Health-conscious homeowners are spending up to $100,000 on new ‘wellness’ features in their homes; abandoning formal rooms for saunas, ice baths, meditation rooms and yoga retreats.
Experts within home improvement have said they have seen a vast uptick in people adopting this trend, with the majority spending a minimum of $20,000 on these rooms.
Sauna builder SDS Australia reported seeing a 144 per cent year-on-year rise in new inquiries, along with a 112 per cent increase in customers looking to build their own saunas.
Some homeowners across Queensland are spending up to $100,000 on wellness rooms, such as saunas and yoga retreats.
Managing director Michael Doubinski said he had recently seen homes with whole floors full of wellness amenities, from saunas to cold plunges and gyms.
“It seems that people are discovering wellness and that it’s not optional anymore,” he said. “Eventually I think that every home will have a sauna, as it’s one of the most proven and time tested health machines on this planet.”
These new rooms are appearing across hundreds of new apartment and housing plans, with some companies repeating a 144 per cent rise in new inquiries.
Some features such as saunas can cost between $20,000 and $40,000, while others such as red light beds can come in at $120,000.
TH7 Homelabs – a division of wellness company TH7 – began in 2024 in response to these rising trends. Co-director Danny McDonald said the combined total of 20 of their ongoing residential projects was “easily more” than $500,000.
“I would say any new architectural build has a wellness space now,” he said. “It’s replacing the cinema or the wine cellar; why not put in an area that’s actually going to give back to your health?”
Mr McDonald said every new home plan he saw across his desk came with a wellness room, and one of his ongoing apartment projects included a wellness space on every one of its seven floors.
Experts say wellness spaces are replacing typical entertainment rooms such as cinemas or wine cellars.
For residential upgrades, saunas and ice baths – some of the most common additions – are typically valued between $20,000 and $40,000.
Meanwhile, higher-range items such as red light beds can total up to $120,000.
“Towards the end of Covid, people started being much more aware of their health,” Mr McDonald said. “It’s not just young people that are invested in this stuff – older people are definitely seeing the results in a good health protocol.”
“It will absolutely grow more. A wellness space in your house is worth more than any other room, because it’ll give you the best return on your health.”
“Towards the end of Covid, people started being much more aware of their health … a wellness space in your house is worth more than any other room.”
Savva Koulouris of Place Woolloongabba said in the past two years there had been a big focus on health and wellness amenities in the home.
“A lot of people are giving up drinking, focusing on working out and taking care of their bodies,” he said.
“Having (wellness spaces) in your home allows you to take it seriously.
“You’d be surprised how many buyers want a sauna or steam room … for lower priced points, that’s a pre-built infra-red sauna, but in the luxury market we’re seeing proper hardwood, built-in Swedish saunas in the house.
“I’ve also seen a few people putting in in-ground ice baths, because those two go hand-in-hand.”
Savva Koulouris of Place Estate Agents Woolongabba said this trend had really picked up in the last two years especially.
Mr Koulouris said a number of factors were contributing to a move towards at-home wellness, including the Covid pandemic, generational shifts and a greater focus on wellness, not just fitness, within society.
“Through the pandemic we learned we could do a lot of things from home, like working and working out,” he said.
“As a result, people are now spending more on their homes because they are spending more time there.”
“People are now spending more on their homes because they are spending more time there.”
Mr Koulouris said buyers in the 30-45 age bracket tended to be the ones most interested in homes with home gyms, yoga studios, mediation spaces and steam rooms.
“[This demographic] is losing formal dining and living spaces to make way for practical, open plan living with health and fitness spaces,” he said.
“Most people are encouraging their kids to be more and more active, but yards are becoming smaller, so these spaces allow kids to be active in a different way.”
Rooms such as large yoga retreats blend in well with a desire for an open plan lifestyle in the house.
When parents of three, Manoli and Paras Antonarakis built their Carina Heights home through Gant Construction, they made sure to include a Finnish sauna, a magnesium swimming pool with spa and an oversized garage with space for a home gym.
“We’re very active people, we play a lot of sports and have an active lifestyle,” Mr Antonarakis said.
“This gives us time for ‘me time’ and to focus on health and wellbeing.”
Some wellness spaces are designed to accommodate particular members of the family.
Mr Antonarakis said anyone with a young family would know fitting in workout and wellness time on top of work and children was nearly impossible.
“If you have to go to a gym or a pool, it takes you away from your family,” he said.
“The whole point of building houses like ours is that you don’t have to go out to do those things, you’re bringing it home.
“I can put the kids to bed, eat dinner then I’d go for a swim and sauna every night.”
Mr Antonarakis said he and his wife also opted for a magnesium pool, as it was better for their children.
“We used take our eldest daughter to swimming lessons and, because the pools are so highly chlorinated, she’d be unwell after every lesson,” Mr Antonarakis said.
“Once we had our magnesium pool, we could hire a swimming instructor to come to our house.”
Part of the appeal for a wellness space is the ability to do activities at home you’d normally need to go out for.
The couple have listed their current home for sale, but are planning even more health and wellness inclusions in their next home, including a sauna and a basketball court.
Mr Antonarakis, who works in the development industry, said wellness inclusion in homes and apartment complexes were becoming expected, especially in properties priced in the high $3 millions and above.
“It’s what the younger demographic wants,” he said.
“This demographic comes from era where health and wellbeing are imperative.
“We’re already seeing unit complexes that have a plethora of all these spaces – steam rooms, sauna, yoga lawns and even cryotherapy pods.”
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