Former Olympic sailor turned house flipper Carrie Smith shares her home renovation tips
Olympic sailor Carrie Smith spends her time flipping homes with her partner Lachlan Richards when she’s not on a boat in the big blue.
Smith represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Olympics alongside fellow competitor Jaime Ryan, after they placed ninth in a World Championships event the previous year.
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Althought now works with up-and-coming sailors at the Victorian Institute of Sport, Smith said that renovating brought out her creative side – and she always had an eye for interiors and design.
Smith said with her partner owning the maintenance and small renovations company LR CON, they decided to renovate and flip their first home.
“We looked at a ton of houses and we really wanted to make sure it had major character, it was sort of the start of the journey really,” she said.
The pair renovated a two-bedroom “derelict” apartment at 2/20 Cunningham St, South Yarra, they bought in 2022 and sold for $1.22m in June.
Now, they’re moving on to a South Yarra house and have a big renovation in mind, with the idea of bringing the same pops of colour they featured in the apartment into their new home.
“The idea is going to be a lot more around English countryside sort of style, but obviously still have a bit of colour and flare, that’s something I’m not afraid of in my style,” she said.
“I’ve already got lots of good ideas. And this one has a beautiful underground cellar, so that’s going to be lots of fun.”
She said most of the advice she received when renovating the apartment was to keep all the walls white so it was more sellable, but her partner told her to trust her vision as he was sure that someone would fall in love with it.
Smith noted it was important to have high-end appliances and finishes in a flipped home.
Smith’s Tips
■ Show your personality in your renovation
■ Go with your gut as to what you love and enjoy
■ Take your time as the renovation isn’t going to happen overnight
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