A cliff-top mansion in east Auckland smashed the house price record for 2022 when it sold for $26.3 million, OneRoof can reveal.
The deal for the trophy property on Seymour Road, in Mellons Bay, was signed a year ago, but the sale price – more than $10m above its CV – was only released this week.
It was brokered by Bayleys agents Angela Rudling and Michael Chi.
Rudling told OneRoof that the prestige home, which includes a library tower, Napoleonic-style dining room and a seven-car garage, was a “one-off” in New Zealand.
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“It is outstanding, almost irreplaceable. The craftsmanship, the detail and design – it’s a magnificent property. No one would rebuild it today – it’s a one-off home,” Rudling said, adding that the sale was an “amazing achievement”.
The 1422sqm heritage-style mansion, known as Greystone, sits on a 5752sqm section in a gated community and was designed by celebrated Auckland architect Bill Algie for the vendors more than 10 years ago.
While she was unable to disclose who bought the property, Rudling said there had been a surprising level of interest in the property from overseas, including buyers from the United Kingdom, China, Taiwan and Australia.
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She said the buyer had fallen in love with the property at the first viewing.
“The buyer fell in love with the whole ambience of the home – the quality suited her lifestyle, and she made that very clear right from the first viewing. She was the one the vendors chose to work with because they saw she really appreciated and loved the property, and we were very fortunate that her situation suited the vendors,” Rudling said.
The $26.5m sale price eclipses 2022’s previous record-holder: the $20.75m paid for a stunning architect-designed house on Marine Parade, in Herne Bay. It also shatters the sale price record for Mellons Bay held by a large home on a 9667sqm site on Bleakhouse Road which sold for $21.3m in an off-market deal in August 2021.
Greystone also makes the history books as the country’s sixth most expensive house. The biggest sum for residential real estate in New Zealand still remains the $38.5m paid in 2013 for the former Hotchin mansion on Huriaro Place, in Orakei.
The house, designed by architect Bill Algie, has a striking library. Photo / Supplied
The formal Napoleonic-style dining hall features a portrait of the French leader. Photo / Supplied
The tower and stained glass are standout features. Photo / Supplied
Greystone’s vendor told OneRoof last year that the mansion was testament to the skill of architect Bill Algie. “He’s a genius in design and detail – the library being an example of his unique ability to transcend time and revisit classic interiors of the past,” he said.
The vendor said that the extensive water views, expansive lawns and privacy made it a stand-out home. “It’s fantastic, away from the madding crowd,” he said.
According to OneRoof, the property had transacted in 1993 for $3m. The vendor told OneRoof last year that they had removed the original 1950s ranch-style home and given Algie, with whom they had worked on previous projects, free rein to create something special.
Both the library and formal Napoleonic-style dining room (which includes a portrait of the French leader) are detailed with liberal amounts of American oak and paired with heritage greens and reds respectively are unquestionably the home’s centrepieces.
Much of the house revisits classic interiors of the past. Photo / Supplied
The kitchen and living areas are lighter in tone and coastal in feel. Photo / Supplied
The outside entertainment areas make use of the wide open spaces. Photo / Supplied
“The dining hall had been the site of many exclusive and formal dinner parties with friends and business associates,” the vendor told OneRoof.
Off-setting the grandeur of the library and formal dining room are the relaxed and coastal kitchen and dining areas, which open out onto covered entertaining areas overlooking the home’s heated pool and grounds.
Lifelong collectors of rare and beautiful pieces of international provenance, the vendors applied the same enthusiasm and discernment when sourcing the fittings and materials for Greystone. Every benchtop, every tap and every light had been carefully curated to shape the home’s exquisite effect.
Among the highlights are the stained-glass windows and the immaculate stonework, which was executed by notable Auckland stonemason Len Lavas.
The Mellons Bay property has four bedrooms, four bathrooms, four powder rooms, multiple living areas and a vast seven-car garage. Photo / Supplied
Also being sold by Bayleys agents Angela Rudling and Michael Chi is this grand home at 13 Acmena Lane, in Pakuranga. Photo / Supplied
“We had so much enjoyment in this exceptional home, which provided every facility for large and small gatherings, formal and informal events, pool parties and family gatherings,” the vendor said.
Auckland’s eastern suburbs have been enjoying a revival in recent months, with top-end buyers looking to suburbs like Mellons Bay and further afield to the city’s rural fringes for property. In February, Rudling and Chi sold a country estate on Strathfield Lane, in Whitford, for $20m.
“We’d worked with both of the vendors in Mellons Bay and Whitford in the past, so we had a nice rapport. And Michael was hugely involved in the negotiations. It was his ability to get the deal together that worked,” Rudling said.
Rudling and Chi are now selling another resort-style lifestyle property at 13 Acmena Lane, in nearby Pakuranga. The five-bedroom home, which comes with a pool and tennis court, sits on a 6300sqm section that Rudling describes as a rural lifestyle. The property has a 2021 CV of $8.8m but is expected to fetch eight figures when tenders close on April 18.
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