Sea, sand socials in Matarangi

326 Kenwood Dr, Matarangi, Coromandel. Photo / Supplied

326 KENWOOD DR MATARANGI

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SIZE: Land 961sq m, house 83sq m plus decks.

PRICE INDICATION: CV $1.65 million. Set sale 2pm, April 30, 2011 ( unless sold prior).

INSPECT: Sunday 11.30am-1pm.

ON THE WEB: richardsons.co.nz/RM3200

SCHOOL ZONES: Coromandel Area School.

CONTACT: Aaron Morgan, Richardsons, ph (07) 866 0322 or 021 679 686.

FEATURES: Tidy 1980s bach on the Matarangi beachfront with views of the ocean, islands and beach on a highly desirable street. Comfortable enough to enjoy the bach as it is now or develop a home for the future, with generous north-facing outdoor living and the beach at the bottom of the lawn.

Geoff and Debra Lawson's grown-up kids (now 29, 26 and 22) have loved their beachfront Matarangi bach. So much so, that they drew up a list of more than 26 things they've enjoyed there over the past two decades as part of the marketing literature.

"We have owned Matarangi for 20 years and it is literally paradise at our doorstep," says Debra. "Our children have grown up here, the youngest was two when we bought it and now grandson Oliver comes."

The Lawsons' holiday life has been shared with extended families and loads of the kids' friends. Every Christmas Day sees 14 (and one year more than 20) people sit at the long table for Christmas dinner, before the kids' friends invade for what Debra calls "tent city".

"One of the pleasures of a bach is that it brings the kids' friends to you. We've loved that we get to know their friends in a much more meaningful way that in the city," says Debra.

The family have also loved the close community that has developed among Matarangi holiday-goers, with very strong friendships, New Year's Eve parties and all the kids celebrating their 21st birthdays there.

"There's a real melting pot of people, lots have been going as long as us, so we've seen kids grow up. Friendships are very strong because we all see each other at our best and most relaxed," Debra observes. They even have a formal name: the Matarangi Deck Hoppers Association, which involves much socialising, pot luck barbecues, backyard cricket and games and dinners at the golf house.

As a school teacher and part-time student, Debra has relished the opportunity to get away to the beach during school holidays.

However, with her degree about to be finished, and the kids moving on, keen travellers Debra and Geoff have decided it is time to head out to the world beyond New Zealand's golden beaches and explore France, so the bach is on the market. Debra admits that glamour resort Matarangi has changed a lot since they first moved there. Geoff's family had had long connections to Whitianga, a 20-minute drive away, and the young family would often pootle over the then-gravel roads to visit. The sound little house was only two years old then and its seemingly elastic sides have accommodated bigger crowds than three bedrooms and a bath might suggest. But with plenty of decks and two steps down to the lawn space and on to the beach, and with pohutukawa-framed views out to the Mercury Islands, it has been a happy retreat.

The Lawsons highly recommend the cafe in Matarangi as a meeting place for the whole community, but also like to pop around to New Chum's or Whangapoua beaches for picnics. Shopping and movies at Whitianga kept the kids amused on rainy days.

The kids' memories include wakeboarding, fishing, long days hanging at the wharf or on the beach or heading out to the Mercury Islands to fish. The deck is the perfect spot for watching sunsets and, occasionally, spotting dolphins out in the sparkling water.

Beachfront properties here are tightly held (it has been two years since the last one came on the market), and so this is a rare chance for new owners to settle in and create a generation of memories for their family and friends.