trim. That immediately lifted decades of dinginess. The real star move? Wallpaper. A soft palm motif, inspired by classic ’50s holiday homes, covered the worst of the wall imperfections (particularly useful when your walls are asbestos – no drilling allowed).
Next came lighting. Beacon Lighting came to the rescue with airy Caspian LED pendants and woven rattan lamps that warmed the space and played beautifully with natural textures.
Then rugs (Hive White and Dune Rave from Flooring Xtra) helped zone the areas without closing them in. Add styling pieces with a relaxed, sandy palette and the room felt like it could finally take a deep breath.
Bathroom in Horrocks, Selling Houses: one cohesive space from three confusing ones
The bathroom/laundry/toilet situation was… interesting. A hallway masquerading as a shower, a toilet with commitment issues, and nowhere to wash your hands. With asbestos walls and a strict $25K overall budget, knocking walls down was off the table.
So we worked with what we had.
I transformed the old laundry into a new vanity zone, reusing the plumbing and adding a curved timber benchtop to avoid hip‑bruising in the tight space. A fresh mixer tap and tiled splashback unified the wet areas, while full‑height wall tiles across the entire bathroom brought cohesion where chaos once ruled.
My favourite quick fix? Timber shower mats. They hide an ugly shower base instantly and elevate (literally) the holiday‑shack vibe. It’s still compact, but now it feels thoughtful — not terrifying.
Bedrooms, Selling Houses Horrocks: retro flair meets coastal calm
Both bedrooms were previously furnished with, well, nothing. Storage was nonexistent, and the floors were an uneven mess.
Floating flooring throughout brought continuity. Then came the magic: wallpaper. In Bedroom 1, I used a soft botanical print across multiple walls for instant charm. In Bedroom 2, a single feature wall added just enough visual interest without overwhelming the compact room.
Fresh Taubmans Milk Cloud everywhere else kept things calm. New Beacon ceiling fans added breezy practicality, and the styling team created functional sleep zones with beds, coastal bedding, and simple timber pieces.
Dennis even built a DIY timber hanging rail so future guests could store their holiday clothes.
Outdoors at Horrocks: Tangerine dreams and a deck with a view
Now for the fun bit — the exterior. We wanted bold, we wanted retro, and we wanted buyers to stop in their tracks. Enter Orange Embers, a tangerine‑bright hue that channels ’50s surf nostalgia and Horrocks’ iconic sunsets. Framed with crisp white trims, the façade finally looked like the happy beach cabin it always wanted to be.
The biggest lifestyle upgrade? A raised deck — a simple DIY flat‑pack system that Dennis assembled, complete with adjustable feet. It created a whole new outdoor room with a perfect ocean outlook.
Then came lush, hardy planting: Eucalyptus grayi, Lamandra Seascape, and coastal‑tough natives chosen for wind and salt tolerance.
And the pièce de résistance — an outdoor shower. Perfect for rinsing off sandy feet before heading inside.
This was once a weathered beach shack façade with cracked cladding and overgrown greenery.
The sales history of Selling Houses Horrocks
Horrocks properties can fetch impressive prices thanks to the location’s charm and scarcity – even simple beach shacks often attract farmer families and holidaymakers. Clinton had previously knocked back an offer of $250K, but his shack stagnated on the market for 18 months, losing buyer interest.
Post‑renovation? Agent Trish confidently listed it for offers over $350,000, and at the very first open, buyers saw the charm, the colour and the lifestyle. The shack sold for $350,000, giving Clinton a real shot at financial recovery and a fresh start.
Who pays for the renovations on Selling Houses Australia?
As always, the Selling Houses Australia renovation is a team effort funded by the homeowners, our labour, and the goodwill of our partners.
