It’s turned out to be a little pocket of paradise, but Jeffrey Busbridge was unfamiliar with the suburb of Westmere until he and his partner Marty Minehan happened to see an advertisement for a house for sale there 11 years ago.
They were having a coffee in Herne Bay in between traipsing through open homes when they saw the listing, and decided to pop along to the open home on Sunny Brae Crescent that started 10 minutes later.
“I knew nothing about this part of Auckland,” Busbridge says. “I had no idea how special the location was.”
They were keen to buy the brand-new house that had been newly built on subdivided land overlooking Motions Creek and the Meola Reef Reserve, but someone else beat them to it.
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However, all was not lost; instead they managed to buy the state house on the adjacent site at 48B Sunny Brae Crescent, and after living there for two years, knocked it down to build a stunning, state-of-the-art home.
Walls of glass and the double height ceiling make the main living area feel incredibly light and airy. Photo / Supplied
“We absolutely love the house, and the location is just amazing,” Busbridge says. “We feel so lucky to be living here.”
The part of the Westmere peninsula that Sunny Brae Cres loops around is very quiet and peaceful, yet it’s just a short stroll to the shops and cafes on Garnet Road, and a quick drive into the city or to the motorway.
The neighbourhood has a great village feel, Busbridge says, and many of the original state houses have been replaced with executive-style homes.
The site on which 48B is built is flanked by established pohutukawas, where herons like to settle at dusk, chattering among themselves.
“The bird life is incredible,” Busbridge says. “We’ve got kowhai and flax that bring in the tui, plus we get morepork early in the morning and late at night, and also kingfishers and piwakawaka.”
The decor is stylish white, black and grey with pops of brilliant red, including on the kitchen splashback. Photo / Supplied
The contemporary house has been carefully designed to make the most of the setting. Plans had been drawn up by Jones Architects, who designed the house next door, and having lived on the site for two years, Busbridge and Minehan made a few changes, including relocating the garage and expanding the kitchen, which has a scullery and wine storage.
Built eight years ago but still appearing brand-new, the home is spread over two storeys. On the entry level is the double garage, two large bedrooms – each with an ensuite and walk-in wardrobe – and a study which is open to the living area below.
Downstairs, along with two more bedrooms, a laundry and a server room housing all the automation in the home, is the open-plan living, dining and kitchen, and a separate TV room.
Downstairs is two bedrooms, a laundry and server room, the open-plan living, dining and kitchen, and a TV room. Photo / Supplied
Walls of glass and the double height ceiling make the main living area feel incredibly light and airy. In winter the low afternoon sun comes in through the windows and heats the concrete slab floor, which then radiates heat all evening.
The TV room has a home cinema with surround sound, the speakers concealed in the GIB board. Black American oak has been used throughout the home to tie in the different areas – it features on the kitchen breakfast bar, TV room shelving, bathroom vanities and the desk in the study.
The decor is stylish white, black and grey with pops of brilliant red, including on the kitchen splashback. Outside, the swimming pool butts up against the side of the house where the TV room is.
Built eight years ago, the home at 48B Sunny Brae Crescent is spread over two storeys. Photo / Supplied
The north-west facing deck is perfect for entertaining, and there’s an outdoor bathroom so nobody needs to drip water through the house after a swim.
“We put a lot of thought into this house,” Busbridge says. “It’s a big place but we have used every part of it really well.”
They’re now downsizing to a city apartment and buying land out of Auckland on which they’ll build another home likely to include some of the features they’ve loved so much about the Westmere house.
Bayleys agent Blair Haddow, who is marketing the property, says it’s the kind of house you really have to visit to appreciate.
“It’s an exceptional home that has been beautifully built – the quality is outstanding. And then you have the superb location – it really is a great opportunity to live somewhere special.”
48B Sunny Brae Crescent in Westmere will be sold at auction on December 8.
