- New Zealand’s first Home of the Year sold for $2.5m, 11 days after listing.
- The four-bedroom house in Remuera, designed by Patrick Clifford, attracted significant interest.
- Buyers, including one embarking on architecture studies, were drawn to its iconic design and features.
New Zealand’s first Home of the Year was snapped up last month for $2.5 million – 11 days after it hit the market.
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The award-winning four-bedroom house on Kelvin Road, in Auckland’s Remuera, was designed by Patrick Clifford, of Architectus New Zealand, and has featured in numerous books and magazines.
Ray White agent John Lantz, who marketed the architect’s former family home, said that interest had been “amazing”.
“We had around 70 groups through three open homes. It was incredibly popular,” Lantz told OneRoof, noting that he also had buyers from Singapore, Melbourne and the USA make enquiries.
The house, near a stream in Kelvin Road, was designed by Patrick Clifford, of Archtitectus, as a suburban boathouse for his family. Photo / Supplied
Despite a tight site and budget restrictions, the house was named Home magazine’s first Home of the Year, and won an NZIA award. Photo / Supplied
“A few people wanted to check out the architecture because Patrick is well known in the industry. The owner said somebody in architectural circles had told him that when the property hit the market, there was a real buzz going around the industry.”
The three-storey house is made from concrete block, timber, steel and glass and sits back from the road, overlooking native bush. It features louvred windows and glass walls that slide away to open the house to multiple decks and terraces, with Clifford referring to it as a suburban boathouse and “a holiday home in the city”.
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Lantz said: “It’s a very iconic house.”
He said the buyers – one of whom is set to study architecture at university – were determined to own it. “They just loved the house from the moment they walked in the door. It had a set date of sale, but they put in an offer. After a little bit of toing and froing, both parties agreed, and we took it off the market.”
Lantz said that most serious buyers realised that the property would go for much more than its “out of kilter” RV of $1.975m, as the architecture was such a drawcard. “We had so many people who were just really taken aback by the position, the features, the architecture, the whole package.”
The house combined concrete block, timber, steel and glass to nestle into the bush. Photo / Supplied
Many of the buyers, including the new owners, were drawn by the architecture of the house. Photo / Supplied
When he sold the home in 2009 for just under $1m, Clifford told Home magazine that he still found the property peaceful and uplifting, despite having to contend with a tight site and budget restrictions.
“It still feels fresh and not unhappily locked in the era it was built. It is of its time, but it still feels rich and complex without being over-complicated.”
Lantz said that the market in his patch was “alive and well for the right property”.
“The four-bedroom, two-bathroom properties, they sell regardless of what’s happening in the market. There’s always a big population of buyers,” he said.
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