- A local family bought Elizabeth Hagans' Auckland mansion for an undisclosed price.
- The sale, handled by Carolyn Hanson and Markus Blum, exceeded the property's $8.69 million CV.
- Hanson noted a 222% increase in overseas interest since the golden visa's introduction in March.
A wealthy American businesswoman based in New Zealand has found a buyer for her Auckland mansion just over a year since she first put it on the market.
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The seven-bedroom home in Whitford was heavily marketed to overseas buyers, but in the end it was snapped up by a local family.
New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty listing agent Carolyn Hanson, who sealed the deal last month with colleague Markus Blum, said the sale price was confidential. “We can say we received well above the CV of $8.69m,” she said.
When the property on Porterfield Road first hit the market last year, owner Elizabeth Hagans told OneRoof that she wanted over $15 million.
Hanson said the buyers "moved heaven and earth" to make the deal happen. “They came through, and the whole family just absolutely loved it. Their eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. It was love at first sight."
The owner called on American interior designer Barbara Westbrook to overhaul the interior. Photo / Supplied
The property overlooks the water, with Rangitoto in the background. Photo / Supplied
Hanson said she and Blum had shown the 2.55ha estate to buyers from Dubai, Sweden and Germany, with some flying in by private jet. “The internationals are generally very private, so they do like our lifestyle properties. They are looking at Coatesville and Dairy Flat and Clevedon, Whitford and Karaka.”
She noted that since March, when the golden visa for foreign buyers came into effect, Sotheby's had recorded a 222% lift in overseas interest in New Zealand homes. She said local buyers were speeding up decisions in light of the new golden visa, which allows holders to buy New Zealand property worth $5m and above.
Hanson said that foreign buyers were typically looking for a holiday spot, rather than a permanent home.
“They like access to the airport; a helicopter pad so they can get to Waiheke or Coromandel with ease, golf facilities, and health care nearby. Obviously, [Whitford] ticks those boxes.”
Hanson noted that she and Blum had a few other AIP deals in the pipeline.
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Elizabeth Hagans spoke to OneRoof about her home last year and revealed that she and her late husband, Roger, had fallen in love with New Zealand while visiting from the US.
They scoured the country from the Bay of Islands to Dunedin for a home and knew they had found their spot when they saw Porterfield Road, buying the 2.55ha estate for $7.85m in 2012.
“It was so beautifully built, overlooking the bay and Rangitoto. It was a very masculine house, but I could envision things and shift the inside of the house,” Hagans said last year.
The Hagans called their American interior designer, Barbara Westbrook, to bring their vision to life. Westbrook had worked on the couple’s US home, a traditional mansion in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and her work has appeared in numerous books and magazines.
The interior designer removed some of the stone and heavy wood to create a summer house for extended family. Photo / Supplied
Landscaping included both formal and informal moods for the outdoor living. Photo / Supplied
The designer called the home “Aspen on steroids”. She and her team set to work removing the heavy stone and wood details and updating the interiors over 18 months.
The couple used the holiday house for extended family gatherings during their annual visits to New Zealand. Hagans now adds regular quarterly visits to manage her business interests in New Zealand.
Hagans told OneRoof the house was set up for hosting crowds, with a three-bedroom guest house on the estate rented out to the couple who manage the property.
As well as shifting to Wellington to be closer to her businesses (she has interests in Ice Angels and Sir Stephen Tindall’s K1W1) Hagans was keen to downsize since her husband died in 2022. “What was once a full and vibrant house is now a big rambling house, I need to downsize,” she told OneRoof last year. “It’s time for a new family to come in here and enjoy it the way we used to enjoy it.”
The 900sqm house has garaging for seven cars, an infinity pool, four luxury bedrooms in the main house, an underground wine cellar, a gym, and multiple fireplaces in the indoor and outdoor living zones. Westbrook’s interior finishes include bespoke stone and timber detailing, while the landscaping has a pond and planting to draw the eye to the sea views.
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