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Ashfield 20 Maidos Street
Until recently, 20 Maidos Street in Ashfield was a typical post-war suburban home, quietly blending in with the surrounding streetscape. Built in 1962, the house reflected the era in which Ashfield was rapidly developing, with modest detached homes built on generous blocks to accommodate growing families.
The house itself was a simple three-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling, set on a large block of around 950m². While not heritage-listed, it sat within a street that still retains several older houses from the same period, giving Maidos Street a strong mid-20th-century character.
Demolition
The house was demolished in December 2025, as large blocks like this are increasingly seen as redevelopment opportunities in inner-metro suburbs close to public transport and the Swan River.
Redevelopment
Planning records show that the house, along with no.22 next door, is associated with a five-lot subdivision proposal. The application received a recommendation for approval in April from the Town of Bassendean, which is a key step before it can receive final endorsement by the Western Australian Planning Commission.
This means the former single-house block is expected to be split into multiple smaller lots, paving the way for several new homes to be built where one once stood. While the exact building designs aren’t public yet, this type of subdivision usually leads to grouped or individual dwellings rather than one large replacement house.
Why this is happening?
Ashfield is one of several suburbs identified for gradual residential intensification, particularly near train stations and established services. As land values rise and housing demand increases, older homes on large blocks are often cleared to make way for more efficient use of land.
December 2025
Ashfield 22 Maidos Street
Like No. 20, the house at 22 Maidos Street in Ashfield, has long formed part of a quiet residential pocket shaped by post-war growth and generous suburban blocks. Built in 1962, it sat within a streetscape that evolved steadily rather than dramatically, with modest homes and large gardens defining the area for decades.
In recent years however, the future of No. 22 became closely tied to broader changes unfolding along the street. As Ashfield came under increasing pressure for new housing, properties with larger landholdings have attracted attention from developers looking to make more efficient use of well-located land.
Linked redevelopment plans
Rather than being treated as a standalone project, 22 Maidos Street became part of a combined planning proposal with neighbouring No. 20. Planning documents indicate that both sites were considered together as part of a multi-lot subdivision proposal, reflecting a coordinated redevelopment approach rather than piecemeal change.
This kind of joint application is common where adjoining properties share similar lot sizes, zoning and redevelopment potential. By planning them together, developers can achieve better site layouts, access arrangements and overall housing yield than would be possible on a single block alone.
Demolition
With No. 22 recently being demolished at the same time as its neighbour, its inclusion in the subdivision proposal signals a transition away from a single dwelling and towards new residential development. Once subdivision conditions are met and new titles are created, the original property will be replaced by multiple new homes.
December 2025
Ashfield 33 Maidos Street
Demolished in July 2026
Constructed in the Inter-War Californian Bungalow style, 33 Maidos Street was part of the original Ashfield Estate. While property records and the City of Bassendean Local Heritage Survey (August 2025) record the house as being built in 1926, the same survey also states that the Ashfield Estate was first sold in 1929, with five houses, including No. 33, constructed that year. Based on the available evidence, the house appears to have been built by Leslie Thomas Briggs, although the exact construction date remains uncertain.
Establishing the estate
The property was originally part of the 1905 Bassendean Estate subdivision. However, development of Ashfield did not begin until the late 1920s, when the former market gardens were subdivided into residential lots. Sales of the Ashfield Estate commenced in 1929, with advertisements promoting the suburb's convenient location between both Ashfield and Bayswater railway stations. Strict building conditions required houses to be constructed of brick or stone with tile roofs, with only one dwelling permitted on each lot.
Local residents
The first recorded residents of Maidos Street appeared in 1931 and, until at least 1949, only five households were listed in the street.
Originally known as 7 Maidos Street before street numbers were renumbered, the property appears to have been sold by Leslie Thomas Briggs to Charles Robert Howard in 1945.
Charles Robert Howard
Born in Fremantle on 16 February 1910 with eight siblings, Charles married Ada May Okamoto in South Perth on 17 November 1934. He enlisted in the Australian Army on 15 January 1941 at the age of 31, listing his occupation as a fisherman and driver. Serving throughout the Second World War, he rose to the rank of Corporal and continued serving in the Australian Army until being discharged on 19 January 1961 after 19 years of service, reportedly following a retrenchment notice that may have been related to ongoing health issues.
Charles and Ada remained at the property for decades, where they raised two sons. Charles died on 1 October 1992, aged 82, while Ada remained in the home until her death on 9 April 2007, aged 96.
Google Street View imagery from December 2007 shows a large pile of furniture and household belongings on the verge outside the house, suggesting the property was being cleared following Ada's death. The house was subsequently rented to the same tenant for many years, who may have been the couple's son, remaining occupied until sometime after September 2020.
Selling the property
The property was first offered for sale on 9 November 2022, remaining on the market for 15 days before being withdrawn. It was listed again on 24 October 2023, spending 11 days on the market before selling on 3 November 2023 for $685,000. Following the sale, the backyard was cleared in preparation for subdivision.
The property is currently owned by ID WA Fund 1 Pty Ltd, an Australian proprietary company limited by shares, registered on 15 February 2021, with the trustee being The Trustee for ID WA Fund 1 Unit Trust. The company was originally registered to an address in Osborne Park before later being associated with Leederville. As a proprietary company limited by shares, shareholder liability is limited to any unpaid amount on their shares.
Unfit for human habitation
On 8 December 2025, the City of Bassendean affixed a notice to the front door declaring the house unfit for human habitation. By this stage the property had fallen into severe disrepair. Numerous discarded hypodermic needles, graffiti and other signs of occupation were found throughout the house, suggesting it had been occupied by drug users for a period of time, although it’s unclear whether they were former tenants, trespassers or squatters.
Demolition permit
A full demolition application was approved in May 2026, with the site subsequently marketed as a development opportunity for $1,150,000.
Interestingly, despite the property changing ownership in 2023, the City of Bassendean appears to have applied to the Supreme Court of Western Australia for a search relating to a grant of probate on 23 October 2025. Records also indicate the City sought legal advice from McLeods Lawyers regarding the property, although the reasons are not publicly known.
Heritage
The house was included in the Town of Bassendean Municipal Heritage Inventory (2017) with a Category 3 - Some/Moderate Significance rating, recognising that it contributes to the heritage of the locality despite some alterations. The inventory considers conservation desirable and recommends that future alterations retain original fabric wherever practical.
The inventory describes the house as a single-storey brick and tile Californian Bungalow with a hipped roof incorporating a projecting gablet over an asymmetrical façade. Constructed in face brick with rendered bands, it features grouped timber casement windows beneath deep concrete lintels, a tiled roof with raised ridge tiles and terracotta finials, and a front verandah formed by the continuation of the main roof, supported on slender steel posts. The rendered front gable includes decorative timber detailing typical of the period.
Ashfield
Ashfield developed from a small collection of railway houses into a suburban community over several decades. Between 1925 and 1945, subdivision spread west from North Bassendean and south towards Ashfield, with many early lots measuring around one acre. Timber-framed houses remained the most common form of construction during this period before many larger lots were later subdivided under the Town of Bassendean's first planning scheme.
The suburb experienced its greatest period of growth during the 1950s and 1960s, largely because of its proximity to employment, industry and the railway line. During the post-war housing shortage, the State Housing Commission constructed approximately 400 homes in Ashfield on lots generally measuring between 700 and 800 square metres, transforming the former market garden district into an established suburb.
Public housing
Many of these homes were sold to private buyers, although the State Housing Commission later reacquired some of them. During the late 1990s, the Department of Housing undertook a major renewal program alongside the installation of mains sewerage, demolishing groups of older homes where adjoining properties were already owned. In many cases, three older houses were replaced with five to seven new dwellings, many of which were sold to first home buyers and lower-income households.
Today, public housing remains an important part of Ashfield. Between 2011 and 2021, the proportion of public housing declined by 2.7%, although it still accounts for approximately 14.5% of all dwellings. The Department of Housing is also understood to retain ownership of around 22% of homes in the suburb, well above its long-term target of 10%, using them as subsidised rental accommodation.
July 2026
