Former Hamilton mayor Andrew King has sold the central city mansion he lived in while leading the council to a group of developers for an eye-watering $5.5 million.
The large Liverpool Street bungalow sold off-market in March last year, but didn’t settle until this year, property records show.
The city's second-highest record-breaking sale also happened at the end of 2021 and, again, did not come to light until this year. The luxury home on Lake Crescent, in Hamilton Lake, sold in November for $4.605m.
King, who owns a raft of properties in the city, purchased the 115-year-old house for $2.05m in 2017, several months after being elected as the city’s mayor.
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When approached by OneRoof, King said he would not comment on the sale now or in the future.
However, he told Stuff at the time of purchasing the five-bedroom, three-bathroom bungalow with river views that it was a stark contrast from the previous homes he had lived in. Prior to moving to central city to be close to the council’s offices, he had lived on the outskirts of Dinsdale.
While the house was not flamboyant, he was reported saying it would be “practical and it's probably a house that will really suit me as mayor. And it will be lovely for my wife as well to have a nice, grand house.”
Former Hamilton mayor Andrew King bought the Liverpool Street home for $2.05m in 2017, records show. Photo / New Zealand Herald
A luxury home on Lake Crescent, in Hamilton Lake, sold in November last year for just over $4.6m. Photo / Supplied
Under King’s ownership, a large retaining wall was installed along the river bank.
He also paid for a black steel fence to be installed in front of the council road reserve beside his house as a “goodwill gesture” because he was concerned about someone falling down the slope. The 1.8m fence was erected after he had carried out extensive building work on his home.
The property’s RV rose 155% to $5.11m during the council’s rating revaluations last year with the 2782sqm section rising to $5.01m and the improvement value dropping to $100,000.
King and his wife Anne also sold a second property on Hardley Street that backed onto his residence at the same time for $1m – almost double what he paid for it in 2017, records show.
King, who failed to get re-elected as mayor for a second-term in 2019, told media earlier this year that he had his eye on becoming National’s candidate for the Hamilton West electorate which is expected to be selected within the next few months.
Wayne Shum, senior research analyst at OneRoof’s data partner, Valocity, said sales of $4m-plus showed the strength of demand for homes at the top end of Hamilton’s housing market.
Shum said often a premium was paid for some properties with development potential and longer settlements were often sought to give the seller time to find another property or in some cases to allow the developer time to get a consent.
A near-new home on Braid Road, overlooking the Waikato River and St Andrews golf club, is still touting for the title of the most expensive house in the city and is still on the market with an asking price of $6.49m.
This luxury home on Braid Road, next to Hamilton’s St Andrews golf club, has a price tag of $6.49m. Photo / Supplied
This four-bedroom home at 37 Queens Avenue, in Hamilton Lake, is billed as one of the city’s best. Photo / Supplied
The house, which is being marketed by New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty, comes with a walk-in wine cellar and golf simulator.
Meanwhile, a “large and elaborate” 524sqm home with granny flat overlooking Hamilton Lake on Queens Ave is, according to Bayleys listing agents Aaron Paterson and Ben Scaramuzza, “the most amazing house currently on the Hamilton market”.
And a penthouse apartment, which had an asking price of $2.5m prior to being sold, is soon to become the city’s most expensive apartment once the first stage of the Hills Village development is completed.
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