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In 1968 Ali Marsaban, a diplomat working in Australia, brought his family home after five years overseas.

The education attache sold off his Mercedez Benz and bought his family a three-bedroom house in Tebet, South Jakarta, for Rp 3 million ($318).

Today, that same home is worth upwards of Rp 3.5 billion.

“The road was still muddy back then and many of the new residents in the neighborhood were people from the Senayan [Central Jakarta] area whose land was bought and used to build Gelora Bung Karno,” said Indiah Marsaban, or Indi, the fifth of six children, who was 10 when the family moved there.

Over the years the people living in the house changed, Indi’s parents passed away and her siblings eventually got married moved out and had children. Today, the 530-square-meter house is home to Indi, her husband and their two teenage daughters.

Interestingly, the house stands as it has for more than 40 years. For the most part the original elements and ambiance — the panels, furniture and decorations — remain the same.

The living room is spacious, and although it houses a fair amount of furniture the room does not look crowded.

The dignified look of the room is set off by the high ceilings, which reach up to 4 meters in height.

“The room is very functional. When we have gatherings with family or friends it can sit a lot of people,” Indi said. “We jokingly named it Marsaban Hall.”

A line of large windows along the entrance allows guests to enjoy a view of the yard outside and the thin horizontal security bars on the windows, give a touch of vintage beauty to the area.

Indi said the floor tiles were originally dominated by dark colors before she eventually opted for the current light-colored granite.

“The original tile was dark, and it was aging,” she said, adding that the older tiles made the room look gloomy.

The living room is adorned with of sets of antique wooden chairs set off in two areas, while a light blue sofa gives the house a touch of modern-day refinement . A sheet of off-white canvas is used to keep the sofa safe from the family’s three Persian cats.

Off to the corner there are black-and-white photographs on display of Indi and her family.

To add to the throwback feeling, an antique brass mold for making cakes is also on display.

“It was my grandmother’s. She used it when my mother was a small girl, so I think it’s more than 100 years old now,” Indi said.

Sitting on the shelf of a wooden cupboard is a vintage table clock, which still works well and strikes according to the exact hour and produces mild sounds that fill the room.

“You will have to spin and tighten the spring with this crank to keep the clock working,” she said winding the clock.

Another interesting corner of the room is home to an antique piano. On top of the paino sits an angklung , a traditional musical instruments from West Java, and a miniature sasando , an instrument that originated in East Nusa Tenggara.

Indi said the family picked up the piano from a neighbor in Australia.

“The old lady said she wanted to get rid of it and we asked if we could have it. She gladly gave it to us,” she said. “It was broken but we had it fixed. Now it’s my daughter that plays the piano.”

A sliding glass door that is open most of the time separates the main room from the dining room.

Just above the door in the dining room is an array of old oil paintings of Indi’s parents, grandparents and great grandparents.

This area is also where the antique china is stored in two cupboards, along with another wall display of Indi’s family and her siblings.

Among the very few major changes was the creation of a small bedroom loft for Indi’s daughters.

“As the girls grew up, we thought we needed more space in the bedroom for them,” Indi said.

“My husband said that we could make use of the tall roof this house has.”

Half of the ceiling in the area was opened and the family moved the girl’s bedroom to the new floor and connected everything with a set of wooden stairs. The tall roof of the loft gives the ceiling of the loft a charming shape.

Indi’s husband decided to cover the walls and ceilings of the loft with teak wood planks. The yellowish brown color gives the room a warm, charming atmosphere.

Meanwhile, Indi said, that the old bedroom area downstairs now functions as a place for her daughters to hang out with their friends, study or just play the guitar.

The back of the house consists of several smaller rooms. The prayer room, a bedroom for the maid, and two store rooms are all located away from the main living area. The kitchen is located just next to a small open-air backyard.

“It is good to have the kitchen there as the air circulates well in the area,” Indi said.

Asked if anyone had ever inquired as to whether the family was willing to sell the cozy house, Indi nodded.

“But I don’t think we [her and her siblings] will ever do that,” she said. “It’s a family house and there’s just a lot of good memories from our childhood here.”