I get asked this question a lot:
How do you find all the Queenslanders for sale?
It’s a simple answer. I’m always searching for houses, mostly for Queenslanders, but I also love to search for all types of real estate designs / styles / types. Sometimes I will look at a specific suburb (like Hamilton, for example) or other times it’s all about looking at the hashtag #queenslanderhomes or sometimes I just get lost in my explore tab on Instagram. And of course, there’s Corley Explorer, a database containing more than 60,000 photos of houses taken in the 60s. With thousands of Queenslander Homes.
Like this one.
All of this adds up to hours and hours of searching and saving. I save most of my Australian houses on the realestate.com.au app. But lately it’s become glitchy and crashes every single time I use it, probably because I have saved over 2,000 homes! I also have homes saved on Domain and on real estate sites in New Zealand, USA and Canada and Pinterest and Instagram.
There’s also a huge community who love Queenslanders just as much as I do. You guys send me messages on Instagram and Facebook or email me directly with homes that you have spotted in your own searches. It’s such a lovely feeling to be part of this community that we are building together.
Another question I get asked is:
How do you choose which houses to post?
That’s another easy answer which I mention on my Queenslander Homes Instagram bio.
I share what I love.
I know what I like and what I don’t like. Homes with charm over homes that are super modern. I like the idea of a replica Queenslander but the thing that I can’t get past is that they don’t have VJs. I love homes that have a story and I love listening to those stories and writing about them.
I’ve been thinking about starting a podcast for a few years now. I’ve got a long list of topics and potential guests. Sometimes I think I should just jump in, feet first and just do it. But life is busy and there’s also this niggling fear that sits in the back of my mind. What happens if I can’t do it. It’s a fear that’s holding me back right now.
But I have this dream. A dream and a vision to spread the love of Queenslanders far and wide. To capture the charm of these homes so that we continue to value them and understand what an asset they are to us.
Now, this question doesn’t come up very often, but I thought it would be a good one.
Do you get paid to post houses?
I have never been paid (in money / products / services / anything) for any of the posts on my social media accounts or my website. As I say in my Instagram bio, I post what I love for the love of it. I’ll always post what I love.
I started my instagram account in 2015 after falling over and dislocating my shoulder. I spent a few weeks in agony, eating ice cream and watching Netflix and then I got bored and started posting photos of houses I liked onto Instagram. You can read more here.
Queenslander Homes started from a place of love.
Someday I may try to earn a living from my passion because a girl has to dream that one day she can put the spreadsheets aside and earn a living doing something she loves. Wouldn’t that be amazing?
My dream job would be to leave the work spreadsheets (not my fun, home spreadsheets hahaha) and travel around Brisbane (initially, cause that’s where I live and my kids have school, afl and six dancing classes a week).
I’d take photographs and videos of lovely old Queenslanders and share their stories. Our little community of Queenslander Homes love. Maybe a podcast one days (feel the fear and do it anyway?) and a growing community of people and businesses connected by a love of these charming, old character homes.
Do you live in a Queenslander?
There aren’t enough sad face emojis to answer this question. I don’t own or live in a Queenslander. Not yet.
We lived in a Queenslander in Ashgrove after we were first married. It was run down with gaps in the floorboards that you could see through to the dirt ground under the house. The toilet was outside so if you needed to go at nighttime, you would have to open the backdoor and exit the house.
When it came time for us to buy our first home, we chose to buy in the same suburb as my husband’s parents. There are no Queenslanders in that suburb. It was the right decision as our kids see their grandparents (pre-COVID) almost every single day. But, of course, sometimes I wish we had bought one.
One day I will own a Queenslander.
Have I answered your questions? Is there anything else you’d like to ask? Should I start a podcast?
Send me a direct message on Instagram (best way to contact me) and if there are more questions, I’ll do another post like this one in the future.
