A rustic lifestyle property insulated by straw bales that has only one 90-degree corner and an earthy-Mediterranean style vibe on the outskirts of Hamilton is for sale.
The one-of-a-kind five-bedroom, four-bathroom home at 65 Duncan Road in Ngahinapouri was literally hand-built by the current owners, Gayleen and Mark Putt, who wanted to develop a unique environmentally-friendly home.
This resulted in a 14-year labour of love for the couple who slowly built the home in several stages starting from the self-contained studio, then a separate living area with a kitchenette above the garage, and finally the main kitchen, lounge, bathroom and master bedroom.
“We had some pretty crazy ideas and then we talked to some architects who toned us down a little bit and we actually ended up using the architect our friend used in Koromatua,” Mark said.
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They were inspired by overseas builds in Europe and England that have stood the test of time and are still bought and sold 500 to 600 years on.
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“I’ve always sort of thought in New Zealand we just threw up stick houses just because we could and they were easy and then we ended up with a lot of people with asthma and sickness and that, because the houses were so cold and so damp. I just thought it would be much better to have a house that was natural, warm and authentic.”
Putt, a handyman by trade, explored a range of alternative building methods before eventually settling on using straw bales as insulation which is a technique that is being used in New Mexico to build houses in some of the poorer areas using waste product.
The straw was then covered with lime plaster using sand sourced from the Duncan Road site. All the walls in the main house are curved with the exception of one 90-degree corner in the laundry. "There's one corner in the house that has a 90-degree angle and that's it."
The master bedroom is octagonal. Photo / Supplied
The curved lime plaster walls and storage nooks create a Mediterranean feel. Photo / Supplied
“I’m a bit of a sculptor myself and I don’t appreciate anything being square. When it came to the walls, we didn’t want a mirror flat finish, we wanted the feeling that it had just been put together by hand. The whole house is hand built – it has a hand-built feel.”
It also has double-glazed joinery and the solar panels offset the power costs making it cheaper to run.
“All of the material is as natural as we could get. The majority of the timber is Macrocarpa due to being able to use in any conditions without treatment.”
Expecting the property to be their forever home, they included sentimental touches such as old Gregg's coffee jars that were Gayleen’s mum’s embedded into the wall in the hallway. Glass jars have also been taped and stacked together on one side of the entrance and grey stones cover the other.
Stacked glass jars and stones are a feature in the entrance. Photo / Supplied
“I look at it as a sculpture that is living,” Mark added.
They had intended for the home to be a gathering point for their adult children and the three separate self-contained areas means there is room for guests to stay or for it to be run as an Airbnb or possibly a wedding venue.
The couple are selling so they can move to Christchurch to be closer to their daughter and young grandchildren.
Mark said the property, overlooking the Ngahinapouri Golf Course, would suit someone with a bit of vision. “It could be a wonderful place for someone who wants to put a little bit more love into it and set it up as an Airbnb venue,” he said.
“One of the beauties about this place is it has lots of areas. The orchard area has its own unique little feel and there’s even a flat spot at one end that we thought about putting a tiny house.”
They have also reclaimed some wetland and made a nice little meadow and there’s a pathway down to a stream with eels.
Bayleys salesperson Aaron Paterson said it was a super unique property that was completely different to the “Rototuna cookie-cutter" home.
“It’s just got a cool vibe, it’s not just a square box.”
Stand-outs for him are the Macrocarpa tongue and groove ceiling, separate wings and the octagonal-shaped master bedroom.
The property is within walking distance to the local school and with just a 15-minute drive to Hamilton, he added, the area is proving popular with people wanting to escape the urban infill happening in the city.
Paterson said it is difficult to put a price on the property due to its uniqueness so it is being sold by a deadline sale that closes on April 28.
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