- A 107ha mountain near Matakana is for sale, with panoramic views and lodge plans.
- Agents say buyers can pursue a resort, eco-retreat, private home, or conservation project.
- Prices have risen, with median values reaching $2.66m in Omaha and $1.75m in Matakana.
It’s not every day a mountain comes up for sale, but that is what is on offer in Matakana, a coastal and lifestyle playground about an hour from Auckland.
Start your property search
Agent Aman Gulia, of Harcourts JK Realty, who sells a lot of terrace homes in city suburbs like Mt Roskill, says standing atop Conical Peak stopped him in his tracks.
The 107.9ha blank canvas was one of the best views he had experienced from a property: “You’re standing on top of your own mountain looking out over Matakana – what can be better than that?”
Selling a mountain was up there with one of the most unique opportunities he had worked on.
“I’ve sold a property where eight neighbouring owners came together for one sale, two properties where the vendors literally took their houses with them and left just the land behind for the developer, a church, and now, I can add a mountain to the list.”
Conical Peak, which has concept plans for a lodge and amenities, was hard to put a conventional price indication on because its value would mean different things to different buyers, said Gulia, who is listing the property with David Findlay.
The concept plans for 283 Govan Wilson Road include a main lodge and all the amenities as the centrepiece, with chalets positioned throughout the land. Photo / Artist’s Impression
Despite the feeling of solitude on the property, it’s less than 10 minutes from Matakana town and just an hour north of the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Photo / Artist’s Impression
Harcourts JK Realty agent Aman Gulia: “You’re standing on top of your own mountain looking out over Matakana - what can be better than that?” Photo / Fiona Goodall
“I think it will attract someone who wants something genuinely different. It could be someone with a vision for a resort, eco-lodge or nature retreat, or someone who simply wants an incredible private home and to live more off-grid.
“Alternatively, someone may want to do very little and simply preserve and enjoy it for what it already is – a beautiful, pristine piece of New Zealand.
“It’s actually a feeling that’s quite hard to explain until you’re standing up there yourself. You are literally on top of the mountain, with incredible 360-degree views stretching out around you.”
Matakana and surrounding areas, including wealthy Omaha, have always had an appeal because people were not just buying property but a lifestyle, Gulia said, and buying a mountain was next level.
Matakana and surrounds stretch from pristine Pakiri Beach and Leigh to Omaha and Point Wells, to the Tawharanui Regional Park and family-oriented Snells Beach.
Over the years, people have discovered the vineyards, beaches and rolling countryside, including British TV personality Noel Edmonds, who owns an 11ha Matakana estate.
Fast-track approval is being sought for an upmarket retirement home on Tongue Farm Road near Matakana Village, and there are new developments underway in and around Matakana, such as Penney Rise, plus lifestyle blocks to buy. Since the new motorway opened, the commute to Auckland is about an hour.
Agents are reporting a mixed market, depending on property type and price brackets, and since Australia’s recent tax changes around property Australians are showing interest, said Victoria Turner, Ray White Matakana director.
Kellie Bissett, from Bayleys, said families moving up from North Shore and city suburbs are then followed by the grandparents, and Precision’s Di Balich, who sells mainly in Omaha, called newcomers “Auckland refugees”.
Bissett said the majority of buyers she is seeing are coming from good suburbs in Auckland.
UK TV star Noel Edmonds and his wife Liz Davies. The pair own property in Matakana. Photo / Getty Images
A four-bedroom house at 25 Penney Rise, in Matakana’s new neighbourhood, The Village Rise. Photo / Supplied
Developers Richard and Christine Didsbury turned Matakana into a vibrant destination. The couple created the Matakana village complex on the site of the old timber yard. Photo / Kellie Blizard
“They are professionals, they are familiar with the area from holidaying or visiting regularly, and they are deciding the time is right to make the move they always planned.
“The current market is a great one to make a considered choice, without the pressure of everything going to auction.”
Matakana had a lot to offer, including arguably the best primary school in the country.
“Mahurangi College also has an excellent reputation and puts out kids that are excelling academically, in sport, and culturally, so you can see the drawcard.”
Much of Bissett’s market is in the $2m to $4m bracket and negotiations were going on every week at that level for properties around the wider coastline.
“This includes Leigh, Matakana, Point Wells, Omaha, Sandspit, and across to Mahurangi East, Martins Bay and Scotts Landing.
Discover more:
- Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron sells iconic Kawau property
- German family who've never set foot in NZ buy home for over $3m
- Big-name film and music stars ask about buying $20m-plus island
“There are some great builders who have been doing some impressive work in these locations for years.”
Buyers from places like Remuera, Parnell, Ponsonby and Devonport wanted quality, value and nice roads, and did not want to give up on their daily luxuries.
“They also don’t expect to queue for anything. The area delivers enormously in that sense. It is a fantastic place to live and totally commutable to the city or airport if you travel regularly.”
Zoning was also less of an issue in Matakana: “You don’t need to be concerned you will have a four-storey monolith popping up next door shading your flower bed or noticing what you have hanging on your clothesline.”
Families often favoured Matakana and Point Wells while semi-retired couples appreciated the peace of Matheson Bay and Leigh.
“You can walk to the bay for a swim from anywhere, and there are some beautiful coastal trails to take the dog along – mind the little blue penguins.”
However, don’t expect to be able to buy much for under $1m, Bissett said.
“A section, or an old ‘pull down’ bach in Leigh or at one of the coastal bays like Baddeleys or Campbells Beach might be on the cards if you are lucky.”
Turner said the new motorway had opened the area up more, making commuting so easy.
Ray White agent Victoria Turner is selling a lifestyle block at 37 Brick Bay Drive, in Sandspit. Photo / Supplied
1612B Pakiri Road, in Pakiri, has been pitched as having Airbnb potential. Photo / Supplied
“Quite often we will just pop down to the city for dinner and drive home because it’s not a major; it’s easy. Once you're on that motorway, you’re all but home.”
Turner has a variety of properties listed, from an elevated three-bedroom, two-bathroom coastal home at Sandspit to a four-bedroom, three-bathroom lifestyle property at Pakiri.
One of the attractions was the diversity the region offered. Some people wanted a bach by the beach, whereas others wanted a family home in Point Wells.
Some wanted land – be that 5000sqm or a hectare – and some wanted a brand new home in the village so they could walk to the pub and the shops.
“It’s that boutique sort of lifestyle of Matakana but also the beautiful beaches, the wineries, the golf courses, the marina, everything that’s just developing.”
People liked the sense of space they got, and while there was development, it had not been too much, too fast.
“That’s what’s been so special about the area, that the development has been quite progressive and not rapid.
“There are some developments in Matakana that have been done really beautifully and offer really lovely family homes without it ripping out a whole stack of houses.”
Turner said sales volume was similar to this time last year, but prices were up, with the median at Omaha now $2.66m and Matakana at $1.75m.
Breaking into Matakana would need about $1.5m, which would buy a nice three-bedroom property within walking distance to the village on perhaps 600sqm, possibly with room for some improvements, she said.
The drive to buy in Omaha was the beach and the fact that property there was a good investment, but there were some buyers who asked: “What does $2.5m get me in Matakana.”
Buyers generally pivoted back to their own pull, be that beach or land, and an emerging trend was the interest from Australians.
“Obviously taxation considerations coming out of Australia but I think, too, being quite a similar mindset to Kiwis and wanting lifestyle, and wanting lifestyle close to a city.”
Balich said the Omaha market was a busy one with a lot of inquiry in the $10m-plus range and the $6m-plus range, however, the $3.5m to $5m market was still challenging.
Those buyers were worried about the election and the economy and were holding on to their money for now, whereas buyers at the upper end did not have to worry: “If they want something they’ll buy it.”
Some buyers were finding Omaha too busy but still wanted to buy in the area and asked Balich to educate them on what was on offer.
“They like the idea of coming to the area; they like what the coast offers but they're uncertain as to whether they want to be in Point Wells or Matakana.”
Balich was also finding people shopping by price points: “Some of them say, ‘What have you got at the $2.5m mark? We just want to be in your area’.”
She points to Sandspit, an area she thinks is undervalued and a boaties paradise with homes that have wonderful views.
- Click here to find more properties for sale in Matakana
