- A historic Ngapipi Road boatshed is listed publicly for the first time since the 1940s.
- The shed remains operational and was once owned by industrialist Sir Tom Clark.
- It goes to auction October 8; neighbouring sheds have sold for $1.85m and $2.05m.
One of Auckland’s historic Ngapipi Road boatsheds has been listed for sale on the open market for the first time since it was built in the 1940s.
Start your property search
No.8 is one of 17 sheds in the much-photographed strip on the edge of Whakatakataka Bay, and is still in its original condition. It is also very much a working boatshed.
The owner, who asked not to be named, told OneRoof the shed was originally owned by prominent Kiwi industrialist Sir Tom Clark, the driving force behind Crown Lynn Potteries.
Sir Tom was well known in sailing circles and backed Sir Peter Blake in the Whitbread Round the World races and the America’s Cup.
His vessel, Lady Margaret, a classic 43-foot kauri launch he had built in 1939, was berthed at the shed.
Shed 8, was built to house Crown Lynn industrialist Sir Tom Clark’s classic 43-foot kauri launch Lady Margaret, which is also for sale. Photo / Supplied
The solid hardwood shed is fitted out for boat maintenance and as a joinery workshop. Photo / Supplied
“I think Tom must have built the shed about the time she was decommissioned, but we’re a bit unclear about the dates,” the owner said.
He told OneRoof that he bought the shed in 2005, after acquiring Lady Margaret. He spied the boat tied up at the marina and snapped her up.
“I looked at her and thought ‘I’ve got to have this’,” he said. “I’d get a few people coming on board who’d say, ‘Oh, we used to go out on her for Christmas’. She was quite popular.”
He added: “We used it most summers, to a limited extent. Then she’d get a three-month go back in the shed.”
Discover more:
- ‘Lots of emails’: Huge interest in tiny boatshed with $175k-plus price tag
- Former Bendon boss and Bachcare founder list their $6m-plus ‘house in the sky’
-Hidden buyers, quiet deals: The 22 homes that have sold for more than $10m this year
He said that apart from some strengthening and improving the door access, the shed is pretty much unchanged (it’s one of only two in the row that have not been turned into offices or party spots, he pointed out).
“It was my little hideaway. I’d meet my mates and have a couple of beers out there. We could open the door up, particularly on a high tide. It was a working shed, used for fixing up the boat in the winter and then in the summer I turned it into a joinery workshop and made all sorts of things for the house and the boat.”
The owner is selling now for a change of pace, after the demands of boating and boat maintenance. “It will be a bit sad, but sometimes a big change is a good thing to do.”
New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty listing agent Paul Sissons is taking the shed to auction on October 8. It’s the fourth Ngapipi Road shed he has listed and calls it a “true collector’s item”.
The well-maintained shed is crammed with memorabilia from when it was built in the 1940s. Photo / Supplied
The shed has stunning views across Whakatakataka Bay. Photo / Supplied
“The 17 sheds are woven into New Zealand maritime history and are beloved for their striking and distinctive form embracing Hobson Bay,” his listing on OneRoof said.
Sissons got $2.05m for a stylishly renovated boatshed on the strip three years ago. It’s a record that’s yet to be surpassed. Last year, another glamorous shed, complete with chandeliers, marble tiles, and a yoga room, sold for $1.85m after 18 months on the market.
Sissons is reluctant to put a figure on Shed 8, and said buyers could range from boaties wanting storage to people looking for a “day bach” (subject to permits and installing holding tanks for wastewater).
“The license to occupy runs until the end of June 2033, and then people would apply for a further 35 years,” he said, adding that buyers would need to be cashed up.
“The sheds are all protected, so the onus is on the owners to maintain them and preserve them.”
The owner is happy to talk about selling Lady Margaret too, Sissons said, noting that both shed and boat have been meticulously maintained. “If somebody bought the shed and loved the boat, we’d certainly be conducive to offering them a very fair and reasonable [price].”
- Boatshed 8/1 Ngapipi Road, Orakei, Auckland, goes to auction on October 8
