But Homes.co.nz chief data scientist Tom Lintern said 23 per cent of Auckland sales this year had been for less than $800,000, which showed “affordable” options did exist. “In fact, there are still four suburbs with a median value of less than $800,000 in Auckland, located in the apartment-filled central city and in the south of the city.” He said, based on Homes.co.nz estimates, the five most affordable were Auckland Central at $601,000, Grafton at $677,000, Manukau at $717,000, Clendon Park at $757,000 and Otara at $809,000. The list was not too different when based on the median sale price of council confirmed sales this year, Lintern said.
How do you value a house with a priceless artwork painted on the walls?
The Parnell house with a priceless Michael Smither artwork painted in the entry and stairwell has sold at auction for $4.18 million. Listing agent Linda Galbraith of Barfoot & Thompson Parnell says there was a lot of interest in the Takutai Street house at the auction on May 19, 2021, and the buyer is “absolutely ecstatic”. “I did ask him before the auction if he was going to keep the artwork and he said ‘yes, yes, yes’. But if he changes his mind, I’ll be first in line.” The aquatic mural was completed by Smither over 10 years from the 1970s when he would come around to visit friends living in the house.
“In 1959, as a first-year student at the Auckland School, I heard Bill Wilson for the first time, talking brilliantly to a slide show of recent work by the Group. It was a revelation I have never forgotten. The intelligence, erudition and warmth of the man, and the freshness, the zest for construction, and the localism of the work were truly thrilling. It seemed New Zealand architecture had been invented.” Signature features of the Group Architects movement are much in evidence in the Vennell House. It was built from cedar, and designed to have a close connection with the outdoors. Other key Modernist features include a soaring entry with feature staircase, fluid connections between the multiple living areas, extensive timber panelling and built-in furniture.