A tiny Far North island billed as suitable for Robinson Crusoe or Tom Hanks has come up for sale for the first time in more than 30 years.
Tenders for Motuekaiti Island, a 3.34-hectare spot less than 10 minutes from Paihia by helicopter, close on April 26, but listing agent John Greenwood, of Bayleys Auckland Central, says unlike other slices of paradise in New Zealand, this one is “affordable”.
Greenwood said price expectations for the island were around $3.5 million.
It is the second such island to hit the market in two weeks
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Together with former deputy PM Paula Bennett, Greenwood is also selling Motuketekete, a 24ha island about 200km away in the Hauraki Gulf.
“It is very, very infrequent that islands come up for sale. And in my whole career there’s never been two at the same time,” Greenwood told OneRoof.
He described Motuekaiti Island as a dream property. "It is begging for a Robinson Crusoe or a Tom Hanks from the movie Castaway."
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Although there are about 144 islands in the Bay of Islands, plus another 27 in the Cavalli Islands just to the north, they rarely come to the market – and many of them are just rocks, Greenwood said.
Motuekaiti Island was special, Greenwood said, because it was so affordable. “It’s cheaper than some bits of coastal land or bigger islands like Motuketekete, where you’re looking at around $10m.”
Two island sales from last year were for eight figures. The run-down former resort of Motukawaiti, the only privately-owned island in the Cavalli group, sold last year for $10.6m while a property on Roberton Island, known as Motuarohia, in the Bay of Islands also sold, although the exact price cannot be disclosed until settlement later this year.
Greenwood said he was aware of high-end island homes in the Far North that may be worth around $30m. However, many of these islands stay in family hands for decades – bought as investment and not built on.
Motuekaiti is 200m from the mainland or 10 minutes by helicopter from Kerikeri or Paihia. Photo / Supplied
Tom Hanks in the 2000 movie Castaway. Photo / Supplied
Greenwood said Motuekaiti Island can be built on. The island has rural coastal zoning, which allows building, and is just 200m from Pakuru Point, on the Mahinepua Peninsula.
“It’s absolutely begging to have a little fishing lodge there. I can see a group of three or four mates who own a helicopter building a beautiful little lodge, with a Sealegs for playtime. The fishing here is absolutely outstanding," he said.
“By helicopter it’s only 10 minutes from Paihia or Kerikeri, and an hour and ten minutes from Auckland. By boat it's 15 minutes from Wainui Bay.”
Former Deputy PM Paula Bennett is selling Motuketekete in the Hauraki Gulf. Photo / Supplied
Greenwood said there was always international interest in New Zealand’s islands. “I’m expecting a huge amount of curiosity.”
Greenwood is also entertaining international enquiry for another luxury estate closer to Auckland. The 10ha Kauri Mountain Point on Taiharuru, Whangarei Heads, houses two luxury lodges, The Glasshouse and Te Whara, and has its own private coves and pools with views to Tutukaka, Poor Knights and Hen and Chicken Islands.
It is being sold by Kiwi financier John Fulton, who has barely used the estate since the Covid crisis began.
“It’s had the most interest of any luxury estate, a high level of enquiry and I hope to sell it this year,” Greenwood said.
- Click here for more properties for sale in the Far North
