The sprawling 762 sqm home on Parakiore Rd, in Ngararatunua, Whangārei, is an icon and can be spotted from various parts of the city.
The sprawling 762 sqm home on Parakiore Rd, in Ngararatunua, Whangārei, is an icon and can be spotted from various parts of the city.
By Nikki Preston - OneRoof
A Northland couple built a castle-inspired home in Whangārei after being inspired by European and US architecture.
The property, featuring four bedrooms and multiple amenities, took decades to complete and is now for sale.
The home, known for its grandeur and unique features, is listed with an RV of $2.6m.
A Northland couple built their very own castle complete with a turret and a tower after falling in love with historic homes in Europe and the US.
The four-bedroom mansion, perched on a hill at 99 Parakiore Rd, in Ngararatunua, Whangārei, hasbeen a decades-long labour of love for retired master builder Stuart Cains and his wife Nanette.
Nanette told OneRoof they had been bowled over by some of the properties they had seen while travelling around Europe and in Atlanta in the late 1990s, and decided to build something similar.
“It was never meant to be a castle, but unfortunately people call it that.”
The couple searched far and wide for the right materials and sourced the marble on the staircase from Spain.
The owner, who is a retired master builder, handcrafted all the woodwork in the library.
The couple, who have listed the property for sale, were both working full-time when they started the project, so everything was done after work and during time off.
They completed the first stage of the build in 2000, producing a two-bedroom home, with a bathroom, laundry, two toilets and a kitchenette. Over the next two decades, they added two more bedrooms, a library, a workshop, multiple lounges, a state-of-the-art kitchen, a spa and a sauna room.
Nanette said they spent hours looking for the right fixtures and fittings to complement the home. “We kind of had a style and I guess we have carried it through.”
Nanette said they spent numerous weekends driving to Auckland to pick up various materials, including an ornate fireplace.
They also rescued several leadlight windows the Quest Hotel in Brisbane had discarded, flying them back from Australia to use as the windows in their upstairs hallway and library.
“They were beautiful. We couldn’t let that go. So we brought that back and that’s all in the house now,” Nanette told OneRoof.
They also imported marble for the staircase and around the fireplace from Spain. “We had so much fun doing this over the years. We used to go away and bring stuff back and get ideas.”
Stuart spent countless hours in his workshop, crafting the intricate staircases, bannisters and architraves from Australian Jarrah wood.
The "castle" sits on a 3.49ha lifestyle block and is a landmark in Whangārei.
The 776sqm home has multiple lounges, a library, workshop, a sauna and spa room.
Nanette said it had been a wonderful family home, one their children and grandchildren had also enjoyed (the large entertaining spaces mean it can easily host 30-plus people for dinner).
However, the couple are now in their 80s and are ready to move into a retirement village.
Ray White listing agent Kelly Sackfield said 99 Parakiore Rd was a one-of-a-kind property, and one everyone in Whangārei knew about.
“It’s iconic. Anybody would know about this as you can see it from a distance. It’s king-of-the-castle stuff as it’s on top of a hill.”
Game of chess anyone? The vendors were inspired by the homes they saw on their travels overseas.
However, it took her breath away the first time she stepped inside. “It’s so grand and it’s so solid. It takes forever to get through the first couple of rooms because you are just in awe and every time you turn a corner you are like, ‘Oh my gosh’.”
Sackfield said while it might seem a bit intimidating at first, especially for those who had just seen it from a distance, the “castle” would make a great family home.
“If you look at it and think ‘Oh my God, is a big Russian oligarch going to buy this thing’, then no. Normal Kiwis with families and grandchildren, that’s who owns it now.”
The large bedrooms and multiple living areas also lent themselves to guest accommodation and the house could be used as a venue for events such as weddings, she said.
And with an RV of $2.6m, Sackfield said it could be one of the best value castles around. “We don’t want people to think they are going to have to pay millions and millions – they are not. The sellers have had their time there and now it’s somebody else’s turn.”
