Mansions back in the game

Beaches. Swimming pools. Sculptures on sweeping lawns. The odd helicopter pad. Yes, multi-million house sales are back - and a few estate agents are smiling.

They are reporting a rise in the sales of luxury homes in the past few months, as both buyers' and sellers' confidence in the property market increases.

Millionaires' investment portfolios may be down, their companies may be laying off staff, but a few of them still seem able - and sufficiently upbeat - to play the Monopoly mansion market.

Bayleys agent David Rainbow has been selling property in Remuera for 25 years.

Last year was his quietest, but he has noticed a pick-up in the big ticket listings since March.

He has just sold a palatial four-bedroom house at 87 St Stephens Ave in Parnell, along from the Prime Minister's home. Though the sale price is not yet public, Rainbow had it on the market for $3.49 million - $490,000 above the CV.

Harcourts agent Leigh Ham sells million-dollar homes in Mt Maunganui in the Bay of Plenty.

She described a "flurry" of recent buying activity.

"We've even had offers to pay the full price."

She has listed a three-bedroom apartment in the Cutters Cove complex on Marine Parade, for which the vendors are asking $1.3m. The buyers, for their money, will move into an apartment complex that comes with a lagoon pool, 20m heated lap pool, tennis court and gym.

"I haven't seen activity like this in a long time, it's exciting," Ham said.

The Harcourts agency has just launched its first glossy magazine profiling local and international million-dollar homes.

Harcourts CEO Bryan Thomson said the magazine, called Luxury Portfolio, was commissioned to met demand at the top end of the market.

"There is certainly more volume in the market, there is more advertising being done and buyers are active."

In Matakana, for a healthy $2.1m, one can buy an architecturally designed country home that looks out across 1.8ha of landscaped grounds - just waiting, suggests agent Margaret Olen, for an olive grove, vineyard or polo ground.

But the biggest house in the country is still on the market, a year after it was listed.

The house, owned by Chrisco millionaires Richard and Ruth Bradley, was first put on the market in July last year.

But real estate Peter Newbold, of Browns Sotheby's, said the house was yet to be sold. "It could sell tomorrow, it could sell in a year."

The 2323sq m house is set on 24.3ha of park-like grounds in Coatesville.