- Heather Walton and husband Mark Bycroft are selling their Matakana property, which they transformed into a country retreat.
- The property features a renovated three-bedroom cottage and a two-bedroom guest house.
- The couple plan to buy a house at Omaha for Walton’s new role at Bayleys Real Estate.
Real estate power couple Heather Walton and Mark Bycroft are selling their “dream” property in Auckland’s lifestyle fringe.
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The pair bought the lifestyle block at 897 Matakana Road in 2021 and quickly transformed the main cottage and adjoining barn into a country retreat and a base for their real estate business.
The property will be a familiar sight to holiday-makers driving through Matakana on the way to the beach at Omaha.
The renovated property, which has a three-bedroom cottage and a two-bedroom guest house, has been pitched as a home and income opportunity. Photo / Supplied
Walton and Board & Batten’s designer Jordy Cochrane added several luxury touches, including a bar and outdoor dining area. Photo / Supplied
It was previously the home of Board & Batten Interior Design Studio, which was run by local interior designer Deb Crowe. Walton and Bycroft knew it would suit their needs as they shifted their focus from homes in Auckland’s double grammar zone to Omaha’s luxury bach market.
“We bought it the day it went on the market in April 2021,” Bycroft told OneRoof. “We knew Deb and like everyone else had been through the studio to buy bits and pieces.
“This was going to be our country retreat – we wanted people to come here and stay and holiday.”
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Bycroft said the couple were now spending most of their time at their new home in nearby Mahurangi Harbour, so they decided to put the Matakana retreat on the market for sale.
The property, which has an RV of $2.6 million and 2464sqm of land, comprises a three-bedroom cottage and a two-bedroom guest house.
Bycroft said Walton and Board & Batten designer Jordy Cochrane had just completed a top-to-toe makeover of the 1940s cottage (Bycroft estimates a budget of $500,000, although he wasn’t counting).
New features include a stone and tile bathroom, a powder room, a modern laundry, and a bar that opens to a covered deck.
The adjoining barn is stylishly presented. Photo / Supplied
Bycroft said the property had already attracted huge interest. “We see retail or designers, professionals, architects or lawyers, a kitchen company coming in here. It’s such an appealing space, with its work-from-home zoning,” he said.
“There are so many gorgeous spots, everywhere. The water fountain was the last thing Deb did for us. It’s such a nice touch.”
Bycroft and Walton bought the former James Hardie mansion on Ridge Road, in Mahurangi East, last year for $4.1m, below the advertised price of $4.599m. The pair had just sold their renovated Omaha bach for $5.6m and were looking for a change and new challenges.
Walton has just joined Bayleys Real Estate and has had quite a rollercoaster life. In her autobiography, Rags to Riches to Real Me, written during Covid, she tells of her disastrous first marriage, how she was bankrupted after being locked out of $60m of assets she had built up with her former husband, and how she then went on to establish a successful career in real estate.
She told OneRoof at the time of its release: “I wanted to share my story [so people can] learn how to acquire wealth and happiness, create your own truth, and live your best life, just like I did.”
The couple plan to buy a house at Omaha as the base for Walton’s new Bayleys job – although she joked that the golf courses at Omaha and Te Arai golf might make a better base.
- 897 Matakana Road, in Matakana, goes to auction on April 16
