- Wealthy buyers are interested in a 2ha waterfront plot in Point Wells, Matakana.
- Bayleys agent John Greenwood says Omaha’s elite are looking for privacy, lattes and a “pretty good party”.
- The plot allows for intensive development, attracting those wanting to build multi-family estates.
Huge numbers of Omaha owners are checking out a 2ha waterfront plot for sale in the area’s latest enclave for the very wealthy, located over the causeway in Point Wells, Matakana, says Bayleys coastal specialist John Greenwood.
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Some of those owners have outgrown the jet skis and buzz of the flash beach suburb, where former Prime Minister Sir John Key once had a house, instead wanting a lifestyle block – but one close enough to their friends and the local coffee shop.
Omaha was still an aspirational suburb to break into, and very beachy, Greenwood told OneRoof.
The plot is zoned for development, and could suit those wanting to build a multi-family estate. Photo / Supplied
“But when you’re looking at $10m for a house on the beach and there are houses next door to you on both sides, it’s not quite as private as you used to think it was when you were younger and you wanted all that activity.
“As the people get a little bit older they decide, ‘No, we’ve done Omaha’ and so that’s the big driver for it.”
And Matakana had become a brand in its own right, he said.
“It’s got the markets and it’s got the shops and it’s got the theatres. Look, in the old days everyone was looking for the good old Kiwi bach. They are no longer. They want the lattes. They want the community,” Greenwood said.
“The people who are looking at this are people who love to have their friends around, and this is two hectares, you can have a pretty good party there and invite people so they will come to your [estate] rather than to your house at Omaha.”
Point Wells was essentially a subdivision but with about 10 or 12 big waterfront lots – and this one was the last of them, Greenwood said.
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It had a rural zoning which allowed for intensive development, such as two houses and sheds large enough for all the toys the wealthy tended to have, like multiple cars and boats.
“There are big homes right along there because of the land size. Originally, it was a big farm owned by one of the locals up there.”
The site was one back from the bridge to Omaha and next door to The Farmer’s Daughter coffee shop, and came with a private freehold title. That meant a Lotto winner could buy the land and build a mansion on it.
Often people at the upper level of the market would build a modest home first to “try it out” before committing to spending $5m or $10m on the main spread, Greenwood said.
For this property, people were thinking about building a family compound: “The intent of anyone who is looking at this would be a generational thing, to have enough land to be able to build two houses, so the big family home and then another house for the kids and a big band to play in and have all the toys.”
The section is directly across the water from Omaha, in the up-and-coming suburb of Point Wells. Photo / Supplied
The beach itself was tidal but sandy, not muddy, he said.
“It’s fantastic for wind surfing, kayaking, paddling, launching your little tinny off the back of a Massey Ferguson tractor – I mean, we’re talking posh Massey Ferguson tractor,” Greenwood said.
“You can drive straight off the front lawn straight on to the sandy frontage and, of course, when the tide is in it’s absolutely stunning – for kids, unbelievably safe.”
Outside of interest from Omaha locals, the bulk of the inquiry was from Aucklanders.
“People want to go north but less than an hour is such a big criteria. It used to be over an hour until the motorway came in, but now it has that area has gone berserk.”
Three years ago buyers paid $12m for a former mandarin orchard further along from this site, which was double the size at 4.4ha.
Precision agent Di Balich brokered the deal and told OneRoof at the time the offering was unique and that the owners knew the area well.
“They just saw it and fell in love with it. It crystallised all their dreams. They want to build a family compound,” she said, saying the existing 150sqm house on the site would be handy accommodation while plans were put in place for a new build.
Balich said buyers looking for big waterfront plots to build multi-family estates was an emerging trend in the area.
“I had at least four buyers looking seriously. They’re very specific and prepared to wait for the right thing. They’ll say ‘just let me know if there’s anything else like that’.”
- 331 Omaha Flats Road, Matakana, Auckland, is for sale by way of tender, closing February 20
