Up for auction this weekend - it has been on the market for some time, albeit with another agency - is 25 Central Park Road in East Malvern. Many will see the romance in this house: it has plenty of scope for improvement while retaining the original house heartbeat.

Among the big pluses here are position (the Gascoigne Estate does not get much better), great original Edwardian bones, north-facing rear, great car access, good land content. Most people would look at extending to the rear and possibly going up; this keeps the original house intact (saving on structural reinforcement costs) and also preserves the original house form, which would aid with council approval. One could also think about a basement to the rear, to maximise rear yard space.

There are some minor issues. The two-storey to the northern boundary impacts a little; Anderson Street is fringe for this area and obviously there are the large building and planning risks associated with a major project of this type. These points aside, the options are endless and it would be hard to go wrong here in the long term.

The concept above breaks the house in two. The front area would largely remain as is and serve as guest / children bedroom and formal living areas. At the rear, would be a new, independent structure, open-planned to best suit modern living and to the first floor of this would be the master bedroom zone. The entry remains as is, yet would be better connected to the rear part of the house with a central hallway, as this would improve flow.

With recent strong auction sales at 7 Parslow Street Malvern & 55 Ardrie Road Malvern East (see ratings below), and also the big private sale at 38 Central Park Road (see last week’s market news), buyers must have faith that, if the key ingredients are right (orientation, bones, position among many), then pouring your heart and soul (and hard-earned cash) into an extensive make-over is well worth it in this area given certain market conditions. You just need a good vision.

We rated 25 Central Park Road 721/1000 for the land only.

It is listed with Andrew Summons of Hocking Stuart and is scheduled for auction Saturday 27 June at 11am. The estimated price is $2 million-plus.

Design Smart.