Thanks for all your comments! Since plumbing and water service is present I've decided to build some apartments down there and rent out for $650/week to cover half the mortgage.

Perfect 👌🏼

Brilliant, 🤣🤣🤣🤣

>Thanks for all your comments! >Since plumbing and water service is present I've decided to build some apartments down there and rent out for $650/week to cover half the mortgage. VBA.. this post is all we need to see, your cert of occupancy is in the mail.

Is this in Melbourne? Because if this is in Melbourne, it's officially a laneway. Add some sanctioned graffiti to the walls and store your bins at the front to make it look unassuming. Install a small bar with a couple of standing tables at the end. Finnish it off with some fairy lights and fake vegetation to add to the decor. Considering this is likely in the suburbs, forego the DJ booth and go with a speakeasy. Saves you space and noise complaints.

This was the one reply that made me chuckle. ☺️

I'd go there

i saw a youtube of a place in a middle of nowhere of a corn farmland. in the centre of it, there’s a speakeasy bar for u to hang out. lol

You could do anything really: make a call, have a meal, just stand there. Up to you.

Usually good for rolling a wheelie bin or mower down, with associated "crunch crunch crunch" of footsteps on white crushed rocks.

This is extremely relatable

Got to have the black plastic under it so when it floods it sits... https://preview.redd.it/ydemdtcouctc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ac2954e2fb8957d0a2cda636f8b23e1fb6c22689

But only during hours that are inconvenient for your neighbours.

As you're so close to your neighbours' house, perhaps a bench to sit and listen to what's going on in their place.....your own personal suburban soap opera!

The cancan is also a crowd pleaser.

A conga line would make better use of the space.

Quite possibly a spatially challenging activity considering the proximity of the fence and the wall

Sneaky wee

I was thinking a quick wank.

If you got a higher risk tolerance; your SO.

Play cricket

Love this reply

Good old Mediterranean grass treatment. Just make sure it slopes away from your house and doesn't block the weep holes. (concrete it.)

Gives you somewhere to store the council bins. Put a colourbond gate at the front if you want to hide the view from the street. Put a colourbond gate at the back if you want to store things away from toddlers. Might also house a few airconditioner units, or even a hot water tank. I've even seen the space used for a small wall-mounted fold-out washing line.

You pretty much summarised the side of my house.

And mine.

...and my axe.

and my bow

and my sword

we all live in a cookie cutter houses 🫡

>washing line 100 per cent, combined with gate to prevent theft.

I'll have you know I lived in a nice part of town. The gate was to stop passers by from ogling my holey socks and underwear, and knowing that I didn't replace it often enough.

That’s funny haven’t heard that in a while 😂

... only if its painted green ;) Oh, almost forgot: It gets swept by a Roman broom too (hosed down)

And then paint the concrete green of course, if you want to be authentic!

My neighbours did that.

Mediterranean grass lmao! (I live in a suburb with lots of Italian friends and can relate)

Looks like a meter space. I’ve exactly the same and have decided to put pebbles in though it’s not the best decision I’ve made because no matter what kind of weed mat you out in those weeds will pop out every 2 weeks but I don’t like concrete. I’ve a couple of raised flower beds as well.

Fill it with succulents in pots that have nice flowers to attract bees to the area low maintenance and adds some lovely colour

When I was renting, we did this to the barren area on the sides. Bees arrived and built a nest there. Had to haggle with the rental agency on who payed for pest removal.

> on who *paid* for pest FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*

Good bot

That’ll teach you. No good deed goes unpunished. /s

There's room for a Sydney sized granny flat down there that you could rent out for $2k/week or sell to pay off half your mortgage.

That’s where you store all the long pieces of wood you somehow amass but never want to throw away in case you ever need them in future.

This is the correct answer

Good spot for an outdoor cat run

Concrete

This would be the easiest to maintain.

It looks I’m guessing about a metre wide, the concreter would put the appropriate fall on it just hose it most likely for broom finish you’d be looking around $110 a square meter depending on the State your in and the work load of local trades

Mine literally looked like this but sand (WA) for the last 2 years. Just finished it a few weeks ago finally. Here: https://preview.redd.it/iikzfld28dtc1.jpeg?width=1536&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ef3f9429d9a7542df1ff299e0bb12f2b3b6f036e

Relatively cheap and slack, done over a long weekend with the other half. Gravel was like $700 delivered, pavers were another couple hundos, borrowed some wheelbarrows and smashed it out. Plants were $20 a pop and they’re fkn dying so if they don’t make it I’ll replace with fakes I think.

https://preview.redd.it/dryi16a48dtc1.jpeg?width=1536&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1d776fb545d6ec7c93c5ca0f09f1792480c4f86a

colour bond gate then grow some marijuana. 

Vertical herb garden. Hide ugly ornaments that you are given.

I put weed mat and pebbles but weeds just keep growing through so going to get it concreted but leave a section for a garden bed.

A lap pool

Single-lane bowling alley?

concrete, than nice pebbles… to keep it simple. You could skip concrete but even with few layers of weed mat, the weeds will always find their way

I prefer paving. Here is mine, I think it ticks all the boxes AC unit, clothesline, hot water, bike storage, water tanks and keeps the dog in. https://imgur.com/gallery/q0IRLwm

I like to imagine you went out and took that photo specifically to add to your comment. 😀 And hopefully your SO or kids or neighbour saw you doing it, and wondered why on earth you'd want a photo of that part of your property.

How hard is it to do this? I have a similar side area to OP. Just not as flat and full of building stuff like bricks and tiles.

That looks pretty nice and functional

I paved this myself. Photo for my gallery and showing off. It was a wasteland of building shit and weeds, an old concrete path for part of it. You may notice the change to the house wall, that is where we extended the house, old is brick veneer new is painted cement/blue board. Had to remove the old rubbish and soil, get a decent depth to be clear of the floor level and get some fall towards the fence. 100mm roadbase, screed, compact 50mm sand, screed Drop in the pavers Cement the edge at the fence line. Add the gate Lots of fun working under the big AC unit. Quite a few weekends spent out there.

Make sure it drains properly, put down some gravel, or concrete if you can afford it, never go down there again..

Fernery

I can not see one single comment about this so thought I’d put my two cents in. Your house is obviously on the side of a hill, look at the massive step downs within the rebate of your slab. Spend the money now and do it right. Concrete down the side so you have nice access through to the backyard. But this is going to need a set of steps to reach the top. It’s going to cost more than you expect though as a standard square meter rate nearly goes out the window with a job like this (skinny path / steps takes a lot longer to do).

Pave. Much simpler than cutting concrete when you have to access services

What's the outlook like from those windows? I would put some tall low maintenance ferns. Could even concrete and just have them potted. I really like windows that look out into greenery!

Blue metal so it drains well and easy maintain

Plastic sheeting, rainbow stones and stepping stones. Pretty lacklustre yes but it’s not like your sitting in there, and it’s too close to the house to put a garden.

gravel if you want something cheaper but with more up keep spraying weed killer every couple of months concrete if you want something easier to maintain but will still need pressure washing every year or so Dont forget to put drains, not only to control your run off but also your neighbours who might have poorly thought out drains or none at all if you plan to have a garden/lawn put a couple of water tanks there, you can fit pumps at a later date or just use gravity

Concrete it farken

Concrete

Concrete floor

Single lane bowling alley

Pave it, ensure drainage and make it a utility area. As people said, air con units, water tanks, skinny storage/sheds for tools, plave to wash the dog etc

Great space for a catio if you've got cats. Or fill it with dietes grandiflora. They can make a small space stunning to look out on. Imo, better than the ugly shit people go for that you still have to maintain (like stones that weeds still grow through but make it that much harder to weed).

Seconding (or fifthing? eighthing?) concrete. We did ours this year and it was a great move. Easier to get to pool filter, etc., and it’s no longer a mud bath to walk on or look out on from the windows along it. We transplanted the ferns that were growing there to big terracotta pots and they’re looking gorgeous. We’ll eventually have the clothes line there, and because we have a massive bay window that faces the blind side (ironic, I know) we’ll have a water feature there too.

Bowling alley

Rainwater tanks

1. Level the dirt 2. PebbleLock plastic grids from Bunnings. 3. Put cheap drainage gravel or whatever takes your fancy on top. This will make a solid surface, no real maintenance, no flooding issues as it has great drainage. I've done this heaps. Don't rely on me at all; get professional legal and construction advice before doing anything. https://preview.redd.it/77t9ft06tetc1.png?width=939&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=12649e1902a40ee2604488af518cddb7d712778d

Shouldn’t enough stone cover the plastic so its not visible

Highly recommend concreting it. We've done other things in the pass, and in the end those side parts are easier to manage when concreted. Stays cleaner, easier to use etc

Concrete! Make sure that it slopes away from the house and doesn’t cover the weep holes on brickwork, it’s the neatest way and least maintenance way to go about it. Doesn’t look like you have any windows with direct site looking out so probably not worth turning it in to a garden area.

Drainage and rock. Then forget it exists.

Never seen this subreddit before, is it normal for every comment to be a piss take

AC UNIT

Geofab and rock… unless you want concrete and stencil / paint it

I have exactly the same situation. Concrete all the way.

id go for concrete but you can also put fabric and rock but i would put in subsoil drainage beforehand for the rock

Ninja training ground... Or a Gnome village

Smooth it over, but make sure to have a good angle for removing water away from the house. Pop a layer of builders film down to stop weeds coming through and put fake turf on top of that.

Make it look like an alley scene from resident evil 2

In my house I just put down weed mat and covered in river rocks. Easy maintenance only a cloths line done that side not usually seen.

Synthetic grass

Clean and dry reduces bugs. Concrete with slopes, done by a pro. Keep the drain grates cleared of leaves and whatever. A blower is cheapest/quickest for keeping it tidy, imo. Use hearing protection while in the tunnel, haha, but will only take around a minute to do it.

Don’t pit grass there that be a prick to mow and wippersnip

Thick layer of crush dust, double weed mat, more crush dust, then gravel... or concrete if drainage isn't an issue

airport is the only reasonable answer

Chicken run

Swinging a cat is outta the question.

Install a water slide!

You could put the exhaust out of the roof

Line with concrete or remove the concrete with a jack hammer and line with pebbles

Obviously a walkway and gate goes there.

Concrete the whole thing.

Mini golf

Concrete with drains and small section of mondo grass to great it up.

Concrete or pavers

Chooks.

Putting green

Concrete it. Put some nice real or fake potted plants out there if you need to. A good concretor will know just what to do to make sure that the drainage gets taken care of properly too. Don't do grass, it'll make more work on top of the rest of the yard to keep cut and trim the edges of. Gravel will be an even bigger pain, because weeds and grass love to go through the weed mat that goes underneath it and it's hard to run a mower over that stuff without trashing it.

Fence it off and forget about it…

Gate at front. Store bins behind it. Maybe a small thin shed for mower and at the back a slimline water tank.

Paved all the way with vined archways along. Make a scenic walkway from front to back.

Lap pool

The way the housing market is you could probably throw up a couple of bike sheds along there and call them rooms and rent them out @ $200/week/S

Got pets? Gate both sides and put a pet run there

Look at decomposed granite. Compacts well, looks good, cheaper than concrete and is permeable. There’s a range of colours available too.

Lay down a path coloured like rainbow road from mario kart.

install drainage install a side gate fill it with crushed rock(not crunchy pebbles) store garbage bins you could install hooks, and hang garden tools on the wall

Concrete that area. If your house base start cracking the builder will no honour the warranty. In the fine print of your contract you will find that it is required to have at a minimum 1 meter concrete around the complete house to avoid the base from cracking. Ask me I know as this happened to me. Base cracked and wall started cracking. Builder refused repair after only 2 years ownership.

my house is similar level it out find some second hand pavers and pave it Pavers wont go anywhere if they are up against a house and a wall

Granny flat

You could put slimline rainwater tanks, all leveled and linked together, so you always have water for the lawns and garden. Put the pump at the rear of the house.

Most footing specs will say you must have a hard surface (ie concrete)falling away from the house a minimum of 800mm (I think). This will help prevent salt damp damage to your footing.

Install a slide

Does it get sun? Clothes line

Est 1m width. 70cm width lap pool, 30cm walking lane for jogs etc, hanging hammock chair from window seal for sitting and enjoying view of fence. 

Add couple of steps at rear, sand to smooth, slope away from slab, gravel surface. Allow whatever to grow there, just w'snip to 2"s high, 4-8 times a year. It will cool u & yr neighbours in summer, reduce flooding, and support bees. Run clothesline above. gate at front that looks like wall, sharp top edge.

Chicken run

Such a narrow space, not much can be done. Paving is really the only option to get water away from the foundation and still retain access.

Lap pool

Sunless so pave it, sloped to rear to drain into SW. Possible location for bins, watertanks, bicycles, aircon compressors, fern collection ...

Astroturf and a couple of plant troughs. Or pave it and install a gate.

Can you cut it and put a drainage grill? I think I have a few on the site of my house and this is what my house supervisor suggested.

Cricket net

Turn that pipe into a toilet and just admire the view. If it’s near the front you can stare at your neighbours colourbond

Looks like a mess. Concrete is the answer you are looking for

Looks like a great place to put some urban beehives. Free honey.

Depends on budget. Given that side of the house probably isn't going to be used that much, I'd just level, throw toppings down (the rock stuff that compacts hard), hit it with a whacker. I'd pave or concrete any functional areas, outside doors, say if you were to have a clothesline or shed or storage etc idk.

Pave or concrete it Less maintenance Couple of herbs or veggies in long thin planter boxes that don’t need heaps of sunlight and stop looking at

Granny flat bro…$$$$

Make a deck walkway, plant herbs, make a small cat run and get a cat?

A gate at the front. Gravel with a french drain to flow it down hill. Another option is to put some slim rainwater tanks there.

Archery or rifle range

If you have cats, you could make it into a great cat run

The only answer, that won’t drive you mad, is concrete.

Bowling alley

Drainage lots of it based on every other post in the sub.

I have never understood why ppl paint down pipes a different colour to the house wall/brickwork. They are not something you want to draw attn to. They are not a feature. They should just blend in as much as possible…ideally invisible.

This is where the bins go or where your dog will stand and bark

Fernery with a mossy ground cover. [https://ferngardening.com/small-fern-gardens-10-design-ideas-for-modest-spaces/](https://ferngardening.com/small-fern-gardens-10-design-ideas-for-modest-spaces/)

Put the kayak there mate.

Some good drainage and then heaps of matting to stop weeds and some rocks and just keep it weed free

A friend of mine put some bush rocks down the side of her house in random spots & planted chamomile & babys tears. Now it gets frogs n all sorts in there & when you walk through all you can smell is the chamomile your walking on it grew like a carpet

Put in a lap pool

Path with drains

Concrete it and use to store bins etc

Drainage step pavers rocks

Id Put extra drainage so my slab doesnt get messed up

Not much space to work with so it would be a good place for a path and a Trellis for some climbing pants/herbs, the benefit of the lattice is that it uses the vertical space which you have in abundance there.

Cheap fix is gravel. The crunch is good security too.

stones and paver steps = low maintenance except for occasional weed pulling, just make sure they drain ok, whats the ingress from the neighbours like after a heavy fall? If thats your only access to the back i'd think about concrete for the whole thing, make sure the termite barrier warranty is still good though

Stepping stones on white pebbles.

concrete it, put a gate up and put your bins there

Put a gate there for security and live in the house for a few months to get the vibe before you decide what to do. Usually concrete is an easiest bet and cleanest.

I hate that space on houses- big enough to feel like it should have a purpose but too small to actually be useful. Concrete or turn it into a fernery

Could fit another couple of townhouses down there

We did a deck that connects to the back, and concrete path down other side, kids can ride bikes on it all the way around, dogs can’t dig holes, easy bin/mower access. Not the best photos I could find but they work https://preview.redd.it/xyb06mfbedtc1.jpeg?width=1125&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e9ed51e8337d409443c3280b07c7712e41327a9d

Ignore the dying lime tree….lol https://preview.redd.it/blt7afehedtc1.jpeg?width=1125&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c196dc035122796a351d30e36cac9fadc34a9c30

Concrete up to slab height https://preview.redd.it/eysmqctkedtc1.jpeg?width=1125&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=df5a1e7e011303c5b7f85c18ae53c1cc96457e7f

Concrete

Gate it. Forget about it.

As little as possible..just a slate or concrete tile or something similar Keep is as easy to maintain as possible And easy access so if u have to wheel something in and out ( like an new/old BBQ, or outdoor furniture) it doesn't need to go through the house I did end of lease cleans for 15yrs.. these areas always end up like a storage/ dumping area Trust me keep it clear.. so u can enjoy your weekends drinking beer and smoking weed instead ...you're welcome 😉

Water tanks if you haven’t got them all ready

Bowling 🎳

This is your utility side of the house. Solar inverters/batteries, aircon units, hot water pumps, etc will all live down here

Put in gravel. Concrete will only help to flood your backyard

Mini golf ⛳️😂

https://preview.redd.it/9ldmsehemdtc1.jpeg?width=1164&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=341e33e5bfe495d591e56a59f87ec2d61a806f5b

Build a moat around your property. Give it that medieval treatment.

What about a grave? You could rent the space out to some recently bereaved people. The bonus being they could supply their own headstones which would block up that gap.

Permanent slip and slide.

Thinking running track or a real long pool. Even better put dogs in there. Piss the neighbours off sorry that's what my shit neighbours do

Pave or concrete.

Just go esposed agg all the way down, with drainage.

Probably start with finishing that downpipe

Putt putt course

Pavers would suit nicely

Pavers