13 reasons why you should buy our mum and dad’s house on Surveyor Street right now
It’s official. The Winchester family mansion goes to auction on Thursday 10 October 2024. Here’s why you should buy it.
It’s the childhood home of our esteemed Mayor.
This, my friends, is a home of cultural significance. Number 65 Surveyor Street was once home to the second Mayor of Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council, Mr Kenrick Winchester (aka the most annoying little brother God ever gifted the world). Kenrick slept in the middle bedroom between walls lined with Foo Fighters and Anna Kournikova posters in the early 2000s. Historically. Significant.
Raider Nick is your next door neighbour.
It’s literally Celebrityville living on Surveyor Street. Right next door is Nick Risteski aka radio host, sports commentator and podcaster Raider Nick, who you can sometimes hear pumping out a bit of Red Hot Chilli Peppers on his guitar late at night. You can get all the goss on what he’s playing on MIX106 that day across the driveway on your way to work.
The Queanbeyan High oval views.
What’s more relaxing than sipping your morning coffee overlooking the Queanbeyan High School oval? I’ll tell you what: nothing.
You can use the backyard for weddings, parties, anything.
I know this first-hand. Because I married my bogan-boyfriend-from-Campbelltown Mark Element there in 2017. With 160 guests, the massive 688sqm block was bursting over every fence but the way it was lit with fairy lights, and dotted with wine barrel tables and hay bales was rustic and gorgeous. And it cost around a third of the price of a venue wedding.
Walk to the bottom of the street for events at town park.
The Multicultural Festival, Carols in the Park, the markets, your cousin’s Year 12 formal photos – it’s all within minutes of this home. (The walk back up the hill afterward though? Good luck with that.)
It comes with its own parking lot.
This house has so many car spots it could be sponsored by Russell Automotive. 65 Surveyor Street has parking for four cars in the garage and an extra six in the driveway. That’s 10 – 10! – vehicles your car-enthusiast husband can keep onsite while he does them up.
You can hear the bell ring at Queanbeyan High.
Have a teenager who loves a sleep in? With this superbly located home, the sound of the bell going off at 8.50am can be their wake up call. Providing just enough time to throw on some pants and a shirt, grab a backpack and hit the side gate of QHS by 8.55am. We know this first-hand because our youngest brother Blaine, who’s eternally late and could sleep a full night on a staircase, used to do exactly this.
(Although I hear it’s no longer a bell; like they play actual music?)
Covered parking for boats.
Store your new boat or caravan safely under the 2.8m high carport.
As many lemons and zucchinis as you can handle.
Our Macedonian neighbours – the Risteskis – have a bountiful garden and are generous with the fruits of their labour. Think fresh lemons on tap, and the occasional zucchini or lettuce making its way to your front porch while you’re at work. Super sweet.
Fenced pool area (that comes with an above ground pool).
There’s a paved and fully fenced area at the end of the carport that’s just so versatile. For example, we took the fences down and used it as the dance floor for my wedding. In summer, it’s home to endless rounds of Marco Polo as the grandkids splash around in the above-ground pool. You could use it as a quarter basketball court, to house the excavator or a truck, or lock the kids in! The options are endless.
The downstairs retreat.
Built as a fifth bedroom and downstairs retreat for my spoiled younger sister Holly in about 2001, the ground floor of 65 Surveyor Street is perfect for multigenerational living with a huge lounge room and a purpose-built powder room. Also perfect as a man cave or pool room, or a craft room for mum.
50sqm of under-house storage.
A huge amount of space for storing everything you’ve collected from previous houses, especially stuff that belongs to your adult children that they refuse to take to their own houses. Just ask our parents.
It has love at its heart.
This is the hardest part to write and the bit I struggle with the most. The Winchester family home was built by our grandfather Ken ‘Ragged’ Winchester in the mid-1980s and for a long time was Nan and Pop’s place: with pop’s bone-coloured VL Commodore parked proudly in the driveway, a fancy doorbell and an ensuite (!)
As kids, we’d go there for dinner in our pyjamas and dressing gowns. After dinner, we’d eat Neapolitan ice cream out of coffee mugs (family tradition) while pop watched Sale of the Century. He had a VHS player with a remote attached by cord. It was the best. Nan and pop sold the house to my parents in 1999.
We’ve had close to 40 Christmas mornings in the lounge room, countless 21sts, 30ths, 40ths and 18ths in the garage, concerts for our favourite aunts and uncles and even a ‘Queanbeyan’s Got Talent’ quest here. It’s a very special house and we can’t wait to hand it over to another lucky family to love as much as we have.
65 Surveyor Street, Queanbeyan, is open for inspection this Saturday 28 September at 11.30am and goes to auction on Thursday 10 October 2024.
View the full listing on realestate.com.au
Article sponsored by Ward Estate Agents.
About the Author: Briony Winchester
Part bogan, part wannabe plus-size model and part journalist, Bree's the woman behind Q! News. She's a pop culture obsessive who's deeply in love with her hometown, Queanbeyan, and the neighbouring capital. A born storyteller, she's been writing locally, nationally and internationally for more than 25 years.
