– Agent Yi Wei Tang sold the mid-century Tapper House in St Heliers for $3.35m.
– The house, designed by Vladimir Cacala, is known for its unique architecture and ad appearances.
– Buyers were a young family; the house was previously restored by Luke and Sandy Nola.
The agent who sold Sir John Key’s former home for over $16 million has found a buyer for another high-profile house.
Aurora Group agent Yi Wei Tang took on the listing for the distinctive box-shaped property on Kirkmay Place, in Auckland’s St Heliers, last month.
The mid-century home, which was designed by celebrated architect Vladimir Cacala and is known as Tapper House, has featured in countless Kiwi ads over the years, from Barfoot & Thompson and The Warehouse to Burger King.
The property first hit the market at the end of 2023 with a different agent, but failed to sell. The listing was withdrawn just over a year ago, but reappeared with Tang at the helm at the start of October.
The house designed by Vlad Cacala in 1957 has been carefully restored by its two past owners. Photo / Supplied
Owners have maintained the original kitchen in a pristine mid-century state. Photo / Supplied
Tang told OneRoof she got $3.35m for the house – just under its RV of $3.5m. The buyers, she said, were a young couple with children who “just loved it”, adding that there were others who missed out.
“This is a very special house. It doesn’t appeal to everybody, but for those who like this type of style, they really love it.”
Tang’s listing described the house as a residence where international modernism met a distinctly local sensibility.
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“Its exaggerated rectilinear form appears to float above the site, fronted by full-height sliding windows with crisp grid joinery – timeless, elegant and remarkably current decades on.
“Inside, a dramatic double-height stone wall anchors the plan and choreographs light, flow and separation across the split-level five-bedroom layout. Tongue-and-groove panelling, old-growth timber floors and seagrass wall coverings enrich the calm, gallery-like atmosphere.”
The kitchen was a “joyful” mid-century character of blue, yellow and white, the listing said, noting that the house “frequently featured in architecture tours, photo shoots and commercials”.
OneRoof wrote about the house when it first hit the market.
The 1970s garage addition has been turned into a rumpus room. Photo / Supplied
The restoration brought back the glory of the native timbers and walls built from local stone. Photo / Supplied
The vendors, Melody and Scott, told OneRoof that they bought the house in 2017, for just under $3m. Back then, they were more interested in the size of the place for their family than its provenance.
However, art directors and location scouts knew the place, and Melody said they had frequent requests to feature it in ads.
“We get so many location scouts contacting us for ads. Currently, we’re in a Barfoots ad, but we’ve also been in ones for The Warehouse and Burger King. We just clear out to an Airbnb for a night or so,” she told OneRoof in 2023.
The family was lucky that the previous owners, Luke and Sandy Nola, had spent nearly 20 years passionately restoring the house.
The Auckland mansion that once belonged to former Prime Minister Sir John Key. Agent Yi Wei Tang got $16.3m for it in 2022. Photo / Supplied
During the Nolas’ time, the house featured in architectural books and was frequently used for photo shoots by mid-century furniture dealers Mr Bigglesworthy. Luke Nola, who had a passion for restoring old cars and motorbikes from the 1950s and 1960s, told the Herald when they were selling the house that they had applied the same philosophy to the restoration.
“It became our philosophy to put it right back as it would have been when it was new,” she said.
“Vlad, who was an old friend of my parents, came around to see what had been done to ‘his house’ and he was pretty happy with the way they had matched the wood, including the teak on the outside.”
Melody and Scott told OneRoof they had grown to appreciate what a gem their house was. “We loved the character and acquired mid-century furniture after we moved into the house,” Melody said.
“Everyone who comes into the house just goes, ‘Oh my God, this is amazing, don’t change it’.”
Listing agent Tang hit the headlines in 2022 when she sold the seven-bedroom mansion on St Stephens Avenue, in Parnell, which the former Prime Minister once owned. The Key family sold the home in 2017 for $23.5m. Tang got her vendor $16.3m, which was one of 2022’s highest sale prices as well as the year’s biggest on-paper loss.