ANNUAL OUTGOINGS:
$16,279.29 (ground lease and body corp), 10 per cent discount if paid by due date.
CONTACT:
Lorraine Garnett, Ray White City Apartments, ph 021 655 154.
Plans for a parkside brownstone terrace home in central Auckland appealed to Gordon Dalrymple and Linda Smeele when they were looking to buy a place. They wanted a city pad that would also be easy to rent until their children reached the age when the couple could describe themselves as empty nesters.
They liked the location next to Mahuhu ki te Rangi Park because, as well as being in the CBD and close to the Vector Arena, it is peaceful, being set back from the main road.
It's definitely more a terrace home than an apartment, say the couple who love the spaciousness of the interior, thanks to the high stud ceilings and the open layout.
The ground level has parquet flooring and to the right of the front door is an office looking out to a pebbled garden terrace. Then there's the open-plan kitchen, living and dining with sliding glass doors to the deck overlooking the park.
The kitchen's benches are granite and stainless steel and appliances include oven, bench hob and dishwasher. Stairs near the front entrance climb to the bedrooms, the master with en suite and horizontal glass windows. Two more bedrooms have opaque glass privacy panels, and there is one more bathroom.
"It's a dynamic building," says Gordon, "and an honest three bedrooms. We also appreciated being north-facing and looking out to the park, the trees and the greenery."
"There is no shared access, we have our own front door. There is nothing else much like it in the centre of the city," says Linda. "And since buying off the plans the city has come to us."
Image 1 of 4: A spacious interior, courtesy of a high stud and open layout, also gives this pad the edge
Other owners in the 15 terrace units at Herbst Architects-designed 55 Mahuhu Cres tend to be young professionals or retired couples who own another property in areas like Waiheke or Matakana, plus some families, and the couple say the tenants they have had have had similar profiles. The rent is about $775 a week.
"It rents really well," says Gordon, "and tenants often stay for a couple of years."
Gordon says the area is good for families as Parnell Primary is nearby, plus there is a daycare just across the road. "And you don't have any hassles with traffic," adds Linda.
"You wouldn't need a car if you were working in the city." The couple are selling as a family member who needs a one-level home in the city and they are refocusing their investments.
The property is leasehold and neighbour Mike Dickey, who is the chairman of the owners' committee, says the Mahuhu complex committee negotiates the land rental every seven years with Ngati Whatua. He likes the way the rental is fixed at 7 per cent of the property valuation as agreed by valuers appointed by the committee and iwi.
"You hear so much bad press about leasehold but that is not the case for us. I think it is quite reasonable. New Zealanders just aren't used to leasehold."
