German businessman buys Bay farm

A Havelock North farm sold for top dollar because of its scenic qualities and its proximity to urban areas. Photo / Duncan Brown

A farm on the outskirts of Havelock North has been sold to German businessman Robert Haselsteiner, subject to Overseas Investment Office approval.

Hawke's Bay Today understands the sale price was close to $8 million for the 487ha Matangi Rd farm with 2km of Tukituki River frontage.

Owned by Andy and Robyn Orton, it backs onto the Te Mata Peak ridge and has two houses and farming infrastructure.

It was advertised as capable of running 5000 stock units.

Marketed by Property Brokers, agent Paul Harper declined to comment until he had spoken to the vendors, who could not be contacted because they were overseas.

Mr Haselsteiner is a co-founder of Interhyp, Germany's largest independent mortgage distributor according to its website.

He worked for Salomon Brothers and Goldman Sachs where he met Marcus Wolsdorf, with whom in 1999 he started Interhyp, an internet-based mortgage distributor that went public in 2005.

Interhyp was taken over by ING Direct in 2008, valuing the company at more than 400 million ($633 million).

In 2011 they founded investment firm HW Capital, which specialised in investments in financial services businesses.

Mr Haselsteiner declined to comment on the purchase "as this is a pending matter in front of the Overseas Investment Office".

Valuer Mark Morice said the property appeared to attract a "considerable premium" over and above its economic value as a farm because of its proximity to Havelock North and its scenic qualities.

Sales of overseas land became an election issue following the sale of Lochinver Station near Taupo to a Chinese company.

The sale of the 13,800 ha farm, valued at more than $70m, is also before the Overseas Investment Office. It is believed to be the second-biggest foreign acquisition of New Zealand land.