TVNZ Breakfast host Matty McLean posted on Instagram that he is selling a stylish two-bedroom bach in Tinopai, Kaipara.
McLean posted: “Selling our little slice of paradise - very bitter/sweet!”
The post included a link to the listing on OneRoof.
The property at 107A Hall Road is going to auction on November 30 and is being marketed by McLean's fiance, New Zealand Sotheby's International Realty agent Ryan Teece, and Teece's colleague Ashley Duncan.
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The bach, made up of two black pods, comes with an outdoor pool and sits on the ridgeline overlooking the Kaipara Harbour.
The listing says: “Looking for an easy, idyllic escape from the city? We've got you covered with this contemporary hillside hideaway less than two hours from Auckland Central.”
Teece told OneRoof that the couple had bought the Tinopai escape last Easter on the way home from a Northland camper van road trip, a spur-of-the moment purchase after they spotted the listing on Instagram.
The weekend retreat with a swimming pool has living and bedroom pods connected by an outdoor dining room. Photo / Supplied
There are rural views through to the Kaipara Harbour. Photo / Supplied
“We just fell in love with Northland and started looking. We drove there on our way back to Auckland,” he said.
The clever house, where the two pods are joined with a central covered outdoor dining space and barbecue, was designed five or six years ago, Teece said. The main pod houses the living room and a smart kitchen as well as a bathroom/laundry, while the second pod has two bedrooms and more decks wrap around the pool.
The site has views of the Kaipara Harbour over the Tinopai Peninsula and plenty of flat land for friends to pitch tents. Teece said there’s room for lawn games and the farming vibe is provided by visits from the alpaca and cattle a neighbour grazes on the 1.85ha paddocks.
“It’s the ultimate glamping, we have lots of friends up here,” Teece said. But with the pair’s busy careers that rarely allow a weekend off, they have found they are not using the retreat often enough.
The living room and kitchen space overlooks the countryside. Photo / Supplied
“We had grand plans of using it every weekend. And every time we go up there, even if it’s just one night, we go ‘this is such a breath of fresh air’.”
And while McLean and Teece are not boaties or fishers (“our fishing is getting fish and chips at Paparoa village on our way up, it’s an amazing community”), boat ramp access to the famed harbour is only 15 minutes away. The couple love Paparoa, which as well as the fish and chip shop has a coffee shop, general store and regular market. Locals are all hoping there will be new owners for the legendary pub, the Thirsty Tui, which is currently closed.
Teece and Duncan have already had a lot of interest in the property, with buyers realising the value of this part of rural northland, only an hour and forty-five minutes out of Auckland, where a property can be found for $500,000 or so.
The New Zealand Herald reported last week that McLean and Teece are set to get married at Parihoa Farm, in Muriwai, the backdrop of TVNZ's hit show, The Great Kiwi Bake Off.
McLean told the Herald: “We fell in love with the venue as soon as we turned up there for a site visit – it’s a beautiful farm right on the rugged west coast, and the most incredible place for us to tie the knot.
“Ryan and I are coming up on six years together now – we got engaged on our fifth anniversary – and it really just feels like the perfect next step. I truly can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with him.”
Matty McLean and his fiance, real estate agent Ryan Teece. Photo / Supplied
