ONE HOUSE two homes

FRIENDS SINCE UNIVERSITY, BUSINESS PARTNERS AND NOW NEIGHBOURS, TOO, DAVID LONG AND STEPHEN HITCHCOCK BUILT MATCHING HOMES TO CREATE A FRESH AND INSPIRING TAKE ON MODERN LIVING

- RUTH CORBETT AND ROBYN ALEXANDER/BUREAUX

HOME NOTES

WHO LIVES HERE?

Architect David Long, his wife Bonnie, a marketing manager, and children Frankie, five, and Grayson, three, live next door to architect Stephen Hitchcock, his wife Tanja, a special-needs school counsellor, and their son Daniel, three.

THE PROPERTY

Two self-built semi-detached houses, each incorporating two bedrooms, two bathrooms and an extra 'half space' apiece. Built in 2017, in Cape Town, South Africa.

When the opportunity to buy a plot of land just big enough for two new homes arose, David Long and Stephen Hitchcock jumped at it. Here David describes how their joint project came about...

WHAT DREW YOU TO THE PROPERTY?

'We had dreamt of living in central Cape Town while we were still young professionals with burgeoning careers and growing families. But to do so, we knew we would have to pool our resources. In 2016, we bought a plot together, with a semi-demolished house on it. We viewed and made an offer on the same day. A few weeks later, it was ours, and as new landowners we convened on site for a celebratory beer.'

WHAT WERE THE MAIN CHALLENGES?

'The foundations and the small site. Due to poor soil, we had to underpin the neighbour's house and build foundations underneath the standard foundations. The small site meant there was very little space for the contractor to store materials. This slowed down the build considerably.'

WAS THE DESIGN PROCESS SIMPLE?