MYSTERY adds a certain charm to an old home, and this Fremantle cottage has more than you’d think.

Built on Stevens Street in 1913, it looks likes a classic semi-detached with a shared common wall, but records reveal the neighbouring house was built separately.

Sewerage plans from 1898 indicate people lived at the cottage well before 1913, making me wonder what secrets an archeological dig would reveal.

There’s no mystery about the heritage credentials of this federation bungalow, with its bullnose verandah, thick limestone walls, high ceilings, gorgeous jarrah floors and dainty ceiling roses.

A skylight in the hall ensures it’s nice and bright and brings out the richness of the jarrah floor.

A pleasant central lounge, with cool terracotta tiles and crisp white walls, is where the cottage extension begins.

A raked, beamed ceiling and timber wall add an olde world touch to this modern space, and the recently renovated kitchen is spacious, with white bench tops and a floor-to-ceiling pantry.

Outside, a span of timber beams and fibreglass panels ensure the alfresco is protected from the weather, and there’s a nice lush garden to enjoy too.

Two of the three bedrooms are at the front of the home, including the main with its lovely bay window.

The third is in a separate studio in the garden, making it ideal for guests or as a teen retreat.

When nature calls at midnight there’s the old outhouse, now a heritage loo.

And a small office at the rear of the studio could easily be converted into an en suite.

The thriving Wray Avenue shopping strip is just around the corner, and Fremantle’s CBD is a pleasant 15 minute walk away.

by JENNY D’ANGER

21 Stevens Street, Fremantle
low $800,000s
Mary Burns
0413 749 944
dethridgeGROVES Real Estate
9336 1166