Forrest Hill
Peace and space
Phil Green and Sandra Cross had a house they loved in Grey Lynn, but it was tiny. Despite its size, Sandra was dubious about moving to a much bigger place with a swimming pool Phil had found on the North Shore. But heading across the bridge turned out, she says, to be the best move.
Their brick house in Forrest Hill is from the 1970s and Sandra quickly fell for the property.
Older houses, such as their Grey Lynn one, can be cold but this house has been “wonderful,” says Sandra.
“I mean, we don’t even turn on the gas heating in winter. It’s the advantage of a modern brick house with a tile roof — it’s warm. It’s been a really easy and relaxing place to live.”
The garden is bigger but because it is well established Sandra spends less time gardening than when they lived in Grey Lynn, so she gets more time to swim in the pool instead.
“What I really love about this property is it’s a big home and you’ve got plenty of space, but it’s easy care.”
The layout is also great with the master bedroom at one end and the rest of the bedrooms at the other.
“I love the fact that when we have — and we frequently do — people to stay they can have their own wing of the house.
“They can have their own privacy, we have our own privacy, and we all join together in the centre of the house. So for entertaining and having people to stay it’s so nice.”
An unexpected bonus has been how much happier their dogs, Sydney the cocker spaniel and Izzy the bichon frise, are since the move.
“Hand on heart, they changed when we moved here,” Sandra says.
She now thinks they were nervous and always alert to the city noises in their previous home.
“Here it’s very quiet and particularly my older cocker spaniel, he loves the lawn because it’s really soft — he loves rolling on it.
“We had lawn before but it was just a small patch. He got here and he could run the full length of the house, blatting up backwards and forwards and rubbing his face on the lawn.
“He does that pretty much every morning. I swear he’s smiling.”
Phil has also loved the house, which they bought about two-and-a-half years ago.
“For roughly the same money we got to have a house which was more than twice the size, a property which was more than three times the size, and a swimming pool.”
The brick means it is low maintenance and the house is great for entertaining.
They have made a few changes, such as giving the master bedroom a big airy en suite as well as a walk-in wardrobe.
They replaced the aluminium front door with a solid oak one which made a huge difference. But they have been careful to keep the ‘70s touches, such as the pelmets and the stone work around the fireplace in the lounge.
They also added air conditioning and put in heating for the saltwater pool, plus there is a spa pool.
The house is at the top of a hill but the section is flat and is private and sheltered, Phil says.
Access to the city is close and there are beaches and cafes nearby.
The couple is sad to be leaving but say moving to the North Shore has opened their horizons — they are seeking a lifestyle change and are eyeing Titirangi.