Around the inner and middle suburbs, there are plenty of semi-detached houses, many in pairs, I’m guessing built around the 1920s and 30s. They look like a single big house if you don’t look too closely, but have two front doors and so on, and a thick dividing wall down the middle.
I actually tried to buy one in Koornang Road when I was house-hunting. I was outbid by a very determined party who owned the other half. I bailed out before my limit when I realised who they were. (The house I ended-up buying is probably a similar size, but in a different shape.)
In Dandenong Road next to Dan Murphy’s is the only one-of-a-pair I know of that’s actually been detached. At least, I assume that’s what happened — at some stage it’s been seperated from its twin. It looks really quite weird. The view from Google Streetview isn’t as good as the view from the train, but here it is anyway, because I don’t have a photo of my own to show you:
Now it’s for sale, and is asking an amazing $950,000. I guess given the location it’s intended for commercial re-development rather than for someone to live in it.
4 replies on “The half-house”
How bizarre looking!
I used to live just around the corner from there… must have driven past it hundreds of times… yet I’ve never noticed it… bizarre!
It looks like you can just see it in its original form in this aerial photo from 1945. I think it’s almost precisely midway between Tooronga Road and the next side street to the east.
Jeez – imagine coming home half cut one night and seeing this…. “Help, someone stole half of a house!!!”