9 Elderslie Terrace

Newtown VIC 3220

Two bedrooms off the central hallway are laden with hallmarks of yesteryear. The first, looks out to the bullnose verandah and the garden. It has Victorian-style built-in cupboards either side of a beautiful fireplace. The second room features pretty vintage wall paper, timber wall panelling and a lofty walk-in cupboard.

The hallway opens into a lounge room, the largest room in the cottage. With a fireplace that holds a gas log fire and double doors out to the rear garden, it provides a lovely place to relax. A step down to the left and you're in the dining room - it's one of the vendor's favourite rooms. It is cosy and light with a timber ceiling and views of the side garden French doors. Side-by-side, but on different levels, these rooms are the heart of the home. It's easy to imagine the evening activities that once took place here - the card games, needlework, reading and singing around the piano.

But before we can get totally lost in the Victorian era, the kitchen jolts us into the 1970s. It's one of the home's delightful quirks. Tucked into a red brick recess that would have once housed a wood-fired stove, is a yellow and black retro oven and gas stove top made by Chef. And according to the vendor it still works! Elsewhere in the kitchen, which is big enough to host a table and chairs, are timber cupboards above and below an L-shaped bench and a large walk-in pantry.

Much of the cottage is like something out of a story book. One of the most magical places lies at the top of a spiral staircase. At the landing is an attic bedroom with two single beds and a window-sized cutout that you have to bend to enter. Here you discover a little living room for the occupants of the little bedroom. Can you imagine the delight young children would have here? The vendor doesn't have to imagine - it was once his special place. The gardens surrounded the cottage hold their own history and hint to more glorious times: there's a rose garden, a fernery, abandoned vegetable beds and two water tanks.

As would be expected, the property is subject to a heritage overlay. Any new owner would have to seek advice and permits from the City of Greater Geelong for a range of changes.

For the right buyer, we expect the privilege of owning such an historic property and the experience of living in this wonderful pocket of Newtown will more than make up for the work required by council's heritage regulations.

Set in a tree-lined street with quality homes, the property is around the corner from the Newtown Football Club, close to the river precinct and schools, including Geelong College, Sacred Heart and St Joseph's, and within easy reach of the Ring Road.