A renovated Brisbane Queenslander has taken out the top honour at the prestigious Houses Awards, being named Australian House of the Year.

The Clayfield home, called Half Lighthouse, may look like a classic Queenslander from the street, but through the front door the clay-filled cottage opens up to reveal a shaded pool at the heart of the home.

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“It works really well and it makes so much sense for Queensland,” owners Annie O’Rourke and Jim Jackson said.

The couple had been dreaming about the renovation since they bought the property in 2008.

“It was really driven by an expanding ageing family. We’ve got three teenagers now,” they said.

Architect John Ellway designed the extension around the existing cottage, using glass and open space to draw the eye to the garden and view beyond.

“We’ve got five blinds that encase all of the extension, all of the glass, all of the opening, so that Annie and Jim and the family can sort of open and shut them when they need them,” Ellway said.

The property won the prestigious housing awards this year. Credit: 7NEWS

The family says it was to accommodate their ageing kids. Credit: 7NEWS

It features a shaded pool in the centre. Credit: 7NEWS

The Brisbane home beat hundreds of entries from across the country, including winners of other categories in the New South Wales Southern Highlands and Melbourne.

“There’s just such a huge breadth of design talent in architect design homes in Australia,” House Awards judge Michael Roper noted.

Privacy and sanctuary were common themes this year among entries.

At the Clayfield property, the garden doesn’t just sit outside the home, it’s part of it.

“The acoustics and the garden out the back sort of keeps everything to ourselves while we still feel like we’re part of a bigger world,” the owners said.