The owners of a Cambridge lifestyle property have sold it for exactly what they paid for it 13 months earlier despite keeping almost half of the section for themselves.
The four-bedroom, two-bathroom home on a 2691sqm section Thornton Road was only on the market for four days when an acceptable pre-auction offer of $1.53m was made.
The $1.53m sale price, which was confirmed two days later in a brought-forward auction at Bayleys Hamilton's auction room, was exactly the same figure the vendors paid for it in April 2023 when they purchased it with a larger 4491sqm site.
Bayleys listing agent Sacha Webb said the owners purchased the property and then decided to subdivide the property to create an empty section to build their new home on.
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The original home on its smaller section became surplus to requirements so was put back on the market for sale earlier this month.
Webb said the purchasers, who were from the Waikato, had missed out on the property when it was for sale last year and had been able to secure it this time round.
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Despite the brick home being on a smaller section, Webb said it was a "fabulous" home and still offered good value.
There had also been conditional buyers waiting in the wings for the property, she said.
Thornton Road was viewed as one of Cambridge’s best streets, she said, and the enclave of rural residential properties on Thornton Road attracted a lot of interest each time they hit the market.
“They are a cross between residential and rural. Before Cambridge expanded so much they were on the outskirts, but now they are not, they are right there on the edge of town.”
The spacious home was spread over two levels and included a modern open-plan kitchen and full-kids wing. Photo / Supplied
A heritage-protected villa on one of Cambridge's best streets Thornton Road is to be sold at auction in mid-June. Photo / Supplied
Earlier this year a neighbouring five-bedroom, two-bathroom home on a 2450sqm section sold for $1.58m, while an empty section also on Thorton Road fetched $850,000.
Webb said the properties tended to attract families or people looking to downsize from the country.
“They were my busiest open homes this year so that does attract people having that extra space.”
More-RE director Peter Tong agreed that Thornton Road was one of the best streets in Cambridge due to its sought-after location to Lake Te Koo Utu and the CBD.
At the other end of the street at 2 Thornton Road and closer to the town, a heritage-protected home on a large corner site directly across from the iconic St Andrew's Anglican Church is for sale.
The four-bedroom, three-bathroom property was designed by Auckland-based architect WJ Wrigley and built in 1902 by seaman William Earl, who named it Orongo after the Thames district he was from.
Some of the home's impressive features such as the French fireplace and Kauri floorboards date back to the early 1900s. Photo / Supplied
Earl sourced French tiles for the fireplace and used pressed zine for the ceilings and walls in the office or fourth bedroom, which were still impressive features of the home.
It also boasted original Kauri floors, chandeliers, sash windows and a claw-foot bath.
“It’s a real landmark,” Tong said.
“It would have been one of the premium homes in Cambridge when built.”
The home originally stood on a much larger land holding, but over the years had shrunk down to its current 1644sqm section. Some of that land is now occupied by the Cambridge Kindergarten.
“It’s just so central and there are some lovely homes around there,” he said.
“You wander through the park to the lake or wander to the town further to the township.”
The current owners had enjoyed the property as their family home since 2012 and even added a pool, he said. It had previously been run as a bed and breakfast and had three-ensuited bedrooms.
The property, which has an RV of $2.07m, is to be sold at auction on 14 June.
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