- Auckland unit with compliance issues had been languishing on the market.
- Life-saving renovation results in $625,000 sale to first-home buyer.
- Builder carried out the work for a share of the profit, but the project was a nightmare in parts.
A smart, but stressful renovation has saved an unsaleable one-bedroom unit from the scrap heap.
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The apartment, on Princes Street, in Auckland’s Northcote Point, was snapped up by a first-home buyer for $625,000 at the start of the month.
The sale was the result of a miraculous intervention by builder Jared Simm.
The property first hit the market in 2022 as part of an estate sale. A buyer had offered to pay $520,000 for the unit but pulled out after discovering that it did not have a code of compliance certificate for extension work carried out in the 1990s.
Simm, who has a reputation on the North Shore for bringing homes back to life, told OneRoof the listing agent had asked him to help out. The property had been on the market for a year since the collapse of the $520,000 sale and was “pretty much dead”, he said.
Before: The Princes Street unit had a basic kitchen and brown carpet. Photo / Supplied
After: The renovation included a brand-new modern kitchen and bathroom and new flooring throughout. Photo / Supplied
“They couldn’t sell it because no one could get lending on it. I think they had some cheeky investors offering them bugger all basically.”
The owners, who had inherited the property following the death of a family member, had looked at how much it would cost them to fix the CCC issues. Quotes ranged from $31,000 to $63,000, not including consultant fees.
They decided instead to engage Simm, who funded the repair and renovation work himself for a share of any profit made above the previous highest offer of $520,000.
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Simm, whose projects usually focus on mainly cosmetic renovations and minor remodelling, said getting the code of compliance was both costly and lengthy - blowing out what would usually be a one-month renovation to two months. “They [the council] don’t make things easy and they don’t make things cheap.”
As part of the project, Simm had to rebuild a problematic wall. Sign-off required the work of an architect and an engineer and took six building inspections.
“We had to rebuild the wall and get it engineered. We had plans done and it was actually quite a nightmare. It was quite full-on just for a small wall,” he said, adding that that part of the renovation cost $28,000.
The renovated home was well-presented and was a hit with first-home buyers. Photo / Supplied
A further $30,000 was spent on transforming the basic one-bedroom unit into a modern masterpiece with a sleek dark kitchen, herringbone flooring, a new bathroom, and new wiring.
The 50sqm unit re-hit the market at the end of October and within 25 days was under offer to a first-home buyer, settling last week.
Simm said it was great to see the unit go to a first-time buyer because prior to the renovation there was no way they would have got lending or insurance.
The family member who was handling the sale was also relieved to have finally sold the property and could now move on, he said. “It’s been so long. It’s been almost a year and a half now. She’s like, ‘Oh my God, I cannot believe it’s taken this long’, but she’s happy.”
- Click here to find more properties for sale in Northcote Point
