IDYLLIC HOMESTEAD
What started as a bit of a risk has paid off tenfold for this couple who, over 40 wonderful years, have poured their hearts and souls into restoring this heritage home to her former glory – and more.
“It was the early 1980s. We were living in a small cottage in Freemans Bay but had always dreamed of having a big house and lots of land.
“One evening we were out for a stroll and ended up over the hill in Grey Lynn. When we looked back towards home, Freemans Bay was in the dark but Grey Lynn still had the sun. We looked at each other and instantly knew we wanted to live here.”
From there, the couple knocked on doors, asking if people were considering selling. They hit the jackpot at 3 Chamberlain Street, Grey Lynn, Auckland City: a former halfway house for men in need that was in a state of disrepair.
“I’d had a dream the night before we found this house where I had walked down a long hallway and could see the Remutaka Ranges out one window and the sea out the other, views I had grown up with in Wellington.
“When we stepped into this house it completely matched my dream but from an Auckland perspective: a long hallway with the Waitakere Ranges out one window and the sea out the other. I just knew we had to have this home.”
What followed were many years of intensive work, starting with a series of working bees with friends.
“The house needed a huge amount of work. It was derelict in parts and had a huge amount of rubbish in others, but we were young and brave enough to move in and live within the madness.
“Our friends regularly came round – I remember we had a banquet in the lounge shortly after we moved in, with wallpaper and scrim hanging off the walls around us – and together we cleaned it out, filled skips with rubbish, re-gibbed, painted … it was all part of the adventure. It was a risk, but it has absolutely paid off.”
The result is an immaculately restored five-bedroom homestead on a large section that feels a world away from Auckland.
“It’s easy to see why the current owners have loved living here for over 40 years. I expect the next family will do the same.”
In recent years, the home has undergone two extensive renovations, both under the guidance of renowned heritage architect Barbara Webster.
Today, the home looks nothing like the blank slate they fell in love with in 1983.
“All these years on, the home feels very much like the heritage homestead it may have once been. We raised our two daughters here and have celebrated 1st birthdays, 21sts, 40ths, 60ths, 70ths, engagements, christenings, wakes … if you can think it, we’ve had it here.
“It has been wonderful to share this home with so many people over the years.”
Kellands agent Caroline Daniel says “It’s easy to see why the current owners have loved living here for over 40 years. I expect the next family will do the same.”
After four decades, it’s with a sense of hopeful optimism that the current owners bid farewell to this property.
“It’s quite an emotional thing selling a house you’ve been living in for 40 years. But we’re not sad about leaving. We are very lucky to have had such a beautiful home to bring our family up in.
“We’ve had a wonderful life here.”