Herne Bay: State of grace

Rather than remove yet another old house from Herne Bay, a couple chose to restore theirs to its former glory in its original setting.

3 Cremorne Street, Herne Bay.

While living in London Miles Marshall and his wife dreamed of owning a gracious old home when they returned to New Zealand, but the house they bought didn't initially fit that vision.

The couple liked the bones of the Cremorne Street house, but it needed a lot of work.

"The previous owner had it for 25 years and it looked like it was a student flat with just scrim on the walls. Only one room had lining and a couple of rooms had wallpaper over the scrim," Miles says.

The couple employed architect Chris Scott to revamp the house in a sympathetic fashion.

Work began on the house in 1999 while the Marshalls, who have two boys and a girl, rented a home in Ponsonby. Major alterations included extending the western side of the house to create a new entrance, turning the stairway to meet the new entrance and "moving most of the walls around".

"It's just a nice family home now," says Miles. "Because the ceilings are so high it never gets too hot in summer. You just open the house up and there's always a breeze in Herne Bay. And in winter you just close it up and it's nice and cosy with the central heating."

Miles, who is a fund manager, says the renovation went smoothly apart from a door and a couple of fireplaces being stolen from the site - and a bit of a problem with the chimneys.

"There were two big brick chimneys going right through the house. We took one down and intended keeping the other one. But when we jacked up the house the other one fell over."

In July 2000 the house was finished. The entrance hall is a far grander and more spacious affair, and the kitchen and living area are open plan. They open to a north-facing deck which overlooks the large lawn.

"The boys play cricket and soccer out there," says Miles. " With so much infill housing around now it's nice to have a decent-sized section."

Miles says one of his favourite rooms in the house is the formal dining room, which is behind the kitchen and connected by a serving hatch. It is painted in a bold blood red that makes it "more of a winter room or a room you use at night".

"We always wanted a dining room because we lived in London for a long time and the houses we had there weren't really set up for them.

"We entertain a lot so it's also good to have a quiet space as opposed to noisy spaces."

Upstairs are the light-filled bedrooms. The master bedroom has its own large north-facing balcony and views over the harbour.

Miles says the house is so sunny that they've had to put UV filters on some of the windows to cut down the glare. .

Changing family circumstances have forced the sale of the home, but Miles is proud of what they have done with what was a rundown villa.

"I've always liked old houses, and I liked the idea of keeping an old house in the area because so many had been knocked down or moved away."

Vital Statistics

SIZE: Land 827sq m, house 240sq m (approx).

PRICE INDICATION: Well in excess of $2 million. Set sale date July 12.

INSPECT: Sat/Sun 1pm-1.45pm.

CONTACT: Jan George, Ray White Ponsonby, ph 376 2186 bus, 0274 784 119 mob, 817 8998 a/h.

FEATURES: Beautifully renovated two-level kauri villa with gas central heating on large, flat corner site. Formal dining room, two living rooms.