Riverhead: Lateral thinking

A lot of thought went into creating a stylish family home, writes Cate Foster. 

162 Lloyd Road, Riverhead.

Built with loving care, this family home lies as sinuously on the land as a sunbather. Rochelle Cowie remembers how she and her husband Martin looked over from their home on the other side of the Upper Harbour waterway and decided that of all the sites available, this was the one. 

"We could see from where we were that the height here would give the best views. And we were right. You can see the Waitakeres out to the west, the city over to the east and down below is the water. At night the city lights are magical. We even see the fireworks at the Viaduct or off the Skytower." 

The Cowies have lived in the area for 11 years and never thought of moving. 

"This is our dream house. We haven't scrimped on anything. Even in things you can't see, like the gauge of metal for the roof or the thickness of the beams in the ceilings. They are way heavier than they need to be, but we just wanted it to be a strong, beautiful house that would be a pleasure to live in. Because we'd done up our last house we knew all the best tradesmen and so the finish is amazing." 

Not only the finish. The design arrived at by Chris Scott from Jazmax lends itself elegantly to this beautiful site. 

In a long and airy "L" shape, its transparent pavilion of a living room invites the views into the room with walls of glass on both sides that open in many configurations. 

Rochelle explains how they thought this one through: "It's often breezy near the water so we wanted to be able to open and shut doors and windows so that we would always have cross ventilation when it is hot, or shelter when it's cool." 

The eye is led through this lovely space to the large decks that surround the estuary side of the house. While they are the perfect party place, underneath is a spacious and practical workshop. 

Inside, much of what makes this house special is invisible. Every door is solid, with American cherry veneer, the aggregate slab floor is heated from underneath and the media room is soundproof. Tucked to the side of the master bedroom is a fully wired office. But as Rochelle points out, "You never know what might happen so it's been made so it can transform into a nursery. In a house this big it's good to have space like this right next to the parents' room." 

The children's rooms down the hall have their own decks and like the rest of the home are wired for any electronic gadget necessary for the modern child. At the far end of the wing is a fully self-contained guest suite. 

"We have people to stay all the time so this was thought through with a lot of care." 

But living here is going to be the pleasure of another family. 

"There have been a lot of tears at midnight I can tell you. It's been with us so long, but our five-year plan has changed. We just know however, that whoever does get to live here will have a wonderful trouble-free home." 

Vital Statistics: 

BEDROOMS: 4 

BATHROOMS: 3 

GARAGE: 2+ 

SIZE: Land 1.77ha, house 320sq m. 

PRICE INDICATION: Offers around $1.6million to $1.7million. 

INSPECT: Sun 1-2pm. 

CONTACT: Andrew Widdup, Vista Realty, 09 412 5808, 027 287 1769. 

FEATURES: Quality Jazmax-designed home with stunning water and rural views. Soundproof media room plus nursery/office beside master bedroom.