Sleek, modern and ‘ wow’
Extra touches surprise visitors to this four- bedroom home that opens wide, writes Catherine Masters
Luke McCarthy and Timond Chu are packing up their home for a new life in Bangkok. Timond is a pilot and has a new job based there, so Luke and the schnauzers, Levi and Jet, plus Mimi the cat, are all moving, too. They may buy an apartment in Thailand but will miss their modern, sleek home in Kingsland, which is on the cusp of Western Springs and Morningside.
Luke says Timond bought the house new about five years ago.
They were looking around Grey Lynn, which was buzzing at that time.
“I mean, everyone wanted to be in Grey Lynn,” Luke says.
But Timond, who is from Hong Kong, is not so keen on old villas, so was looking for something newer.
The market for contemporary homes in the area was limited — “Well, there weren’t any in Grey Lynn that we could find and then we came over here.”
What they found tucked away up a driveway was a house made of steel and plywood painted black. It had the surprise factor and the wow factor. “Anyone who comes here to do something or who hasn’t been here before, they sort of go ‘ Wow’,” says Luke.
There are views across to the Sky Tower from upstairs and you can see Mt Eden and Eden Park, which Luke says looks great lit up at night, but the house doesn’t look over a huge number of homes and is quiet and private.
“The guy that built it, he’s sort of like a one- off spec builder, like, he just does one job at a time, but this place, he had built it for his sister who was moving back from overseas and so he spec’d it quite highly but then she got a different job placement and never came back.
“So he did put more finishing into it than he would have normally.”
There are concrete floors and an entertainer’s kitchen on the ground floor, with a dining area that opens out to the backyard.
Luke and Timond spend a lot of time in the kitchen area when they have guests. They do their TV watching in the adjacent lounge, which has a gas fire.
All the doors in the living areas pull back to open the house up and they put in a louvred roof, which operates via a remote, to extend the living area outdoors.
The fenced backyard is easy to maintain and
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33A WESTERN SPRINGS RD, KINGSLAND SIZE: PRICE GUIDE: AUCTION: INSPECT: SCHOOLS: CONTACT: ON THE WEB: wraps around one side of the house.
Says Luke: “The other thing people always comment on is how quiet it is, like at night there’s no noise at all, considering there are a few houses around.”
Past the kitchen is a downstairs bedroom they use as an office but which could be a guest room.
There is a full bathroom and a separate laundry with enough space to set up as a semi- butler’s pantry, Luke says.
Upstairs has a landing and large tinted windows from where you can see One Tree Hill and Eden Park. “It’s a really handy spot,” Luke says. “Whenever there’s something on, people park around here and walk, and then if you did work in town there’s Morningside train station right there.”
Upstairs are another three bedrooms, all with views of greenery, plus another bathroom and the master bedroom also has an en suite.
The garage on one side has a ranch slider by an outdoor area which could be developed, perhaps for a spa pool.
That is something for the new owners to contemplate as Luke and Timond are putting everything on the market, including their Ponsonby shop The Object Room.