Waimauku - Getaway home

A couple with plenty of home-building experience have created a private paradise.

91 Taylor Road, Waimauku.

Eight years since they bought their 1ha section in Wharauroa Estate, Lisa Barnyard and Paul Third have created their own escape from the outside world.

In fact, when people ask Lisa if she's going away for holidays, ``I say, `No, we're all ready away', because it's so private here. It's like a bit of paradise but it's so close to Auckland.''

The couple were the first to start building in the subdivision, so the landscaped gardens around their solid plaster and cedar home have had a chance to mature and provide privacy.

It was the fourth home they built together, so they came up with the design and had a draughtsman realise it.

``Paul's a builder and he has built some flash houses so he's got lots of good ideas,'' says Lisa. ``We've tried to build a house that's not going to date, that you can't pinpoint to a certain era. It's more classical - a bit Mediterranean, but there's a bit of country style there as well.''

Central to the design - in more ways than one - is the kitchen, which Paul and Lisa placed firmly in the middle of the U-shaped house with the living rooms and dining areas placed around it. With their other homes they found they spent so much time in and around the kitchen that it made sense to have it as the home's hub.

The kitchen's curved, granite bench with a breakfast bar at each end breaks up the lines in the large open plan area, which has an eating nook to one side of the kitchen and a more formal dining area on the other. Bifolds from the kitchen open out to a large paved patio that features a cedar pergola with rough plastered columns.

The matai flooring extends into the formal and informal lounges that flank the kitchen/dining area.

The curved ceilings lined with matai panelling are a striking feature in both lounges, giving the spaces warmth and drawing the eye to the glazed end walls and the rural views.

Both lounges have woodburners, and the informal living area on the western side of the house opens to the patio.

An elevated deck wraps around the northwestern corner of the house to connect with this outdoor space.

The master bedroom with tiled en suite also sits on this side of the house, and beneath it and the casual lounge is a games room and another bathroom.

There is an office at the front of the house that has its own door next to the main entrance.

The property also has a paddock where neighbours graze horses or stock, and what Lisa calls ``the top garden'', which is a landscaped area with a large lawn that is ideal for picnics.

This garden has automatic sprinklers for lawn and plants and, like the rest of the landscaping, was professionally designed with a planting plan that features mainly natives.

Lisa and Paul aren't entirely sure where they will move to when their home sells, but they plan to build again.


VITAL STATISTICS

BEDROOMS: 5

BATHROOMS: 3

GARAGES: 2

SIZE: Land 1ha, house 410sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: Interest expected over $1.3 million. Auction September 23.

INSPECT: Sun 1.30-2.30pm.

ON THE WEB: www.harcourts.co.nz # KM060415

CONTACT: Peter Young or Debbie Young, Harcourts Kumeu, ph 412 7666 bus, Peter 021 276 0808, Debbie 021 646 131.

FEATURES: Large home with expansive open plan living in sought-after area. Immaculate landscaped grounds with rural views.