- A Ron Sang-designed waterfront home in West Harbour is heading to auction on March 26.
- The four-bedroom house offers 270-degree views and sits on a 1588sqm section.
- West Harbour is popular, with high property prices and unique architectural homes.
When Prince William and Kate toured Auckland Harbour on a Sealegs boat in 2014, the owners of a Ron Sang-designed waterfront home in West Harbour had prime seats.
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Those seats happened to be in their own home at 25 Oakpark Place, which is now on the market and going to auction on March 26.
The vendors have owned the iconic house for 24 years, and their son told OneRoof the 270-degree views meant there was always something to see, but the view of the royal couple was a highlight.
He said his parents were downsizing but the decision to sell was difficult, as the house was something they fell in love with “every day”.
The property offers breathtaking sea views. Photo / Supplied
“When you walk through the front door you’ve got the trifecta of the sea, boats and then the Auckland skyline behind, and it just pulls you into its beauty. It makes time stop for a moment,” he told OneRoof.
“With the Ron Sang design, as well, you’ve got a massive, probably four-metre by three-metre window and all you see is blue – blue sky, blue water and boats.”
The vendors’ son said the four-bedroom house was spacious, but it also sat on a 1588sqm section, one of the largest waterfront sites in West Harbour.
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Listing agent Craig Bradshaw, from Barfoot & Thompson, said a single level house designed by a renowned architect on such a big waterfront site was hard to find.
The property, which has an RV of $3 million, is only minutes from another architecturally-designed house that Bradshaw has for sale on West Harbour Drive.
This colourful property was designed by Bossley Architects, a prominent firm led by Pete Bossley, who was known for his innovative residential, commercial and civic works.
This house has an RV of $2.23m and while there had been a lot of offers, the price had not yet been met, Bradshaw said.
A run-down house next door sold recently in a liquidator sale.
Agent Mike Williams, of Bayleys, could not reveal the price of that one, but said demolition was on the table.
A five-bedroom home for sale at 133 West Harbour Drive was designed by renowned architecture firm Bossley Architects. Photo / Supplied Photo / Supplied
A run-down property on West Harbour Drive recently sold at the instruction of the liquidator. It had an RV of $680,000 – only $20,000 of which is improvement. Photo / Supplied Photo / Supplied
Bradshaw said West Harbour was a popular area, attracting people from the North Shore and East Auckland.
Despite those locations being coastal, people liked the combined city and water view as opposed to just water, because with just water there was no view at night, he said.
People were also drawn to the amenities – the new Costco was near and there were plenty of supermarkets.
West Harbour, he said, was probably the only suburb in the west whose high prices remained since the housing market took a dive after the post-Covid highs.
Titirangi aside, most of West Auckland was brick and tile homes or new terrace housing but West Harbour had architectural gems.
“I don’t think the house type is comparable to anywhere in Auckland because you’ve got places like Mansion Court in West Harbour where all the houses are mansions – they really are all built like mansions, so you’ve got really, really big houses.”
Prices in West Harbour were “almost” creeping up to central Auckland suburb prices, but with a lot more bang for your buck, he said.
“The difference is you buy into central Auckland for $2m or $3m, you may get a villa, you may get an old house, but you’re not getting anything else.”
In West Harbour, however, that money would buy something architectural, and a lot more house.
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