- A Christchurch bungalow sold for $900,000 to a young family after a quick auction.
- The buyers’ decisive $200,000 bid secured the four-bedroom home in a desirable school zone.
- The property, originally bought by Hazel and Ken Whall in the 1950s, remains in its original condition.
A vintage Christchurch bungalow bought by a young bride and her new husband just after World War II has sold to a young family some 70 years later for $900,000.
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The auction of the four-bedroom home on Blighs Road, in Strowan, was over in a matter of minutes after a flurry of knockout bids early in the proceedings.
Harcourts Gold listing agent Mark O’Loughlin said the buyers had a “clever plan” to jump $200,000 in one bid and ended up winning the auction.
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
The new owners plan to tidy up the property and live in it for a while before developing the site.
O’Loughlin said all but one of the bidders at the auction this month had wanted to get into the address’ favourable school zone, which covers Christchurch Girls’ High, Christchurch Boys’ High and Burnside High.
“School zones were the drawcard,” he said. “That golden triangle is probably not increasing in value, but it’s holding good value.”
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He said it was a good result, and the vendors were pleased that the much-loved home was going to another family. “They were just happy generally.”
The property belonged to Hazel and Ken Whall. 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.
Hazel died last year, and her adult children made the tough decision to sell their childhood home.
Son Kelvin earlier told OneRoof that the property had been on the edge of the city when his parents moved in and was surrounded by farmland.
The floral Axminster carpet was laid in the 1970s and is still going strong. Photo / Supplied
The new owners plan to tidy up the house and live in it for a few years before possibly developing it. 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.”
The property was still in its original condition. O’Loughlin’s listing highlighted 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.
The Blighs Road home was one of 11 properties – including two brought-forward properties – that sold under the hammer at Harcourts Golds’ auction room on December 11, with the agency noting that they had noticed urgency from buyers trying to secure a home before Christmas.
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