One of Auckland's most admired heritage homes has sold for $14.15 million, OneRoof can reveal.
The sale was brokered in November last year by Barfoot and Thompson agents Leila and David MacDonald but the sale price could not be disclosed until now due to a lengthy settlement.
The buyer's name and details remain private.
The six-bedroom four-level mansion, known as St Ann's, has a 2017 CV of $12.25m and was put on the market in 2019 by its owner, John Strevens, the former deputy mayor of Auckland.
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It sits on 3062sqm section at the top of one of Auckland's most coveted streets, Arney Road, in Remuera.
It was built in 1914 by renowned New Zealand architect Benjamin Chilwell for Charles Nathan, whose merchant and brewing family founded L.D Nathan & Co.
Artist Katherine Strevens hand-painted many of the extraordinary walls and ceilings in the house. Photo / Ted Baghurst
The library is based on the library of author Sir Walter Scott. Photo / Ted Baghurst
Strevens and his artist wife Katherine had bought the house in the 1980s for $712,000 after it had been turned into the headquarters for the Teachers Kindergarten Training Centre during the 1950s and 1960s.
The couple told OneRoof in March last year that they had enjoyed turning the house back into a family home.
“We had five children back in the 1980s, so we needed a big home,” Katherine told OneRoof. “Some neighbours who knew what we were looking for alerted us to the fact that it was on the market.”
The design for the birds and foliage on the dining room walls was based on those at Brighton Pavilion in Sussex, England. Photo / Ted Baghurst
Gracious details on panels and fireplaces speak of another era. Photo / Ted Baghurst
Katherine said John had commissioned alterations to the property throughout the years and used famous designs as inspiration.
Katherine's own work can be seen throughout the home, including the dining room which has been hand-painted in the style of Chinese wallpaper with more than 60 birds.
The formal library with a brass balcony was modelled on that owned by Scottish author Sir Walter Scott. And the couple's daughter, Helen Strevens, designed the folly, coated in copper plates, at the end of the garden based on a pavilion in Stockholm.
Katherine and John said they were selling up in order to downsize.
Leila MacDonald told OneRoof last year that the listing was one she had coveted. "I had sent letters to the Strevens over the years and really tried [to get them to sell], so now it's very exciting."
