Wander up the driveway towards Upland House to experience a total assault of the senses – in a very good way. The tree-lined driveway opens up to reveal a stately mansion that looks like it could have stepped straight off the pages of a Jane Austen novel.
Step into the foyer and be awed by a magnificent solid kauri staircase that winds up to the bedroom level, passing under an opulent chandelier that twinkles in the light. Outside, wide open lawns hemmed with hedges ooze old-world British charm.
How the current owners found Upland House is quite serendipitous.
“We were looking for a weekend cottage so we could get away from the city. We had two criteria: we didn’t want to be able to see any neighbours, and we didn’t want any road noise,” they say.
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“Upland House was the only thing that ticked all our boxes – but it was triple the price and 10 times the size we were envisaging. But we instantly fell in love with the property … and sometimes there’s not a lot you can do when that happens.”
Seventeen years later, the owners can’t imagine life any other way.
“We thought we’d continue living in the city and work on the house one room at a time, but we ended up loving the house so much we moved here full-time. We could see massive potential. We’ve renovated the home exactly how we wanted it to be while doing our best to respect the heritage of the home.”
Upland House at 62 Hamilton Road in Waimauku, Rodney, is on the market for sale by deadline closing April 18. The five-bedroom, three-bathroom residence on 5.7 hectares has a 2021 RV of $2.85 million and, according to OneRoof data, last changed hands in 2008 for $2m.
The residence sits on 5.7 hectares with a tree-lined driveway leading up to a mansion that could have stepped straight off the pages of a Jane Austen novel. Photo / Supplied
The magnificent solid kauri staircase winds up to the bedroom level, passing under an opulent chandelier. Photo / Supplied
In the early 1980s, the previous owners relocated the home to Waimauku from Upland Road in Remuera (hence the name). They turned it into a big family home where they raised their family.
“The space in the house is just spectacular. The rooms are all very big, and the high Victorian ceilings give the home a real sense of permanence and magnificence.”
While the house oozes old-world elegance, the centre of the home – the kitchen – is a modern masterpiece fit for a chef. And it should be: one of the owners is a trained chef.
“I needed a kitchen that worked for me so that was one thing I did especially for myself: create my ideal kitchen.”
Outside, 14 acres of land offer endless options from grazing animals (“We have cows, chickens, ducks and guinea fowl”), to holding wonderful garden parties, right through to opening the gates to host boutique weddings.
“We had our own wedding on the lawn right in front of the house which was just wonderful. We are very close to our neighbours and regularly host wee gatherings here; why go out when we have this wonderful space right here at home?”
One of the owners is a chef so the kitchen is, of course, a chef’s delight. Photo / Supplied
Barfoot & Thompson agent Lani Allard says Upland House is a one-of-a-kind on the current Auckland property market. Photo / Supplied
Barfoot & Thompson agent Lani Allard says Upland House is a one-of-a-kind on the current Auckland property market.
“The opulence and elegance of Upland House really needs to be seen to be believed. The current owners have left no corner unturned in their reimagining of the property, and the result is something that’s truly spectacular. It’s remarkable to think that an estate of this size and calibre is so close to the centre of Auckland,” she says.
The owners have poured their hearts and souls into Upland House but it’s time for them to bid it farewell.
“This is very much a house that needs company and people in it but now so much of our time is spent on our business so we don’t have the same time to spend here. We just hope the next people who make Upland House their own will treat her as well as she’s treated us,” the owners say.
- Sponsored by Barfoot & Thompson
