- An architecturally-designed townhouse in Māori Hill, Dunedin, sold for a record $6.5m.
- The sale surpasses the previous $4.5m record, with the home designed by Mason & Wales.
- Local real estate experts highlight the significance of the sale for Dunedin’s high-end property market.
An architecturally-designed townhouse in one of Dunedin’s most desirable suburbs has sold for a record-breaking $6.5 million.
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The eye-watering sale price for the home on Claremont Street, in Māori Hill, is the city’s highest, obliterating the previous record of $4.5m held by a property on Wingatui Road, in Mosgiel – and that primarily was a land purchase.
The Claremont Street property, which has an RV of $3.95m, changed hands in December, OneRoof data shows.
Now-retired Bayleys agent Craig Palmer was involved in the off-market deal, but both he and Bayleys Dunedin’s general manager Elaine Byron declined to comment on the sale, citing confidentiality agreements.
OneRoof understands that the 621sqm, three-storey home was bought by a local couple.
Architecture firm Mason & Wales delivered a muscular three-storey home. Photo / Simon Devitt
Talia Taylor Design gave the interiors of the house a luxurious feel. Photo / Supplied
The house was designed by Ruth Whitaker and Francis Whitaker, from upmarket architecture firm Mason & Wales, and built by JJ Oskam Builders, with the interiors styled by Dunedin-based Talia Taylor Design.
Home magazine reported that the initial brief was for a holiday home in Wānaka. The owners “were really pleased with the [original] design,” Ruth Whitaker told the magazine, “but then they thought: why not build a family home in Dunedin that doubles as a holiday house?”
They replaced the green cottage that was on the couple’s 639sqm plot of land with a muscular townhouse that includes a penthouse master bedroom on the top floor, further bedrooms on the first floor and a media room, gym and additional bedrooms on the ground floor.
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Mason & Wales architect director Hamish Muir told OneRoof it should come as no surprise that a Mason & Wales house had set a new sales record in Dunedin.
The firm had designed many high-end homes, both in Dunedin and Queenstown-Lakes, including a large home known as Twin Peak View, in Glenorchy, which had an asking price of $33m in 2017 and ended up selling for $17m in 2021.
A recently completed Mason & Wales house is currently for sale at 1 De La Perrelle Lane, in Millbrook Resort, Arrowtown.
Muir said the agency’s principles were based on the belief that great architecture should endure, add value over generations and reflect the character of Otago rather than chase short-term trends.
A luxury five-bedroom Glenorchy home designed by Mason & Wales fetched $17m in 2021. Photo / Supplied
Another Mason & Wales design, 1 De La Perrelle Lane in Millbrook, is for sale. Photo / Supplied
“Buyers at that level are investing in design integrity, craftsmanship and a strong sense of place – elements that underpin long-term value and help a property stand apart in any market cycle.”
LJ Hooker owner Jason Hynes said a $6.5m house sale in Dunedin was extremely significant for the city. In 2025, there were only 33 sales over $2m in Dunedin. Above $3m, the numbers shrank to “only a handful”.
“I would suggest that the upper end in Dunedin is around the $1 to $2m mark, and if it’s something special, then it would be in the $2m to $4m range.”
Hynes said inner-city suburbs such as Māori Hill and neighbouring Roslyn held some of the city’s higher-end homes and big sales, such as the Claremont Street property, further reassured owners in these areas that spending money paid off.
Hynes said these suburbs had historical grand properties and modern homes, adding that even some of the older character homes had undergone big renovations.
“Even the older homes have had a significant amount of work completed on them because people are confident that there’s a lower risk of over-capitalisation when you are investing in that location.”
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