Otahuhu: Added value

42 Brady Road, Otahuhu.

Bill and Joan Nicholls had grown used to a water view during their time in Dunedin, but they didn't think they would be able to afford one when they moved north to Auckland 44 years ago. Even then, the difference in property prices was as wide as it is today.

But then a friend showed them a large section on the edge of the Tamaki River in Otahuhu, and they fell in love with it.

"It's right on the water. I built a jetty, and then a 26-foot bilge keeler in the front yard, and me and the kids had so much fun going sailing down the river and out in to the gulf. Joan never liked sailing much, but she came along to keep an eye on me," smiles Bill.

He and Joan raised their four children here, and their eldest son was married in the back yard. Bill worked for most of his career at the Pacific Steel mill nearby. Because the house is in a cul de sac, it didn't take long for them to befriend their neighbours.

"When we first drove up to have a look their was a mother sitting on the front lawn of a house across the road with two little twins, and Joan said, 'What a beautiful family.' Those girls still visit me today."

The three-bedroom weatherboard house used to be a farmhouse, then a meteorological station at what is now Auckland Airport. When it was put up for tender Bill bought it and had it moved on to the property. It is in need of renovation, but its bones are good.

The sun-drenched, north facing section offers huge potential. There is a broken down greenhouse in one corner, and a chicken coop with a couple of clucking residents in another, but otherwise it is a blank canvas. A tall weeping willow frames the view through the mangroves, where pukeko live. Agent Jennifer Jenkins says the land may be subdividable, but such a move may also risk the loss of the land's riparian rights. Alternatively, a two-storey house would gain a gorgeous view.

The jetty needs repair, and an opening needs to be re-established in the mangroves to allow boat access to and from the river, but it's easy to imagine the fun to be had with a dinghy, kayak, windsurfer, or yacht.

Bill still loves his sailing, and has a 9.1m H28 moored at Panmure which he takes out every week in summer. He is reluctant to part with his waterfront home, and is doing so only because the size of the section has become too much for him. All his children now have their own homes, and Joan died seven years ago. He will clearly miss the reminders of the wonderful family life they shared here.

Before I leave, Bill walks me over the road to the neighbouring Seaside Park, where he feeds the ducks each day. Native groves are growing up, and well-kept sports fields stretch far down to the end of the peninsula.

"At the weekends this park is alive with young people playing sport," says Bill. "There seems to be a lot of young families moving into the area."

His place would be perfect for one of them.