Herne Bay: Added Value

Address: 24 Bella Vista Road, Herne Bay.

Grant and Jenny Cashmore knew this villa was meant to be theirs when they saw it in 2000. They discovered it was built with timber from the Cashmore Mill, founded by Grant's great-grandfather.
``That seemed like a good sign,'' says Jenny.

The house today bears little resemblance to the original home constructed back in the late 1800s. In fact it is vastly different to the house the Cashmores bought six years ago. The couple has carried out extensive renovations, transforming the once dark and tired villa into a stylish, contemporary home. This included some big changes to an upstairs area.

``We basically chopped off the roof and rebuilt the whole roofline,'' says Jenny. ``It gave us so much more space.''
Now upstairs is devoted to the master bedroom, complete with his and hers dressing rooms, an en suite, and a den/study or second living area. There are decks from both rooms, making the most of views across the rooftops to the harbour, and glass walls in the bedroom slide back to open the room right up.

Downstairs was almost completely gutted to create an open plan living/dining/ kitchen area that extends the length of the house. The bedroom at the front, which was the original master bedroom, is one of the few rooms in the house to remain virtually unchanged. However, the en suite off it was enlarged so it can be accessed from another bedroom, which the Cashmores have been using as a gym. There's a third bedroom downstairs, which was transformed for the couple's five year old son Will.

The fixtures and fittings are all top quality and the house now features lots of clever touches that show how much thought went into the renovation. There's the laundry hatch on the landing, automatic blinds in the living room and the whole house is smart-wired. Jenny's dressing room has a vanity and an ironing board that pulls down from the wall.

A wet bar off the living room has a beer fridge and sink while a utility area upstairs in the den has another fridge, sink and microwave.

The built-in bed in the master bedroom is the ultimate in luxury. A flat-screen TV glides up out of the end of the bed at the touch of a button, and at the head is an outlet for filtered water.
Downstairs, the new layout means almost the whole western side of the house, where the living areas are, opens up to make the most of the sun.

There's a large deck and a swimming pool with a heat pump. On the other side of the house Grant has built an adventure playground for Will and several ramps so his son can ride his bike right around the house. Another innovative feature is the kid-sized tunnel in a fence leading to the next-door neighbours'.

Previous owners had converted a loft above the garage into a studio flat, with kitchen and bathroom. Jenny and Grant have rented it out to a relative but it could be a teenage retreat or home office.

``We lived there for four months while the bulk of the work was being done on the house and it was great being on site,'' says Jenny.
The opportunity to buy into a new development means the house has been put on the market and the Cashmores are moving on.

``We have put a lot of thought into this house and it has been very easy to live in,'' says Jenny. ``I hope whoever buys it will enjoy it.''


VITAL STATISTICS

BEDROOMS: 4

BATHROOMS: 3

GARAGES: 3+

SIZE: Land 960sq m, house 385sq m approx.

PRICE: Interest expected above the 2005 CV of $1.98m. Auction June 28.

INSPECT: By appointment.

CONTACT: Jan and Brian Parish, Barfoot & Thompson, ph 021 924 858, 361 6193 a/h.

ON THE WEB: www.barfoot.co.nz/342252

FEATURES: Modernised villa with harbour views from upper level, gourmet kitchen, gas fire, swimming pool, garage with self-contained studio flat.