SCHOOL ZONES:
Newmarket School, Remuera Intermediate, Epsom Girls’ Grammar and Auckland Grammar.
CONTACT:
Cathy Roselli, Ray White, 021 750 454.
AUCTION:
Feb 23.
It's an 11-minute trip for solicitor Elicia Insull to travel door-to-door from her Remuera cottage to her office in the city. "I timed it the other day," she says. "The train station is about 90 seconds' walk from home." Belmont Tce is in a pocket of Remuera on the border of Newmarket, so it's an easy commute from the Newmarket train station to Britomart.
Elicia and her husband Phillip bought here in 2008. At the time, orthopaedic surgeon Phillip was working at Auckland hospital, a 20-minute stroll away. "This is an amazing location," Elicia says.
"We're in the inner-city, but we're in a place with a bit of a garden and it's freehold." It's a short walk to the shops in nearby Nuffield St and the "Insta-cool brunch places".
The couple also enjoy heading down to nearby Judges Bay in the weekends or paddle-boarding at Okahu Bay.
Before moving here, the Insulls were living in a central-city apartment. They looked at dozens of houses, attending open homes in Grey Lynn, Ponsonby and Parnell. They hadn't even known this street existed.
"But as soon as we saw this place we knew it was the one," Elicia recalls. "I couldn't tear herself away from sitting in the sunshine on the deck."
It's easy to see why Elicia and Phillip found this home so endearing. With plenty of street appeal, the cottage has a small front garden, with roses and a lavender border.
The Insulls have made some improvements to their cottage. "We have restored it as over the years it had lost a bit of its sheen," Elicia says. "We've painted outside and inside, put in a new bathroom and kitchen and turned the backyard into a tropical oasis."
From the footpath, a step leads up to a veranda and front door. The front door opens on to the living room, which has French doors that open to the veranda. The living room flows on to a dining room - light and airy spaces that are semi-open plan as a double-sided brick fireplace partially separates them.
Elicia says she likes the fireplace, an original feature. "The bricks are a real talking point and I think they give the house an urban feel."
French doors also flow from the dining room on to the back deck that Elicia has always been fond of. Also off the dining room, double doors lead to the galley kitchen, which in turn leads to the deck.
The rear garden is a private oasis, with no lawn to mow. After living in the apartment, Elicia says Phillip really enjoyed pottering around in this sun-trap of a garden, which features brick paving, ideal for outdoor dining and entertaining.
"It's such a great space for reading a book and having a glass of wine or shooting the breeze with friends," Elicia says. "You really feel like you're not in the city." She points out the "very productive" feijoa trees and the lush banana palm given by a neighbour.
Back inside, the two bedrooms are generous doubles. The front bedroom has pull-down stairs to attic storage. "We've been told it would be possible to make the attic into another room."
The Insulls have loved living in this charming home, which they have rented out during stints travelling and working overseas. "I will shed a tear when we sell it," Elicia says. But after nearly nine years here, they're moving to the North Shore to be closer to family.
