Space adds wow factor
And a veranda overlooks the vibe of Queen St, writes Donna McIntyre
The main attraction was the space. Benet Chin hadn’t expected this High St apartment would be so large, he says, remembering when he came to view the penthouse about 12 years ago. “You would be hard-pressed to find anything on this size in the city.”
It has continued to wow every other person who has come to visit. Every time they come in the entrance hallway. Yes, there’s the study and they can see ahead to the bathroom, between living space and bedrooms. Yes, the apartment looks nice. And then, as they turn the corner and see the big open space that houses kitchen, living and dining, they inevitably say the “w” word.
Benet’s freehold apartment is on the sixth level of the Soho Lofts. This building is set back from the pavement of High St with Little High St arcade below, and it stretches across to Queen St. It is next door to Farmers,and the Soho Lofts share the same body corp with nearby Met apartments.
Coming into Benet’s apartment, there is the study directly on the left. Moving ahead, the corridor meets a corner. Turning right at the end of the hallway you have the open-plan living area, whereas turning left leads to a bathroom with spa
222
6A, 55 HIGH ST, AUCKLAND CBD SIZE (more or less):
196sq m. million plus. $1.2
12:30pm, Nov 23 (unless sold prior).
$8814.94 a year (apartment). The two car parks on separate titles are $1481.83 each.
Sat/Sun
11-11.45am and Wed
7-7.30pm.
Joshua Muriwai, Ray White, 021
946 888; Liz McCarthy
0274 991 573. rwcityapartments.co.nz/ CTA31031 bath, and the two bedrooms, the master with en suite. The bedrooms have large wardrobes with organised shelving.
The apartment wraps around the building’s airway and this enables lots of sunlight to flood into the kitchen and lounge. There are more windows past the kitchen and then the lounge opens out, through double-glazed bi-fold doors to a veranda overlooking Queen St.
“You can stand here and watch the world go by if you have nothing better to do for a short time. The only thing that is missing is the sea view but you can’t have everything,” says Benet.
Beautiful wooden floors stretch through the living spaces, and Benet says this smooth polished surface has served as a great dancefloor for ballroom dancing, salsa and tango, something he and his wife enjoy.
There’s a gas fireplace in the lounge, a gas bayonet on the veranda if required for a barbecue and a heat pump by the kitchen “but we mainly use that only in summer for air conditioning”.
The kitchen with its central bench, has been a great spot for entertaining. “I love to cook,” says Benet. Benchtops are dimpled stainless steel and Benet thinks the lightly coloured wood of the cabinetry is tawa. All appliances are working he says, but 15 years on since the apartment was completed he suggests a new owner would probably want to upgrade the oven and fridge.
When Benet bought the apartment, it served as a base for his family. He could return here when he wasn’t overseas with business, and his daughter lived here when she went to AUT.
They also have two car parks across the road in Queen St and these are included in the apartment sale.
He is sure another buyer will fall for the apartment’s charm and love its spaciousness, just as he did 12 years ago.