A luxury mansion on the hills above Queenstown that has hosted rich-listers and a slew of celebrities went on the market today asking $35 million.
When it sells, the 900sqm Mason & Wales Architects-designed stone mansion on 10 Pinnacle Point, Queenstown, will shatter recent New Zealand house price records. New Zealand’s top price is still the $38.5m paid in 2013 for disgraced financier Mark Hotchin’s mansion on Auckland’s Paritai Drive, while the Coatesville country spread once known as the Dotcom mansion was bought by the Zuru toys founding family, siblings Anna, Mat and Nick Mowbray, for $32.5m in 2016.
The Queenstown property is being marketed by Premium Real Estate agent Hamish Walker, who was last seen on television screens spruiking $20m mansions around the region to the North Island agents in the reality show Rich Listers.
Walker, who has shed the floral jacket and repartee of the show, is seriously expecting the property to sell for the asking price.
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“They had an offer pretty close to that in 2020 but the purchaser did not get Overseas Investment Office approval. You’ll see the CV of $12m is a wee way off,” he said, with Southland understatement.
When the Kiwi owners aren’t in residence, the luxury four-bedroom home is rented out at $30,000 a night. Guests – who obviously can’t be named – include a Bitcoin billionaire, a soccer superstar, and one of the world’s most talented Grammy and Oscar-winning singer/songwriters, Walker said. As well as the amenities of the house, and its spectacular views, he said the privacy of the gated community with only 12 homes appealed to high-end visitors.
The house at 10 Pinnacle Place has breathtaking 360-degree views over Queenstown, the lake and mountains. Photo / Supplied
The property, rented out at $30,000 a night, has hosted sports stars, musicians and even a Bitcoin billionaire. Photo / Supplied
“It’s got the best views in Queenstown, the nicest property on the market.
“There’s a flight to quality in the mountains, and that supply is limited.”
Walker said he expected buyers to come from eastern Australia and Singapore, neither of which require OIO approval to purchase the property on the 1875sqm site, as well as Kiwi expats living around the globe and a small number from Auckland. Walker said he has a global network of New Zealanders and regularly visits Singapore to promote Queenstown Lakes properties.
“I am dealing with a number of properties worth over $10m currently and the buyers are still very much here in this space,” he said.
The hillside property, an easy stroll to the city centre, backs onto a nature reserve for added privacy.
Even the bathroom has stunning views over Queenstown, with its own outdoor yoga/meditation space to the left. Photo / Supplied
The kitchen includes top-of-the-range appliances and a butler's pantry. Photo / Supplied
The glass-walled garage is designed to showcase the owners' cars in style. Photo / Supplied
Walker said that while off-the-plan deals had been done this year for $27.75m and $18m for houses in a new gated community on Forest Line Rise, with more deals between $16m and $22.5m at exclusive Wyuna Preserve, this will set records for the city of Queenstown.
Earlier this year a Singaporean philanthropist paid over $30m for the 18,000-hectare alpine station at Half Way Bay at the top of Lake Wakatipu.
Mason & Wales architect Francis Whitaker, who designed the house and many other luxury properties Queenstown, said the homes he builds are “simple houses in a beautiful environment”.
“If you don’t have the environment, then it will not work, and we have the most stupendously beautiful physical environments,” he earlier told One Roof, adding that clients like this are well-travelled and well-educated “aesthetes of life”.
Even the home gym has a view that overlooks the lake. Photo / Supplied
The outdoor living room and fireplace. Photo / Supplied
“They know they should pay for something that is really special, and they do their research thoroughly,” he said.
The three-level house, named Stelvio after the mountain pass on the Italian border with Switzerland, has uninterrupted 360-degree views across Lake Wakatipu. The long narrow house, dug into the hillside, features locally-sourced stone and solid oak interiors. As well as the expected home automation system for entertainment, security and heating, a kitchen with international brand appliances and catering butler's pantry and multiple living rooms, there is also a study, gym, bar and recreation room, a cinema, wine cave and an office with what must be the country’s best work-from-home views and private self-contained quarters for staff or guests.
The crystal light fixture is one of only two in the world, the other is in the Hermes Paris shop. Photo / Supplied
The private cinema. The house also has a games/billiards room and a wine cave. Photo / Supplied
The luxury touches include a crystal light fixture over the main stairwell, one of only two made in the world (the other is in the Hermes Paris store).
On the lower floor, the six-car garage is wrapped in glass, turning it into a sparkling gallery for high-end vehicles
Outside, as well as the sunken lounge around an outdoor fireplace, a barbecue area and spa, there’s a yoga/meditation platform to take in the views.
The home won builders, Queenstown’s Triple Star Management, a gold medal for homes over $2m in the Southern Region Registered Master Builders House of the Year competition in 2016, the year it was completed.
