- A 1940s brick-and-tile house in Westmere sold for $8.6m, surpassing its $6m RV.
- The property, on nearly 1300sqm, includes a shared boat ramp and boathouse studio permission.
- The vendors bought it for $3.25m 20 years ago; the area is known for high-value sales.
A simple 1940s brick-and-tile house on a street favoured by billionaires and sports stars has sold for $8.6 million.
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The modest three-bedroom home on Rawene Avenue, in Auckland’s Westmere, tore past its RV of $6m at a Bayleys auction today, and claimed the day’s highest price by a long shot.
Bidding started at $7m, moved onto $7.5m, then $7.75m before the auction paused for negotiations. The property came back to the floor almost an hour later at $8.6m and sold for that amount.
The vendors had plans drawn up for a new residence on their waterfront site, but abandoned them in favour of moving out of Auckland city. Photo / Supplied
The property comes with consent to build a boathouse studio on the waterfront, next to the existing boat ramp. Photo / Supplied
Bayleys listing agent Luke McCaw told OneRoof that the house had been bought by an owner-occupier and said the auction had yielded a "great result".
The house sits on one of Auckland’s wealthiest streets, where properties have been known to sell for $20m-plus.
It did have several other things going for it. It sits on nearly 1300sqm of land, a rare size for the city-edge suburb, and comes with a shared boat ramp and permission for a boathouse studio down on the water.
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When it hit the market last month, McCaw told OneRoof it was a “world-class opportunity”.
“A property like this pops up and people go, ‘Jeez, I’ve got to see that’. It’s all about scarcity. There’s only so much coastal land available in Auckland – and only so many properties available in their original condition, without those special character or heritage overlays,” he said.
He said in October that he didn’t think any buyers would wish to hold on to the brick-and-tile house. “There are people out there who want to push the boundaries, and they’ll have their favourite architect. You’ve got a lovely high building platform at street level and then land down at water level to build the boatshed.”
Billionaire Anna Mowbray and ex-All Black Ali Williams in 2023. They own a mansion on Rawene Avenue. Photo / Getty Images
A David Ponting-designed house on a triple-wide section on Rawene Avenue sold earlier this year for $28m. Photo / Supplied
Buyers planning their architectural statement would be in good company. A David Ponting-designed house on the same road sold for $28m earlier this year, while at the end of the street, ZURU Toys billionaire Anna Mowbray and her partner, ex-All Black Ali Williams, have redeveloped a 4500sqm property they bought from Shrek director Andrew Adamson for $24m.
The vendors paid $3.25m for their slice of Rawene Avenue 20 years ago, and McCaw told OneRoof he had been showing buyers their plans for the site, which they drew up with architect Tim Dorrington.
Although the building consents had lapsed, McCaw told OneRoof last month that the plans helped buyers “paint a picture of what could be possible”.
One of the owners told OneRoof last month that they quit the project after the cost started to mount. “It took five years to get there, and then Auckland building prices blew out.” She told OneRoof they had made a permanent move to their house out of Auckland.
She added: “Some of the houses [in the neighbourhood] may be more modern, but the collective sensibility of the place is still a quarter-acre pavlova paradise traditional.
“It is like a 60s seaside village sometimes. Trying to get up to the shops can take you half an hour for all the conversations. It’s old school.”
- Click here to find more properties for sale in Westmere
