14 VICTORIA ROAD, BROOKLANDS
The 14 Victoria Rd address of this feature property is going to attract immediate attention from prospective buyers in New Plymouth. “Location is what this home is all about,” emphasises TSB Realty consultant Beau Burmester. “There’s Pukekura Park over the road, it’s just a stroll into town to the shops and cafes, and you even have a sea view.” During the summer, he adds, residents here can just walk across the road to enjoy the music at Womad, concerts at the Bowl, and the Festival of Lights in the park. “It’s all on your doorstep. You can walk to everything.” The sea view here is a bonus feature of the redevelopment here in the early 1970s when this 508sqm property was subdivided from the original below. Building this three-bedroom, basement-garage home up here gave it an appealing viewshaft down Victoria and Carrington roads, over the city, to the sea. Inside, there’s another appealing outlook, west over the Te Henui valley to the lights of Yarrow Stadium in the distance. It can all be appreciated from the former balcony across the northern face of the home, which has been closed in with aluminium-framed joinery to create a sun-filled extension to the lounge and dining areas. On first visit, you note the lockable metal gate that provides extra security in the front fence. The path leads from there to the front door and the welcoming foyer inside. The Summit Stone-clad home has a simple and efficient layout – doors from the foyer open into the kitchen and lounge, areas that are linked at the dining area like many homes of this era. A short hallway leads to the two bedrooms, the generous space of the combined bathroom and laundry, separate toilet, and the stairs down to the basement.
The living areas are the focus of life here, of course. Windows in the kitchen and dining area look across Victoria Rd to the trees bordering Pukekura Park, their trunks pleasingly ‘limbed up’ to allow the morning sun to filter through.
A wide doorway allows good flow between the dining area and lounge and both spaces boast sliding doors into the sunny conservatory that was created from the former balcony. Picture windows in the lounge frame that eyecatching view west across the valley.
It’s easy to see this home would be a satisfying and comfortable place to relax and enjoy the setting. But it can be much more, Beau suggests. Take those stairs down to the basement and you find extra undeveloped space through a doorway at the back of the generous double garage that could become a third bedroom, a downstairs living area, or a huge workshop – whatever an owner with a little vision might want to create.
The extra space could be opened up to the paved and fully fenced lower grounds that offer a sheltered sunny place to enjoy a barbecue, or indulge an interest in gardening. A selection of established citrus trees already flourishes here.
The potential in this home is where location comes into play again, notes TSB Realtys' principal officer Greg Hull. A property on Victoria Rd can reward investment, he says; money spent on enhancing the home can result in further improved value for the property. “A home like this is well worth it.” The home’s present owner has acted on the value of investment, and has revamped the kitchen and upgraded all the window joinery with doubleglazed glass. That allows new owners to just settle in here and relax in the home as is, or plan for their own improvements to take it to another level.
Expressions of Interest Over $575,000