- A vintage Christchurch bungalow owned by Hazel and Ken Whall for over 70 years is for sale.
- The property, in original condition, features leadlight windows and 1970s decor.
- Interest from buyers includes renovating or replacing it, with its location in a sought-after school zone.
A vintage Christchurch bungalow bought by a young bride and her new husband just after World War II has hit the market for sale for the first time in more than 70 years.
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The 1930s property at 83 Blighs Road, in Strowan, is the only home Hazel and Ken Whall ever owned. The couple, who met before the war, were in their mid-20s when they bought the house from Ken’s brother in the early 1950s. Now, the house is on the hunt for a new owner.
The couple’s son, Kelvin, told OneRoof that the four-bedroom property was on the edge of Christchurch when his parents first moved in.
“When they bought the house, that area was on the edge of town basically. There were fields surrounding the property. I think Condell Avenue hadn’t even been connected up,” he said.
The house was bought by the Whall family in the early 1950s. Photo / Supplied
Original features include the stained glass windows and wood panelling. Photo / Supplied
“Mum used to talk about taking a billy and getting it filled with milk from a dairy farm in Condell Avenue, which is really hard to imagine when you look at the area today.”
Kelvin remembers playing in the neighbouring paddocks at the rear of the property during the 1960s. “It was a great place for adventures.”
His mother died last year at the age of 102. She had only moved out of the property a few years earlier to enter a care home. She had been living at the house for more than 70 years.
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Hazel had been a well-known member of the community, Kelvin said, because she had spent many years leading the local Boys Brigade and also volunteering at the nearby rest home.
Kelvin said selling the family home after so long was a major decision for him and his sister because so many memories had been made there.
There have been seven decades of anniversaries, children’s birthdays, grandchildren’s birthdays and even great-grandchildren’s birthdays.
“It was their only home. My sister and I were raised there.”
The floral Axminster carpet was laid in the 1970s and is still going strong. Photo / Supplied
Some of the buyers have expressed an interest in bowling the house and replacing it with something new. Photo / Supplied
The property is still in its original condition, which Harcourts agent Mark O’Loughlin said only added to its charm.
O’Loughlin’s listing highlights the leadlight windows, the timber panelling in the hallway, and the classic oversized laundry with a toilet.
The patterned wallpaper and the eye-catching floral Axminster carpet in the bedroom and hallway date back to the 1970s when the family gave the home a makeover.
O’Loughlin said it was rare to come across a home that had been in the same family for over 70 years.
He said a man who lives at the nearby rest home attended one of the open homes and told him he remembered attending a dinner party there 30 years ago. “He saw it advertised and thought he would come and have a look at it. All he remembered was the cool carpet in the house.”
So far, there had been a mix of interest from buyers, but most were homeowners looking to renovate it and live in it, while a couple of buyers indicated they would replace it with a larger new home.
The agent said Strowan was very popular with families chasing the “golden triangle of school zones” – Christchurch Girls’ High, Christchurch Boys’ High and Burnside High. “That’s your draw card. That’s what underlines all those houses in the location.”
The property has an RV of $740,000, but O’Loughlin said buyer feedback had been above that.
- 83 Blighs Road, in Strowan, Christchurch, goes to auction on December 11
