- A luxury home on Waiheke Island sold to an expat for over $10m after 18 months on the market.
- The US vendors initially sought $12.8m but reduced the price by $2m.
- The buyer, an expat Kiwi, has been based in the US for 30 years.
A luxury home on Auckland’s Waiheke Island has been sold to an expat for over $10 million after a year and a half on the open market.
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The US owners of the four-bedroom home on Nick Johnstone Drive had been looking to get $12.8m when they first listed the property, but over the course of the campaign, they dropped their price by $2m.
A final cut in April to $10.995m helped secure a sale.
New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty agent Pene Milne declined to reveal what the buyer paid, but said it was less than the final asking price.
“The buyer was an expat Kiwi securing a beautiful home back in New Zealand. They have been based in the States for 30 years, and Waiheke was the preferred base for family,” she said, noting the buyer was a client of Wall Real Estate.
The house was designed by architect Dominic Glamuzina and was well-known for its distinctive copper roof. It sits on just over 1ha of flat land overlooking Matiatia ferry terminal and comes with a pool, an art gallery, a caretaker’s house and a self-contained studio for guests.
The Nick Johnstone Drive property was bought by the vendors in 2020 for $8.1m. They spotted the property during their annual summer visit to New Zealand. Photo / Supplied
A superbly equipped designer kitchen is the beating heart of the home. Photo / Supplied
The property comes with an outdoor pool and boasts clear views of the water. Photo / Supplied
Milne said that she had had “huge” interest in the property while it was on the market, from both Waiheke locals and city-side Aucklanders, as well as overseas buyers.
“It certainly attracted a lot of Americans. They owned their own estates here, but were looking for something in a slightly different location – different views, more modern.
“The Americans were the biggest group of overseas people, but I also had Koreans, Germans and French show interest.”
The vendors, who have been New Zealand residents here since 2004, told OneRoof last year that they had only just completed a major renovation of the house when they decided to sell up.
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The couple, who split their time between the US and New Zealand, said they had belatedly discovered their life’s true passion – sailing – and were looking to spend more time on their boat.
They said the house was “much, much more than just a bach”, adding that it had been “a real joy and a privilege” to live there.
The sale follows some high-profile deals on the island.
Late last year, Milne and her colleague Lisa Hopewell sold a four-bedroom luxury lodge in a gated estate on Delamore Drive, in Oneroa, to American buyers for $12.5m. And in December, Sotheby’s agents Chris Jones and Francine Sweet sold a four-bedroom French provincial-style home with an RV of $9.15m on Nick Johnstone Drive to a Canadian buyer for an undisclosed sum.
Milne warned that deals at the top end of the market on Waiheke Island were taking time in the current market, particularly given that much of the land on the island was deemed sensitive and off-limits to foreign buyers with golden visas.
Omaru Bay Lodge at 729 Orapiu Road, on Waiheke Island, is looking for buyers with $17.5m to spend. Photo / Supplied
A Mediterranean-style villa up for grabs at 211 Te Whau Drive on the island. The trophy estate overlooks Te Whau Bay. Photo / Supplied
A five-bedroom trophy home at 124 Delamore Drive, in Oneroa, has a price tag of $9.995m. Photo / Supplied
“There are high-end sales, but getting buyers to sign off on everything is typically a protracted process. Buyers want everything to be perfect. They are very detailed [and] there are a lot of layers to the sale.”
Buyers also have a lot to choose from.
At the start of the year, Hopewell began marketing a seven-bedroom luxury lodge at 729 Orapiu Road. The owners are hoping to get $17.5m for the property, the same as they paid three years ago. The 5ha estate has a helipad, jetty and drive-on access to the beach, and comes with a driving range, pool, spa and sauna.
Bayleys agents Mark Spitz and Jacob Lillyman have a four-bedroom Italian-style house at 211 Te Whau Drive that was looking for $20m when it first went on the market in January 2025.
Also up for grabs is rich-lister Ben Cook’s $10m bach at 159 The Strand, in Onetangi, which is being marketed by Kellands agents Martin Dobson and Charles Collins. Two trophy estates on the other side of the island are in the same price bracket, one at 82 Delamore Drive, marketed by Wall Real Estate, and the other at 124 Delamore Drive, marketed by Sotheby’s Jones and Sweet.
- Click here to find more properties for sale on Waiheke Island
