- A luxury Herne Bay home is on the market for over $15m, aiming to set a new benchmark for non-waterfront properties.
- Developer Simon Dunlop transformed the site, previously a run-down villa, into a modern five-bedroom house.
- The property features high-end craftsmanship, a pool, gym, sauna, and a Japanese-style courtyard.
A luxury new-build in Auckland’s Herne Bay is aiming to snare a buyer with more than $15 million to spend.
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The five-bedroom house, which was completed last year, is packed with high-end fittings and furnishings and will likely set a new benchmark price for non-waterfront properties in the wealthy suburb.
It’s quite a turnaround for the property at 15 Hamilton Road. The 2200sqm site was previously occupied by a tired villa that had been owned by the same family since 1942.
High-end developer and experienced renovator Simon Dunlop bought the site in 2020 for $8m and got cracking.
As a Herne Bay local, Dunlop knew the property well. “I saw the sign go up and I could not believe it,” he told OneRoof. “Everyone had been waiting for this property to come on the market.”
Dunlop bought the property in 2020 for $8m and removed the old villa that used to sit on the site. Photo / Supplied
The kitchen features dramatic stone on the island. Photo / Supplied
A Japanese-style courtyard garden features in the open-plan living and dining room. Photo / Supplied
Dunlop renovated and relocated the original villa and, with the help of architects Pashtrik Hoxha and Jason Bailey of Hoxha Bailey, split the section into two plots and built the house that’s now on the market for sale.
“I’m a big lover of villas, so the new house is a modern twist on an old villa, while the old villa is restored but with a modern edge,” Dunlop told OneRoof.
“I did not want apartments. I wanted to create something beautiful; I wanted to be proud of whatever I made and add to the community rather than detract from it.”
Dunlop gave OneRoof an exclusive tour of the three-storey, five-bedroom property, proudly highlighting the craftsmanship and detail throughout.
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The house runs the length of the property and is complemented by a spacious lawn, outdoor loggia, and pool. The architects tucked in a Japanese-style courtyard on the south side of the property.
The team’s excavations for the driveway allowed the architects to fit a four-car garage and room for a gym and sauna on the ground floor. The custom bath in the wellness zone can be programmed from ice bath to hot tub, and there is also a high-tech media room and bar.
The house borrows from the classic villa flow, with the bedrooms at the front and the living out the back. The large circulation spaces, the 3.4m-high ceilings and the walls of glass are nods to the home’s modern character.
Dunlop said the sleek plaster and lacquered staircase that curves between the three levels took a month to build, and the master craftsman would not allow photos to protect his trade secrets. Neo Design built the kitchen, bar, and bathrooms that all feature spectacular stone fabricated into cupboards and benches – a different one in each room. Hand-crafted slatted Japanese-style pocket doors close off rooms.
A master craftsman spent a month hand-building the plaster staircase. Photo / Supplied
More stone features in the bathrooms. Photo / Supplied
Even the driveway took a month of work for craftsmen to lay the Italian slate paving, Dunlop said.
Despite so many living spaces to choose from, Dunlop admitted that the sitting room and bedrooms upstairs were the family’s favourites in the evenings as the rooms have sea and sunset views.
Bayleys listing agent Nick Gilbert did not want to talk about price, saying “the market will decide”. However, he did think the property would reset price expectations for non-waterfront homes in Herne Bay.
OneRoof reported last month that a renovated five-bedroom home four blocks back from the water, on Herne Bay Road, sold for $15m at the end of last year.
Gilbert told OneRoof that 15 Hamilton Road was already a focal point for high-end buyers. “There is local interest for families looking for the big family home and returning expats.”
- 15 Hamilton Road, Herne Bay, Auckland, is for sale, deadline closing April 9
