An Auckland mansion owned by one of New Zealand’s richest landlords which had been run as a boarding house sold at the end of last month, OneRoof can reveal.
The heritage-listed 10-bedroom house on Market Road, in Remuera, sold to a local buyer who plans to turn it back into a family home.
The property was sold by Dilworth Trust, which operates a large private boarding school in the suburb, and owns more than $800 million in real estate assets.
The sale price remains confidential, but the property had a 2021 CV of $7.3m.
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The period property, which still has many of its original features, had been restored in the late 1990s by hoteliers George and Joan McKirdy, who ran it as a luxury lodge before selling it to Dilworth in 2010.
The house, which sits on a 1819sqm section, features a grand staircase, multiple living rooms and fireplaces as well as a commercial grade kitchen.
Ray White agent Jennifer Alexandre, who marketed the property with colleague Mike Hoeft, told OneRoof that there had been huge interest in the home, and that she had conducted nearly 30 private viewings.
She was unable to name the buyer or vendor but did tell OneRoof that the purchaser was a local who had always loved the house and had driven past it on her daily school run.
“The buyers are a local family who will convert it back to a family home. They plan to add a swimming pool, update the gardens and restore the windows and roof,” she said.
“They are extremely excited, and this house will stay with a family.”
Finn Hurst, co-director of Ray White Commercial, said: “There were multiple bids for the property. In this market, there are a lot of people trying it on, but there was genuine interest. We were pretty happy.”
The New Zealand Herald reported in 2010 that Dilworth Trust had bought the property, formerly a boutique hotel known as Aachen House, and subsequently removed it from the luxury accommodation circuit.
The trust was reported in 2020 to own nearly $1 billion in assets, largely tied up in real estate – $166m in school land and buildings and $668m in investment properties, mostly within the Auckland area.
Business Desk reported last month that the Market Road property was “probably the school's most singularly valuable asset”.
The trust is currently at the centre of an investigation into historic sex abuse at the school.
The independent inquiry is being led by former High Court judge Dame Silvia Cartwright and Frances Joychild QC.
