It's your lucky day in Westmere

87 Old Mill Rd, Westmere, Auckland. Photo / Geoff Dale

87 OLD MILL RD WESTMERE

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SIZE: Land 624sq m, house 140sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: 2008 CV $770,000 (houses tend to sell for more than CV in Westmere).

INSPECT: Sat/Sun 2-2.30pm.

ON THE WEB: barfoot.co.nz/453998

SCHOOL ZONES: Westmere Primary, Pasadena Intermediate, Western Springs College.

CONTACT: Bruce Murtagh, ph 021 433 669 or Becs Peacocke, ph 021 741 060, Barfoot & Thompson.

FEATURES: Elegant villa at the top of Old Mill Rd enjoys full sun and harbour views. Four bedrooms, family-friendly kitchen, security entrance and large fully fenced section with lawn areas and fruit trees. Generous decking. Close to the cafes, butchers and shops of Westmere and West Lynn.

Anne and Jonathan Scott admit they lucked out when they found this delightful Westmere villa with harbour views while house-hunting in 2009.

Anne is American-born and Jonathan, a New Zealander, had lived in Auckland only once and that was when he was 2 years old. So they weren't familiar with the different suburbs and their different vibes when they chanced on this century-old villa.

"We didn't know Mt Albert from Mt Eden from Remuera. We really landed on our feet," admits Anne.

She tells how she was still getting used the New Zealand style of architecture in 2009 after having lived in suburban America. But she could appreciate the sea view from the living area, plus a magnolia in full bloom meant the garden was at its best.

"We were sold, especially Jonathan because he knew how special this house was," says Anne. "And once I got my Kiwi sea legs, I came to value this special spot."

The location was ideal as Jonathan could catch a bus to the university where he works. And Anne likes the suburb's feeling of spaciousness: "You don't feel all scrunched up. You have the space, the views and the fresh air - and it's peaceful."

Their home has a typical villa layout with four bedrooms off the entry hallway. A door opens to the rest of the hallway with a laundry on the left, bathroom and large kitchen on the right.

This space also includes a family area to the left, which opens to the deck. It steps down to the entertaining/media room, which also opens to the deck and gardens through roll-back glass doors.

Anne and Jonathan recognised the house and section had potential for improvement. They made the house cosier by installing insulation underfloor and in the ceiling, and under-floor central heating. Out in the 624sq m section, large for Westmere, they planted fruit trees and mulched the garden, which now includes lemon, lime, orange, fig, apple, feijoa, medlar and guava trees, flax and punga, plus the lawn area.

"If we were staying we would repaint parts of the interior and modernise the bathroom and laundry," says Jonathan. "You could put a swimming pool in the back lawn and still have the full garden around it."

Westmere has woven its spell on the Scott family. "We didn't know Auckland well and were generally interested in west central Auckland, but have only discovered since moving here why everyone in Westmere loves it," adds Jonathan. "Sea views, great shops and cafes, greener and less densely settled than Ponsonby, local parks and walks, a nice mix of people, great neighbours, and great schools at Westmere Primary and Western Springs."

Anne delights in telling about when Jonathan discovered the acclaimed Westmere Butchery. "He came home and it was almost as if he had had a religious experience!"

But the home is going back on the market now, ready to enchant other house-hunters, as the Scott family are planning a lifestyle change. However, they know there are many things they'll miss - summer evening drinks on the wisteria-draped front porch; opening the windows on the warm evenings to enjoy the breeze; cosying up in the winter now that the house is insulated and heated. Plus Jonathan tells how he knows he's home when he turns off Garnet Rd into the top of Old Mill Rd and sees the western harbour in front of him.

They imagine another family in the villa. "A family who want space, light, greenery and privacy, a sea view and a garden, all 15 minutes' bus ride from downtown," says Jonathan.