SCHOOL ZONES:
Hobsonville School, Marina View School, Hobsonville Point Secondary School.
CONTACT:
Dayna Swanberg, Harcourts, 021 627 208.
AUCTION:
December 5, 11am on site.
Having outgrown their house at No. 44, Paul and Sharon Simpson moved to No. 48 when it came on the market 14 years ago.
The had lived in Cherub Place for more than eight years already so they knew the people who had built the house at No. 48 hadspared no expense on the build.
And it had more than enough room for them and their two children -- and, maybe more importantly, Paul's car collection.
Built in about 1987, their brick and plaster home is at the top of the cul de sac and is spread over three levels with a lift that comes in handy for shifting heavy items.
In the double-height entry, Sharon points out the crystal chandelier imported from Italy at great expense by the original owners.
It's a signature piece in a home of grand proportions and smaller versions are in the main living spaces on the middle floor.
On this level there are three main spaces, a separate formal lounge (with bar tucked in one corner), a dining room then a family room/kitchen that all open to a deck that wraps along the northern side of the house.
On the other side of the house are the bedrooms and main bathroom.
Another of the home's quirks is that it has commercial grade fire alarms in addition to a zoned burglar alarm.
Over the years, Sharon and Paul have updated the kitchen, bathrooms and the decor, replacing the 1980s pink and grey colour scheme with new carpet, new tiles and feature walls of plain wallpaper to break up the striped wallpaper on the middle level.
They also wallpapered the top level, which consists of a vast master suite with its own lounge, en suite and walk-in wardrobe as well as a storeroom.
Image 1 of 13: A sweeping driveway brings you to the door, imported chandeliers hang from the ceilings -- no expense has been spared in the search for the best. Photos / Fiona Goodall, Getty Images
The bedroom proper sits at the eastern end of the house but Paul and Sharon have swapped the rooms around, making the lounge their bedroom and using the bedroom as an office. This floor has its own balcony and wide views across the water and back to the city.
"It's great for watching the fireworks off the Skytower up here," says Paul.
The fun really begins downstairs though.
On the lower level is another (larger) bar that could easily serve as a kitchenette for guests or extended family.
The bar opens to a parquet-floored lounge, off which there is a conservatory with a spa pool.
On the opposite side of the lounge is a wood-panelled sauna and next door is a games room with a pool table.
Down here there is also another bedroom, a studio room, a bathroom and a laundry.
"Our kids when they were younger would have parties down here with their friends but we would tell them they couldn't touch the bar," says Sharon.
"It was such a cool house for them, and their friends would always come around to hang out so you always knew where they were."
The lounge and games room open to a paved north-facing patio where the Simpsons prefer to do their outdoor entertaining because it is more sheltered.
A driveway sweeps past the internal access double garage around the house to the backyard where there is more off-street parking and two carports -- as well as a couple of sheds up the side of the house.
Even with all this parking, there is not enough room for Paul's collection of cars so the couple are shifting to a property south of Auckland
Sharon says: "We're going to a much smaller house -- about half the size of this place -- but with more garaging."
