Regional Australians turning to luxury custom home builds
Larger lot sizes with lower price tags are prompting more homebuyers than ever before to look to regional areas to custom build their dream home, according to Australia’s largest franchise builder.
With many regional Australian homebuyers able to purchase more land for less when compared to metro areas, G.J. Gardner Homes have noted more regional homebuyers are embracing custom builds, investing the money saved from the land purchase into the build.
G.J. Gardner Homes’ Wagga Wagga General Manager Darren O’Donnell said with more customers taking advantage of the larger lots available in Wagga Wagga to create their dream home, prompting the franchise to introduce its most luxurious display home yet – the Seacrest 331.

“The Seacrest 331 is a highly customised version of our standard design, bringing together our most popular customisation requests under one roof, including a wine cellar, cathedral ceilings, a mezzanine and a central courtyard,” Mr O’Donnell said.
“A lot of our buyers are looking to move away from the clean crisp bright Hamptons look, instead drawn to the barn style design trend which champions a darker colour palette, internal brickwork and the inclusion of recycled timbers.
“The style, colours and shapes are all outside of the norm for Wagga Wagga, but the customers are loving it and since opening the display home, we’ve seen more than 450 groups with numbers continuing to grow as word gets out.”

G.J. Gardner Homes CEO Trent Gardner said while the team was constantly watching for emerging trends, customer requests observed on the ground are always prioritised when creating base designs.
“Our top priority is choice - every family is different and it’s our belief that their homes should reflect this,” Mr Gardner said.
“We want our customers to shape their home around their lifestyle, with our base designs serving as a valuable starting point.

“Our latest design, now on display in Wagga Wagga perfectly showcases how we can modify a home based on a family’s preferences – whether it be adding a wine cellar they’ve always dreamed of, soaring cathedral ceilings or prioritising indoor-outdoor flow.”
The four-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom home spans 331 square metres, and the display home is open to visitors on Valencia Drive in Gobbagombalin, NSW.
New home designs by GJ Gardner Homes, VIC
iBuildNew Editorial Team
As the specialist voice of Australia’s largest new home building resource, the iBuildNew Editorial Team delivers deep-dive coverage into the house and land sector. From analysing new estate launches to highlighting the country’s leading home designs, we track the building journey to provide clarity for every buyer.
