Residential revelations

Our Kolmeo CEO, Scott Bateman, talks us through his preferences for interiors, locations, what makes his space feel like home and the world of rentals in 2024.

Your dream location?

I guess I’m pretty fortunate to say I live in what I consider the best place in the world already – Melbourne!

My wife and I love great food and wine and I’m yet to find a city anywhere that I’ve travelled to with such diversity and quality of cuisine. We’re also die-hard football fans (go Blues!) so it would be hard to live anywhere else and give that up.

What is your ultimate interiors aesthetic?

I love really simple modern design and our house is very monochromatic. Our dream house is probably a renovated/extended Victorian home though, so that nice mix of old and new.

An extra bathroom or an extra bedroom?

Bedroom! You can have more friends and family stay.

Walk the dog or downward dog?

My 57 kilogram dog would probably beat me up if I tried to do yoga instead of walking him. We’re got some beautiful areas to walk near home too and it’s great to get out of the house.

What's one thing that makes your home feel like home?

My wife and dog. We’ve lived in lots of places and ultimately, home is just where they are.

One thing to change in the world of renting?

At the moment I’d have to say availability and affordability because things are so dire for many at the moment. In normal circumstances though, I would have said the consistency of the experience.

Renting can actually be really enjoyable and convenient when you’ve got a responsive owner, a good renter and a good property manager.

We’ve all seen how problematic things can get if any one of those three parts isn’t right though.