A beachfront section partly washed away by the sea sold under the hammer for $100,000 after it was listed for sale with a reserve of just $1.
Waves were lapping in the background as at least 80 people crowded under umbrellas on Thursday afternoon for the onsite auction of the bare 736sqm section on Clifton Road, in Haumoana, Hastings.
The ‘as is, where is’ property, which has an RV of $206,000, was targeted at buyers who wanted a cheap waterfront spot with views of Cape Kidnappers.
The auction started off at $1 before quickly rising to $1000. Bids from anywhere between $500 and $30,000 were then placed as the price quickly rose.
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There were 16 registered bidders for the property and a total of 41 bids placed. By the time it reached about $50,000 there were just two phone bidders left fighting over it.
Loud cheering and clapping broke out once Bayleys auctioneer George Yeoman finally slammed the hammer down after a $2500 bid secured the deal.
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While the seafront of the section had been washed away, a concrete retaining wall contained a flat site at the rear.
Permanent structures such as houses cannot be built on it due to it being classified in the Coastal Hazard Zone, and the Hastings District Council said there were even conditions around putting a caravan there.
Yeoman did not know what the new owner’s plans for the site were, but said it would require “an element of creativity”.
Others who had been looking at the site had also considered putting some portable buildings on the site in the short-term before coming up with a more concrete plan, he said.
“There was a number of people who thought – who knew where the value would end up – so I think a lot of people thought we will buy it now and think about it afterward at the right price.
“A number of people had that idea of having a caravan or two onsite and having it as a little seaside getaway.”
There are a lot of restrictions around what can be done with the beachfront site. Photo / Supplied
Bayleys listing agent Fiona Mackenzie did not know the new buyer’s plans other than that they had bought it to enjoy it, which was the same as everyone else who had shown interest in it.
“I think it’s people that are defying the future, they just want to enjoy the moment and have some fun. Whether they are going to use it for a caravan, picnics or whatever they want to do – they are just wanting to enjoy that moment and enjoy their time there.”
The owner, architect Andy Coltart, was “thrilled” with the result, she said. “Everyone was thrilled, it was the most fantastic auction. We were absolutely delighted with it.”
Coltart had owned the section for more than five years and had initially planned to put a restaurant on the site. However, he previously told Hawke’s Bay Today that he had come to the realisation that it would be too difficult to fulfill his dream on the site due to all the restrictions.
“I’m very sad to be exiting because I had plans to do stuff, but sometimes you just have to say that it will probably be too hard.
“But in saying that, it’s gorgeous out there, and I’d love someone to buy the section who would love it.”
A storm-damaged house was previously on the site and it does have a septic tank and power and water just right to the boundary.
Mackenzie’s listing for the property suggested the new buyers could be a group of mates wanting to fish off the site.
The Brown Dog Espresso, the Haumoana Four Square and a Fish & Chip Shop are just across the road.
Last year, a beachfront home in Thornton Bay, in the Coromandel, was taken to auction with a $1 reserve. The property had been a casualty of the extreme weather that struck the Coromandel at the start of 2023 and ended up selling for $375,000 at a packed and lively auction.
Another high-profile $1 reserve auction that took place last year actually ended with the property selling for $1. The owner of the troubled four-bedroom apartment on Carrington Road, in Mount Albert, Auckland, had been looking for someone to take the property off her hands.
- Additional reporting Mitchell Hageman
- Click here to find more properties for sale in Haumoana
