Two stylish three-bedroom villas for sale in the Auckland suburb made famous by the fourth season of The Block NZ. One had Block history, the other didn’t, but both sold for the high sums buyers and sellers have to come to expect in today’s heated housing market.
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Snapped up last month for $1.925 million, the house at 40 Haig Avenue, in Sandringham, made an appearance on The Block NZ in 2015. It was one of the four villas to feature on the show, and was memorably renovated by sisters Sarah and Minanne Kong.
The sisters sold the villa on live TV for $1.272 million – a good price at the time, and one which handed them a profit of $123,000, although not enough to win the show.
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Fast forward five years and the sale of the villa at the end of October, through Anne Duncan Real Estate, netted the owners a profit $653,000.
The Block 2015 Villa Wars live auction and Sarah and Minanne Kong react as their house sells under the hammer. Photo / Supplied
There’s huge demand for villas in the suburb with modern interiors and quality finishes, as evidenced by this week’s auction of a three-bedroom villa at nearby 9 Royal Terrace.
That property, marketed by Barfoot and Thompson agents Ketiesha Elliot and Frank Excel, was bought by a local family for $2.4 million.
Excel told OneRoof bidding started at $1.8 million, with two parties competing to secure the home. “It was a good result. We had a happy purchaser and a happy vendor, which is always nice,” he said.
The kitchen and dining area of 40 Haig Avenue makes an impression. Photo / Supplied
According to OneRoof records the property last changed hands in 2018 for $1.62 million, handing the vendor a profit, on paper at least, of $780,000.
Barfoot and Thompson Mt Eden branch manager Ian Gray said buyer interest in villas in the $2.5 million price bracket had been extremely strong in recent months.
“A lot of villas on the market now are given the full treatment, are very well renovated and we’re not getting many do-ups.”
9 Royal Terrace, in Sandringham, sold for $2.4 million at auction. Photo / Supplied
He added: “We always get a lot of families who want move to grammar zone at this time of the year and there are people who also take that opportunity to leave if the area isn’t required for their children's education purposes.”
Gray said owner-occupier buyers were dominating the market in Sandringham and Mt Eden. “We are seeing a lot of people spending down and putting money into their businesses to keep them going and selling investment properties to do the same thing.”
The interior of 9 Royal Terrace was stylish and on trend for Auckland villas. Photo / Supplied
