A five-bedroom mansion once owned by Crowded House singer Neil Finn is on the market for sale with one of the largest land holdings in Auckland’s Parnell.
The 2048sqm estate at 15 Corunna Avenue is being pitched at developers, with the listing on OneRoof highlighting its subdivision potential. The house even comes with plans for a Grand Designs-style mansion drawn up by architect Lawrence Sumich.
The property, which overlooks Alberon Reserve, was one of two homes on Corunna Avenue owned by Finn and his wife Sharon – the other being their family home, where Finn recorded some of his best-known songs, including She Will Have Her Way and Not the Girl You Think You Are.
They sold 15 Corunna Avenue in 2015 for $4.5 million and their family home later the same year for $3.8m after a legal dispute with their neighbours.
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The current owner of 15 Corunna Avenue, who lives next door, told OneRoof he bought the property several years ago, for $5.9m, “when the people who owned it came to me and said that they were planning to sell. It’s a fantastic site and right on my boundary, so at the time I thought, ‘I’d love to get hold of that land and build myself a new house’.”
The owner, who asked not to be named, said the estate had privacy and a great outlook. “It’s an amazing site because its boundary is the Alberon Reserve – you can walk through it to the French Markets and down to the bottom of Parnell to St George’s Bay Road. And it creates a beautiful backdrop,” he said.
He told OneRoof he worked with Sumich to draw up plans to replace the 224sqm home that currently occupies the site. The resulting 1000sqm dream home would have made maximum use of the land.
Neil Finn performing in Auckland in 2019. Photo / Jason Oxenham
The plans included a new four-bedroom luxury residence incorporate living that flows out to a pool, eight-car garaging, a theatre and bar area, as well as health spa-style zone with a huge gym, cryochamber area and sauna.
However, the Covid-pandemic put the project on hold. The delays led to a change of heart and life circumstances. “Now two of my kids are living overseas and I’m away a lot, so I just don’t need it anymore,” the owner said.
Should buyers wish to, they can go ahead and build the Sumich-designed home themselves, he said. “It’s all there, the design is done. It’s essentially at the point where it could be sent in for the building permits.”
He added: “I’ll give them everything that’s been done and introduce them to Lawrence if they want to take it to the next phase. It’s a real hidden oasis down there and protected from the wind. It is also very, very private. You’re not looking at your neighbours and you’re not worried about security.
“We redid all the perimeter walls and got it looking really good. I’m really only selling it as it is now surplus to requirements. I have no intention of moving or selling mine – it’s a great neighbourhood there.”
15 Corunna Avenue comes with plans for a Grand Designs-style home. The property could also be subdivided. Photo / Supplied
Ray White agent Ross Tierney, who is marketing the property with colleague Holly Cassidy, said the size of the land and its parkside location down a right-of-way made it a compelling prospect for buyers.
“The site itself is north-facing and it has an almost 60m2 boundary to Alberon Reserve, so that in itself is quite unique,” he told OneRoof.
“It is the 17th largest residential site available in the whole of Parnell, out of 1354 properties. You could build a single dwelling there but you could also, in theory, comfortably divide it in two and do a subdivision that would still be over 1000sqm each.”
- 15 Corunna Avenue, in Parnell, Auckland, goes to auction on February 22
