A world of space in Dairy Flat

Grace Hill Dr, Dairy Flat. Photo / Getty Images

GRACE HILLS COUNTRY ESTATE, GRACE HILL DR, DAIRY FLAT

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SIZE: Land 2.3ha, house 587sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: $3.6 million to $3.9 million.

INSPECT: Viewing by appointment.

ON THE WEB: precision.net.nz/256329

SCHOOL ZONES: Albany Junior School and Albany Senior High School.

CONTACT: Nicky White, Precision Real Estate, ph 021 754 667 or 448 1656.

FEATURES: Sprawling, five-bedroom Balinese-style home on large site with multiple living spaces and state-of-the-art fittings including entertainer's kitchen with separate servery and cafe bar, outdoor courtyards, loggia, swimming pool and petanque lawn.

It takes a fair bit of furniture to fill up nearly 600sq m of house.

But that hasn't been a problem for Karen and Wayne Peat, who two years ago built their palatial, Oriental-style home in Dairy Flat on 2.3ha of land that they have named Grace Hills Country Estate.

Building a new house was a first for the couple, who have renovated 15 homes during their 25 years of marriage.

But when they returned to New Zealand after 10 years in Singapore with children Charnele, now 20, and Josh, 18, the Peats couldn't find a North Shore house that was big enough to accommodate all the furniture, artifacts and fittings they'd accumulated overseas.

"We picked up a number of pieces, as well as some ideas about design," says Wayne, adding that he and Karen, an interior designer, already had several pieces from earlier trips to London, Europe and the Middle East.

Their sprawling, mainly single-level home, Villa Indah, is built of concrete block with heated, coloured concrete floors, carpeted bedrooms and American shingle roofing. Set behind security gates at the end of a sweeping drive, it has stunning valley views and is surrounded by lawns and tropical gardens created with the help of landscape designer Robin Schafer.

The Balinese-style floor plan, which the Peats drew up, is designed around imposing pieces like the three sets of 100-year-old timber and brass Hutong doors from China, the first of which is framed in the home's vaulted front entrance. The entrance foyer is an elongated gallery which the Peats use to showcase some of their vast art collection.

The house consists of three large pavilions linked by two oversized galleries. The main pavilion has a 12m-long central living and dining room with a 5m stud, double-sided gas fireplace, oversized cabinets and room for a grand piano. Exotic materials, including dark timbers, decadent bath fittings and an earthy palette, help create a resort feel the Peats say they have grown to love after spending time in luxury hotels.

The home's multiple living spaces have easy access to the outdoors - including a covered 6m loggia off the main pavilion and a courtyard off the kitchen that leads to the 12m-long, gas-heated swimming pool. A second loggia opens off a living room and games room in the third pavilion, which also incorporates two double bedrooms for the kids, joined by a large en suite. The home's vast spaces make it ideal for entertaining large crowds, but Wayne says several rooms can be closed off easily to create intimate living spaces.

Antique doors link the main pavilion to a small, winter lounge, and a covered outdoor room off the opposite pavilion has a wood fire and drop-down mesh screens so it can be used year-round.

A giant Buddha watches over the pool, a fale with an outdoor shower and a formal lawn leading to a petanque court. Above the triple-car garage, boat and tractor shed, a large loft plumbed for a kitchenette and with its own bathroom would make an ideal teenage retreat, guest quarters, granny flat or home office.

The Peats are once again being bitten by the travel bug, so are looking at doing another stint overseas.

"If we stay here, it's basically going to be Karen, me and the dog," Wayne says.