Riverside home offers laidback lifestyle

AUNIQUE riverside home in the unspoilt heart of Otaihanga is for sale for the first time since it was built about 40 years ago.

The two-storey, Tudor-style house, at 21 Makora Rd, is on an 853-square metre corner section adjacent to the Waikane River.

‘‘It’s a spectacular property, next to the river and the Otaihanga Boating Club, and looking right down the mouth of the estuary,’’ Mike Voyle, of Voyle & Co Realty, says.

The 220sqm brick and boardand-batten dwelling with a tile roof officially has one bedroom.

But it’s an exceptionally large double-bedroom, with an ensuite, two double-wardrobes and a dressing room; there’s also a hobbies room set up with bunk beds for extra sleeping space.

The property is amazingly private because of its privileged position, with only one immediate neighbour.

It faces northwest for optimal sun and as well as a large, internalaccess single garage with storage space, offers extensive off-street parking and a large lawn with a magnificent magnolia tree.

The front door opens into a games room that adjoins a sitting area with a built-in bar.

Also on this level, which is tiled throughout, are a bathroom with laundry facilities, a study, the hobbies room and multiple sets of doors to the garden and covered al fresco spaces overlooking the river.

A timber spiral staircase leads to the spacious, open-plan living/ dining areas areas and kitchen.

They combine a heat pump and a fireplace with electric heating with exposed rafters and stunning views of the river mouth and Kapiti Island.

The living area opens to a broad deck and the adjoining bedroom to a smaller deck that steps down to the garden.

Kitchen chattels include an underbench oven, ceramic cooktop and dishwasher.

There’s also a west-facing conservatory at the top of the staircase.

Voyle says the appeal of the property lies in its potential to improve in an unspoilt, recreational haven, with the estuary on the doorstep and the Otaihanga Domain only a few minutes’ walk away.

‘‘Homes in this street rarely come up for sale and few are this close to the river for enjoying everything from swimming and boating to whitebaiting.

‘‘It offers an old-fashioned, laidback lifestyle that most Kiwis would have thought was no longer possible within an hour’s drive of Wellington City.’’

The property has a rateable value of $630,000 and a deadline sale date of October 8.