America's Cup syndicates approached in Wynyard unit marketing

Interview with Roger Twose, a director of Willis Bond which developed Wynyard Central, where the last of 4 penthouses is being marketed.

All three overseas-based America's Cup syndicate challengers have been approached by a developer marketing upmarket Wynyard Quarter residences near the city's waterfront.

Roger Twose, a director of developer Willis Bond & Co which has finished the first large block and will soon complete its second, said contact had been made with the British, American and Italian challengers.

The Herald reported on Saturday how one $7m Herne Bay home was sold to a challenger member via Graham Wall Real Estate, even though the event is three years off and not till 2021.

Twose said he expected syndicate chiefs or bosses were more likely to buy Auckland properties such as the upmarket Wynyard residences than engineers or sailors who he expected might rent inner-city apartments rather than buy.

"We've approached all the syndicates and there's been a lot of interest," he said, standing in the last of four new penthouse apartments atop the 10-level 113-unit Wynyard Central. "There have been nibbles but no sales I'm aware of.

"The other three penthouses have been sold but we decided to wait and only release this to the market once it was finished and dressed."

Challengers so far are Italy's Luna Rossa, INEOS Team UK and the New York Yacht Club's American Magic.

Twose said penthouse 4, 141 Pakenham St and had a stud height of 2.9m up to 3.4m, three bedrooms, with the potential to create four by converting what is now an office off the entry foyer into a bedroom. The penthouse has two carparks but a third is for sale for $100,000, Twose said.

The penthouse, with an annual $21,000 body corporate levy, might sell for more than $5m, given what the others fetched, he said. It goes via tender closing 4pm, October 18.

The residence is nearly 300sq m, including balconies and its views won't be built out, Twose said. Wynyard Central is 39m tall and the new apartment block Willis Bond will develop almost directly in front has a height restriction of only 31m, he said.

Nor does he think the Government's new foreign house-buyer ban would affect any sale "because we pitch product to owner-occupiers."

Marketing of the penthouse only began on Saturday, pitched as "the entertainer's retreat."

Twose acknowledged work planned in the area: "There's going to be a lot of construction activity and all the infrastructure put in for the America's Cup. There will be cranes and buildings going up."

Auckland Council and the Government are spending $212 million on construction and running costs for the cup: $114m from taxpayers and $98.5m from ratepayers.

Last month, the Environment Court granted consent for the Auckland waterfront village, paving the way for Team New Zealand to move into the Viaduct Events Centre and begin preparations for its defence.