Image: Instagram via Zac Efron
In case you missed it, Zac Efron has been living in Australia for the past five years. Yes, the Hollywood heavyweight has been quietly calling Down Under home since 2020 – he moved here during the pandemic and, well, never left.
And now, he’s about to make his honorary Aussie status even more official with a major new home on the way. The star is set to kick off construction on his Tweed Valley property, about an hour from Byron Bay.
Work is planned to begin in February 2026, with completion slated for September. And this won’t be just any home – the Down to Earth with Zac Efron host has ambitious plans to create one of the healthiest houses on the planet. Built with hemp and guided by sustainable designer Joost Bakker, it’s sure to be pretty special.
Here, we look at how Zac Efron ended up living the eco-conscious Aussie life – and what we know so far about the star’s headline-making build.
From LA to Australia: Zac Efron’s home timeline
Zac Efron is settling into Australia with his dream home being built in 2026. We follow along, from his arrival to plans and construction.
March 2020: Zac Efron moves to Australia
Zac Efron reportedly left the US in March 2020 to ride out the coronavirus pandemic in Australia – and it didn’t take long for him to settle in. By mid-2020, he was spotted in Byron Bay with local waitress Vanessa Valladares, who was later confirmed as his girlfriend. At the time, he was renting a $22 million mansion in the area, signalling that his stay might be more than a temporary escape.
December 2020: Zac Efron buys land near Byron Bay
In late 2020, Zac snapped up the block of bushland he’s now preparing to build on. The idyllic, off-grid parcel in the Tweed Valley, NSW, reportedly cost him around $2 million – a hint even then that his Australian chapter was becoming long-term.
January 2021: Zac Efron lists his LA home
By early 2021, Zac was ready to loosen his real-estate ties to Los Angeles. He put his LA home on the market for $7.8 million, seven years after purchasing it for $5.8 million – another sign his life was shifting firmly toward Australia.
April 2021: Living the nomadic life
Throughout 2021, Zac divided his time between filming locations and still hadn’t put down permanent roots. He even spent a stint living out of a caravan, posting “Home sweet home” alongside his lavish new ride. His growing love for Australia also inspired Season 2 of his Netflix series Down to Earth with Zac Efron, which went on to air in 2022.
“[Zac] moved out there towards the beginning of the pandemic [and] genuinely fell in love with it,” showrunner Michael Simkin told Tudum. “He’d been there a lot for press and tours and traveled there personally, and he now has a group of friends and a community out there.”
Despite his relationship with Vanessa Valladares (above) being confirmed as over by this time, Zac still wanted to stay in Australia. Radio host Kyle Sandilands, who has been seen spending time with the actor, confirmed the rumours on The Kyle and Jackie O Show: “[There was] no drama. It’s done. He’s back to work.”
June 2021: Zac Efron sells his LA home
After spending about six months on the market – and undergoing a price drop – Zac’s LA home finally sold for around $6.85 million, further cementing his shift toward life in Australia.
2021–2025: Planning Zac’s dream eco‑home
Any build of a new home – especially one this ambitious — takes time. Between 2021 and 2025, the wheels turned behind the scenes as Zac Efron and his designer Joost Bakker laid the groundwork for what’s shaping up to be one of Australia’s boldest eco‑homes (to rival Jamie Durie’s future home).
In that time, Joost and his team experimented with regenerative building materials and sustainable design strategies that challenged conventional homebuilding. The planned residence – dubbed “Zac’s greenhouse” – will sit on Zac’s 128‑hectare bush property in the NSW Tweed Valley, between Byron Bay and the Gold Coast.
The home has been designed to use hemp throughout – for insulation, internal walls, joinery, rugs, curtains and even the mattress Zac will sleep on – plus oyster‑shell‑bonded hemp bricks instead of traditional concrete or timber.
Bakker says the goal is simple but visionary: Build what Efron asked to be “the most healthy home on the planet” – one that sits lightly on the earth and even helps regenerate its surroundings.
That includes a rooftop “living soil” base – 100 tonnes of soil on a flat roof – designed not just for insulation but as a living foundation for plants, helping create habitat rather than destroy it.
February 2026: Building begins
With council approval in hand, and the designs finalised, the plan is for construction to begin February 2026 with a $2.65 million build cost. Completion is slated for September 2026, assuming everything stays on track.
If all goes to plan, the result could be far more than another celebrity home — it may become a blueprint for low‑carbon, sustainable living in Australia.
