SCHOOL ZONES:
Warkworth Primary, Mahurangi College.
CONTACT:
Dianna Coman, Bayleys, 021 790 307
AUCTION:
Dec 15
Alan Farnell says his country home on 8.6ha near Warkworth is the whole package.
"It's not just a home, it's a small farm.
"It is a stunning tranquil location, Warkworth is a lovely place to live."
Alan, who lives here with son Andre, bought the Valerie Close property five years ago. The close is a private road, with a right of way to the properties.
"It's the whole package. And we knew it would be sub-dividable in the future. It ticked all the boxes."
Alan found out the house was for sale through local knowledge.
"People knew I was looking. And the location is fantastic, it is so close to Auckland. My boy is at school and five minutes from Warkworth. It had been on the market for a while because it is a more exclusive property."
He knew the area from boyhood trips here.
"The beaches and fishing are fabulous. I think that is one of the reasons I came back here because I grew up in West Auckland and I fished up here as a child. And we always caught fish for dinner. The beaches from Tawharanui and Omaha and Mathesons Bay are beautiful spots and so different."
He describes the area surrounding Warkworth as vibrant.
"There is local art - the wineries - concerts. And being south of Warkworth is a key thing as we don't have all the delays from the intersection delays in Warkworth.
"We are 5km south of that so we have a free ride straight on to the toll road. As long as I don't go in rush hour, I can be in Auckland's CBD in 40 minutes."
The house is designed around the natural contours of the hillside and sited so it overlooks the Mahurangi River and a tributary stream, with pasture in front and the native bush including mature totara, rimu and kauri, which attracts the birdlife.
"I use the land for grazing. For the first time I have heifers but usually we run eight steers.
We have all the gear, tractors, and it is quite low maintenance, eight paddocks all with water and electricity.
"I do mow the lot occasionally and we have the mulching mowers to do that."
125 Valerie Close, Warkworth.
He says future owners could pursue any rural pursuit. "You can do what I am doing and graze, have horses or horticulture.
"This is rural, it is a large lifestyle block. The only house we can see is two kilometres away. The privacy and peace are just beautiful."
He describes his home as country living with a bit of style. He has stained parts of the macrocarpa home and painted the more exposed sections. The property also has the house, stables and a three-bay tractor shed.
"That is by design," says Alan. "And to fit in with the slope that it is on. It is cut into the hillside overlooking the lower river flats."
Two sections are the original build from 1995 and the last was added in 2009.
The new two-storey block at the eastern end can be used as a separate living block with its two bedrooms, two en suites, living area, and large playroom underneath opening to the deck.
The other sections have the large kitchen open to the dining area, the master bedroom above the living area, and the lounge on the western side and two bedrooms between those two blocks.
All the north-facing rooms on ground level open to the outdoors, and the master bedroom has a Juliet balcony.
For heating, there is underfloor heating and two Masport low-emission fireplaces. "As well as the native covenanted bush, the property has a block of macrocarpa that is more than 20 years old so there is endless firewood supply from the pruning," says Alan. "It is high-grade macrocarpa suitable for furniture and boat building."
He says the main covered deck in front of the lounge is one of his favourite spots. "We also sit under the pergola, which has a grapevine and wisteria growing over it."
Now that Alan is selling, he hopes the property will be home to another family.
"The house suits a family because you have so much space," he says.
"Living in this area with this bush and this tranquillity is lovely."
