A Balcony With a Bathtub Completes This Striking Prefab in Melbourne

At a glance, the bold, black timber facade of this recently built three-bedroom home might not look like something typical of a prefab. Yet the design, which comprises a series of modules constructed off-site in Modscape’s nearby factory, is a bespoke arrangement for a young, growing family.

"The client wanted a home that had space for entertaining guests, but also an intelligent design that was flexible rather than unnecessarily large," says Prue Lavery, the design manager at Modscape. "It was important that ample outdoor space remained on the site for enjoying the outdoors and gardening, as [the owner] is an avid gardener and plant lover."

The home is situated in an inner-Melbourne suburban heritage area that’s surrounded by weatherboard-clad, single-fronted residences with pitched roofs. The site was previously occupied by a heritage-listed home, which, in many cases, can make it hard to begin anew. However, since it had been deemed unlivable, permission was granted to replace it with a modern interpretation of the neighborhood vernacular.