– An Auckland villa sold for $5.875 million after a high-end renovation by Jones Architects.
– The property, originally bought for over $2.4 million, featured a designer kitchen and in-ground pool.
– A Chamberlain Street villa sold for $2.505 million, part of Kāinga Ora’s plan to replace unsuitable homes.
A “basic” Auckland villa bought for $2.455 million a year-and-a-half ago resold at auction last week for almost $6m.
The 1900s home on Leighton Street, in Grey Lynn, had benefited from a high-end renovation that reconfigured the layout and extended the footprint.
The impressive four-bedroom, three-bathroom property attracted serious buyer attention at Bayley’s auction room on Wednesday.
The action kicked off at $5m then rapidly climbed to $5.75m before pausing for negotiations. The property came back to the floor at $5.85m, and nabbed another $25,000 before the hammer came down at $5.875m – handing the vendor a gross profit of over $3.4m.
The kitchen before the renovation was basic. Photo / Supplied
An open-plan designer kitchen was installed as part of the extensive renovation. Photo / Supplied
Bayleys listing agent Edward Pack said the villa had been reimagined by Jones Architects, and, in his listing on OneRoof, highlighted the designer kitchen, the floor-to-ceiling glazing, the floating staircase, and the in-ground swimming pool.
“A full transformation has resulted in a timeless sanctuary of impressive scale and magazine-worthy style,” he said in the listing.
Barfoot & Thompson agent Carl Madsen sold the property to the vendor in April 2024 and was impressed by what he managed to achieve.
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He said the villa had been calling out for someone to make full use of the 607sqm west-facing section. “The house had been owned for quite some time and was probably as basic as you could get it, but it had a great big piece of land, so it was hanging out for this major development.”
Madsen said the buyers for these do-up villas in Grey Lynn and Ponsonby had changed in the last 35 years. There no longer seemed to be an appetite among younger buyers, leaving them to experienced developers to buy, renovate and resell.
“I wouldn’t say there are many [high-end developers around], but the ones who do it know what they are doing and have a formula that works specifically for the Ponsonby-Grey Lynn location.”
The original villa before the 18-month renovation. The developer picked it up last year for just over $2.4m. Photo / Supplied
A modern extension and in-ground pool were added to the back of the property. Photo / Supplied
Madsen said renovating these properties was “not a cheap process” and the developers typically had one project on the go at a time.
A lot of hard work was usually required to get their money because buyers in the high-end were “extremely discerning”.
Feedback from developers was always that the longest part of the process appeared to be getting resource and building consents, he said. “Once they have got all that in place, they will get in and do it. That could be six months / 12 months and done.”
Just minutes before the Leighton Street auction, a rundown villa on Chamberlain Street sold for $2.505m in the same room, exceeding expectations.
Kāinga Ora sold a villa on Chamberlain Street, in Grey Lynn, for $2.505m at auction last week. Photo / Supplied
Kāinga Ora paid $152,500 for the property in 1989 and walked away with a gross profit of over $2.35m after more than 30 bids.
The sale was part of the Government’s plans to sell 900 homes deemed no longer suitable for social housing and replace them with new, fit-for-purpose homes.
Bayleys agent Blair Haddow was unable to comment on the sale, but his marketing pitched the properties to developers or families who either want to renovate the villa in keeping with its heritage character or pursue a more ambitious development to make use of the 491sqm site’s potential.
“This original villa stands as a rare blank canvas, offering astute buyers and visionaries the chance to create something truly exceptional in one of the city’s most sought-after inner-city suburbs,” the listing added.