A luxury three-bedroom home in Auckland's eastern beaches sold for $5.5m just two days after going on the market.
Barfoot & Thompson agent Paul Neshausen, who marketed the property on Auckland Road, in St Heliers, said he had listed the home on Friday and had it sold by Sunday.
“We’d listed it with an asking price to see what the market would do. It sold for asking price, that’s awesome.
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“There are hardly any high-end properties. There just aren’t enough to go around.”
He says that the nearly 300sqm two-year old house, appealed to downsizers and retirees, drawn to the popular seaside village for its walks and lifestyle. Over 40 groups viewed the house in its first weekend. He adds that the buyers, moving across town to be near the beach, are typical of the market.
The house, which attracted over 40 groups of buyers in the first weekend of marketing, had luxury finishes and a sea view. Photo / Supplied
“A sea view or a beach house, that’s what they want. There are expats returning from overseas, but lots of people are upgrading. More people are working from home so they want a professional set-up, not the fourth bedroom, they’ve not travelled for two years so have a spare bit of cash and go ‘let’s upgrade the house’.”
Neshausen says that it was a sign of the times that the buyers had been looking since the beginning of the year, so moved quickly.
“They were becoming despondent and they recognised there was hardly anything like it out there of this quality. When you get a quality place, you nab it.”
He says the two-storey masonry construction house, around the corner from Tamaki Drive, was designed by architects Sumich Chaplin who know what the eastern suburbs want. The house has gated security, ducted air conditioning, tropical gardens and a covered loggia with views across the Waitemata, and finishes included French oak, Indian sandstone and white marble in the kitchen.
Barfoot & Thompson agent Paul Neshausen says buyers want shop-style wardrobes, huge kitchens and sculleries and plenty of garaging. Photo / Supplied
That size property is at the low end, he adds, with even downsizers looking for big properties of 600sqm or more.
“Even downsizers need four bedrooms and two lounges, they want a better function and flow than the big old villa in Remuera, and no maintenance. They need the walk-in wardrobe that’s as big as a room, it’s like walking into a shop. The kitchen’s big and there’s a scullery the size of a regular kitchen with a second set of appliances. Definitely four-car garaging, a pool, a gym, a sauna, a wine room.
Top-end buyers demand quality finishes and architect design, says the agent. Photo / Supplied
“They’re selling a five, six or seven million dollar place and ‘downsizing’ to three, four or five million dollars. Not everyone’s got mortgages, so there isn’t any inkling that a 2% rise [in mortgage interest rates] will make any difference.”
Neshausen says that supply is so short for these houses that he is now working with developers to build large luxury single homes with all the bells and whistles, rather than subdivide plots into smaller townhouses.
“The market is there, there is so many more properties required. It can’t be a builder job, it has to be a name architect, buyers can tell the difference. Those $350,000 to $500,000 fees are money well spent.”
