A striking concrete and glass house on Auckland’s Herne Bay waterfront had a buyer offer within three days of going on the market.
But Wall Real Estate agent Ollie Wall, who is marketing the four-bedroom, 363sqm home at an undisclosed address, with Andrew Wall, said that was too soon.
“We’ve had serious interest, more interest than anything else we’ve got on the market, but it was too early,” he told OneRoof.
“We thought it best to let the set sale process run its course to give other buyers the opportunity.”
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The set sale closes March 21.
While he could not be drawn on the likely price of the property, which has a CV of $7 million, he pointed to a neighbouring sale, a waterfront property, down a right of way from the street, that sold for $14m three years ago.
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That was an original 1960s three-bedroom place, with two two-bedroom apartments and two studios on the lower floors, on a similarly-sized 1138sqm section that also came with a boat ramp and boathouse.
“We would expect the price on the Patterson-designed house to be higher, given it is a contemporary home and runs all the way from the water to the street,” Wall said.
The waterfront property comes with a boat ramp and a mooring out on the harbour. Photo / Supplied
The renovation features Patterson’s signature fluted concrete on the entrance, as well as a hidden James Bond-style underground parking pad. Photo / Supplied
The house shares a neighbourhood with rich-lister Rod Duke, whose multi-million-dollar spread, complete with enlarged boat shed (and, for a time, controversy over helicopter landing rights) is now valued at $21m.
Wall said interest was high, mostly from locals keen to finally nab a rare waterfront property.
“It fits in the category of appealing to people who’ve always said ‘one day I’ll live on the water’, a lot of people have had an eye on this place but never known what it was like inside.
“Most are empty-nesters, drawn to living on one level, with a property that doesn’t take much to look after.”
Wall said that surprisingly few sleek modern places come to the market in Herne Bay, drawing parallels between this one and a very similar Stephens Lawson-designed house on the water on Marine Parade that sold in a private deal for $20.75m in mid-2022.
At the time Wall said the agents had a list of people looking for Herne Bay waterfront and had had five people in the last two years asking them to approach the Marine Parade owners before it was sold.
The property features a signature curving staircase. Photo / Supplied
The two-storey property is close to another waterfront property, this one untouched since the 1960s, that sold for $14m. Photo / Supplied
“People finally say ‘we’re ready’,” he said, adding that this vendor, after 13 years in the house was looking for a new project and had a place out of town.
Wall said that some people looking for Herne Bay waterfront were very specific about wanting a modern and architect-designed home, not a villa.
He said the two-level house was completely redesigned nine years ago by top architect Andrew Patterson who used many of his signature touches – a spiral staircase, cleverly inserted skylights, curved walls and fluted concrete at the entrance. Full height doors, many of them pivoting or sliding into pockets, make for sleek lines of sight.
The principal ensuite is a huge stone tile-clad room where the sculptural tub is bathed in light, while the kitchen features mosaic finger tiles and integrated appliances. The refurbishment brought in wide plank oak floors on the upper floor, with carpet on the lower floor bedrooms.
Particularly intriguing at viewings, Wall said, was the James Bond-style motor-operated underground garage: at the push of a button, a section of the driveway lifts up for vehicles to drive on, before being lowered under the driveway.
“I've got to say, reaction is mixed,” laughed Wall. “But they do this in Europe and the States all the time.”
The house design gets rave reviews, starting from the entry through a path of tropical plants to the huge pivot front door. A step around the curved entry hall and staircase reveals up-close the views of the Waitemata Harbour and across to Chelsea Sugar Works.
The interiors of the house are tastefully presented. Photo / Supplied
The house has attracted interest from empty-nesters and families. Photo / Supplied
“Patterson turned it into a bachelor pad. We’ve had lots of empty-nesters looking, but also families who liked the two levels of living.”
The appeal of the house, he said, was that while it worked well for a single person or couple as the principal bedroom suite and office were all on the same ground-floor entry level as well as the living room, kitchen and outdoor terrace for an apartment-like vibe, there was a whole lower floor for family or guests.
The lower ground floor has three more bedrooms (one used as a gym), bathrooms, laundry and a family room opening to a second covered terrace and out to the pool. It even has its own separate entrance from the street, with stairs snaking past a tropical garden and pond courtyard, so that guests can come and go privately.
The unexpected secret of the house is that it has its own boat ramp at the bottom of the garden – only an exclusive handful of Herne Bay properties have one. Even more rare, the house comes with title to a mooring out in the harbour, just beside tiny Watchman Island.
“You can tie up your tender or kayak at the bottom of the garden and then putter out to the yacht. I didn’t even know these moorings existed, it was an Auckland secret to me,” said Wall.
Patterson, who has won multiple New Zealand National Awards for Architecture and featured in many national and international design magazines, is known for his work on the New Plymouth’s Govett-Brewster Art Gallery’s Len Lye Centre and the stunning building at Parihoa Farm, near Muriwai, that featured in the Great Kiwi Bake Off television show.
Another architect-designed renovation in nearby Ponsonby is also on the market. David Ponting, better known for his sleek concrete and glass creations, is selling his office and home that he converted from the former Buffalo Hall.
The property at 5 Islington Street, Ponsonby, is being marketed by Ray White agents Chloe and Scott Wither, with a set sale closing March 26.
- The Herne Bay waterfront home has a set sale date of March 21.
