As Canberra continues to grow and evolve, so do homeowners’ ideas about what makes a home stylish, comfortable, and future-proof. In 2025, renovation trends in the ACT reflect a mix of sustainability, smart technology, flexible living, and aesthetics grounded in nature and local context. Here are some of the most important trends shaping home renovations in Canberra this year.
1. Energy Efficiency & Sustainability Take Centre Stage
Gone are the days when sustainability was only nice to have. In 2025, it’s essential.
- More homeowners are installing double-glazed windows, better insulation, and heat pumps for heating and hot water to reduce energy bills and increase comfort.
- Solar panels paired with battery storage are increasingly common, supported by ACT government incentives.
- There’s a move toward water-wise fittings (low flow, smart fixtures), rainwater harvesting, and greywater recycling.
2. Flexible, Multi-Functional Living Spaces
With changing lifestyles, work habits, and family dynamics, people want homes that can switch roles as needed.
- Rooms or areas that can be offices, guest bedrooms, study nooks, or gym spaces depending on time of day.
- Multi-generational living being factored in: elder suites, separate zones for family members, or adaptable floorplans.
3. Nature-Inspired / Bush-Modern & Biophilic Design
Bringing nature into home design isn’t just aesthetic, it has wellbeing benefits too.
- Use of natural materials: timber, stone, earthy palettes, lots of greenery. Large windows and views to the outdoors.
- The “Bush-Modern” look — clean modern lines combined with warm textures and colour, creating a calm, grounded feel.
4. Spa-Like Bathrooms & Smarter Kitchens
The heart of comfort in a house often lies in its kitchen and bathroom. In 2025 these are spaces of both functionality and luxury.
- Bathrooms featuring walk-in showers, freestanding tubs, frameless glass, underfloor heating, matte black fixtures, floating vanities, and smart lighting.
- Kitchens are becoming sleeker: integrated appliances, hidden storage, neutral/earthy palettes with texture, less visual clutter. Open kitchens with smart tech.
5. Indoor-Outdoor Living & Outdoor Entertaining Spaces
Canberra’s climate and lifestyle favour homes that connect inside and out.
- Large sliding or bi-fold doors, covered patios or decks, outdoor kitchens, fire-pits, foyers that flow into landscaped gardens.
- Continuity in flooring or colour palette to blur the lines between indoors and outside.
6. Compact Luxury and Efficient Use of Space
Smaller blocks or changing demographics are pushing for high-quality living in less space.
- Homes with smaller footprints but high-end finishes, clever storage, multi-purpose furniture.
- Modular or prefabricated construction elements are becoming more accepted. Faster to build, more predictable, often more cost-effective.
7. A Return of Colour, Texture & Personality
After years of ultra-minimalism, there’s again appetite for warmth, richness, and personal touch.
- Richer textures: stone, timber, patterned tiles, textured plaster or wall panels.
- Colours such as warm greens, terracottas, and soft earth tones — used in accents, furniture, or walls.
Why These Trends Matter for Canberra Homeowners
Canberra experiences cold winters and quite sunny summers — energy efficiency pays off both financially and in comfort. Regulations and incentives from the ACT Government are pushing sustainability more strongly. People’s lifestyles have changed: more working from home, more need for flexible spaces, and more desire for homes that promote wellbeing. And of course, staying aligned with these trends helps homeowners retain or increase property value in a competitive market.