The Best of Both Worlds

An impressive low-maintenance family home with a custom design that’s optimised for upscale country living close to the city.

Lance Anderson’s new family home in Waikato is a bright, white standout in its neighbourhood. Designed to offer the best of both worlds – superior aesthetics and easy maintenance - the house combines contemporary good looks with the durability and low-upkeep features of Hardie™ fibre cement cladding products.

Lance’s overall objective was to create a home that balances proximity to town with a liberating sense of distance from city life. The site he found near Hamilton has the space required to keep his sons - Carter, Hunter and Tommy - active with areas for basketball and rugby practice. And the design he commissioned from Chilton + Mayne Architecture supports both family time and individual space, with four-bedrooms, two lounges and an open-plan kitchen and dining area.

A key design ambition was to achieve a board-and-batten look for the exterior. While he initially considered plywood, Lance found more durable, low-maintenance solution in the form of Axon™ Panel Smooth by James Hardie. This versatile panel provides the foundation for the board and batten aesthetic, plus it comes with an ability to withstand durability challenges, its resistant to fire, rot resistant and resistant to moisture damage. Inside the home Axon™ Panel Smooth was used to create a board-and-batten feature wall around the fireplace.

The fibre cement composition of Axon™ Panel Smooth means less time spent on upkeep, allowing more time for family activities, sports practice and relaxation. Engineered to resist New Zealand’s diverse weather conditions, Axon™ Panel Smooth helps the home to stay beautiful and functional for years. Its versatility, being suitable for both exterior and interior applications, supports a cohesive design aesthetic throughout the property.

With the exterior painted in Resene Black White, Lance says guests have no problem finding the house because of the way it stands out from others in the street. “It’s always easy to find. I just say, ‘the white house’,” he remarks.

The design of the home includes ample outdoor entertainment options. There’s an outdoor TV and fireplace, swimming pool and sauna, providing an incredible setting for fun and family gatherings. Integrated media and sound systems connect the outdoor area, media room and pool house, enhancing the overall living experience.

Lance’s favourite spot is sunbathing by the pool, where he can enjoy the seamless connection of indoor and outdoor living spaces. His choice of fibre cement exterior cladding by James Hardie helps to ensure he doesn’t interrupt valuable relaxing time with home maintenance tasks.

For a full fibre cement board and batten solution use our Hardie™ Axent™ Trims.