A "glammed-up" shed on a modest piece land in Martinborough has sold at auction for $595,000 - $425,000 above its 2017 CV.
The same property last sold for $120,000 four years ago.
READ MORE: Find out if your suburb is rising or falling
Tremains Real Estate agent Pete Sykes said it was a “fantastic result” for the seller, Damo Neal, who was a contestant on The Block in 2014.
Start your property search
The land at 2 Daniel Street was previously subdivided, and the 1980s double garage was sold with the separate 447sqm section.
Neal spent the past few years during his weekends turning the 25sqm garage into a modern studio apartment.
It has no kitchen but a small kitchenette in the corner of the lounge.
The shower, toilet, and laundry are in the same room, which is just off the bedroom/lounge.
The outdoor patio area has rustic wooden seating, a brazier, and a spa pool.
Tremains agent Bevan Saywell led the auction for a lawn full of about 60 bidders.
At the outset, plenty of hands popped up with bids.
Crowds at the auction. Photo / Karen Coltman
It was on the market for $425,000, but all but three bidders dropped out when the property hit half-a-million dollars.
When the property got to $550,000, the third bidder’s hand stayed down, and the heat was on the last two men standing.
Sykes said the two final bidders were standing next to each other so this “hyped up the situation”.
The successful buyer was unavailable for comment, but the under bidder, Mark Bramwell, from Wellington, said: "We had a strategy to go big and go fast but then realised the person we were bidding against was not going to stop and had deep pockets, so I let it go."
Damo Neal meets fans during an open home for The Block in 2014. Photo / Jason Orday
Sykes said he had to convince Neal to sell by auction because his previous experience was uncomfortable. “[He] is shocked and very pleased with the outstanding result."
Neal and Sykes are long-term friends and were in the police force together. “I felt relieved when the bids got to $450,000 and in shock at the great price paid,” Neal said.
“What has happened is a bit crazy. I could see that people at the auction were surprised too and so were the neighbours.”
After the auction, one attendee who lives nearby jokingly announced he was going straight home to put a ‘for sale’ sign on his front lawn.
Neal is handing over consented plans for a 70m2 two-bedroom home for the section, and then he is heading to Bay of Islands to go surfing.
- Wairarapa Times-Age
