Future Flip

Bunker House

Bunker House, a coastal masterpiece

Bunker House is an architectural showpiece on the oceanfront in Gerringong, South Coast NSW, a town built on sweeping green farmlands overlooking a stellar surf beach (90-minute drive south of Sydney).

Resort Style Living

Designed and built by Futureflip’s Founding Director Neil Hipwell, who set out to create his dream home / ultimate luxury holiday escape with his wife Krystal, Bunker House is a coastal masterpiece.

The house is capable of running ‘off grid’ with 10,000L rainwater tanks and 21.6kw solar installed. The design incorporates mid-century modern elements plus raw, unfinished materials to capture a sense of resort-style living.

Capturing the Incredible views

Perfect for entertaining, this luxurious, high-end home sleeps 16 adults (with additional space for children) – each bedroom has an adjoining ensuite to create ‘self-contained units’. The property is sympathetic to the landscape – capturing and framing the incredible views whilst maintaining privacy.

Building a Forever Home

Explains Neil, “It was always our dream to build our forever home in Gerringong. I have holidayed there since my childhood and my wife and children fell in love with the area too. It’s just over an hour from where we currently live which means we are close to family and friends whilst still having a beautiful getaway.”

“As well as designing our family home we wanted the property to double as a successful holiday rental,” say Neil.

“We searched for around two years to find the ideal site to create something incredible. The process of designing the home was very smooth as the aesthetic is similar to the first property we built for ourselves, with all the elements we didn’t like ironed out. In my head I knew exactly what I wanted to create, and after I handed the sketches over to my design team it just kept getting better and better until we decided on the final layout four weeks later.”

After six months in council and a nine-month build, Neil and his family moved in just before Christmas last year.

Taking it to the next level

One of the key design features of the Bunker House is the Mr Steam steam room. Neil has always been a fan of steam rooms and had built one in his previous home, but with this property he wanted to take the design to the next level.

“I wanted to create the ultimate steam room. A large spa-like sanctuary with heated seats and a great sound system built in, a space that could be really versatile.”

Now that the family has moved in, the steam room has become the most used room in the home. Not only is it a stunning space for Neil and Krystal to relax in, it’s the ideal bathroom for their three children to shower in. “It’s really cool that it’s not only a beautiful bathroom and a special place to enjoy a steam session, it’s a really functional and versatile space that we use every day.”

Such an affordable System

According to Neil installing the steam room was a very simple process that was managed easily by the builder, plumber and electrician. “Adrian Barr from Mr Steam liaised with them all and his expertise and guidance made it very straight forward.

There seems to be some confusion in the marketplace about how expensive a steam room installation is. It’s really such an affordable system, and because you are using the same space as your shower you don’t need to build an additional room.

Creating a multi-purpose, versatile and functional space that not only brings added enjoyment but also adds value to a property, is a really practical, sensible solution.”