CONTACT:
Iona Rodrigues, City Sales, 09 3030 601 or 021 0283 8130.
AUCTION:
June 10.
It's amazing how much can change in a couple of years, says Cantabrian Troy Stewart.
He and his wife, Louise, bought a penthouse apartment off the plans in the Sugartree development on Union St after deciding to shift to Auckland, intending to move into the apartment this year when thebuild was completed.
"We are from Christchurch and we were hit by the earthquake hard and were going to live in Auckland," says Troy.
Fast forward to 2015 and Troy says they have almost forgotten about the earthquake. "Business is good again for us in Christchurch, so this unit is on the market."
Buying in an unfamiliar city wasn't easy, he says. Auckland agents would ring him in Christchurch with news of houses on the market.
Being unfamiliar with the different suburbs, he found it tricky to make comparisons between homes.
With an apartment unit, he felt he could work out the value per square metre to assess the true value. So he and Louise narrowed their searches to that sector.
Image 1 of 5: Ten storeys up and facing the warm sunny north, a crisp, new penthouse is positioned right in the heart of the city's action
"We looked at a lot of apartments and I thought this one was good value for money and it's in the best complex.
"It's brand new. We wanted to be in the centre, we didn't know Auckland that well, we liked that it was close to the Les Mills gym and the old City Depot area with the Food Truck Garage. That's nice and quirky, and it has great views."
Indeed, it was the promise of the views that sold Troy on this particular corner apartment on the 10th floor in the first stage of the Sugartree three-stage development. "When Sugartree was being marketed, they had a photo of the view we would get, I think taken from a crane. They said this is your view, and it was sensational, looking straight to the harbour and SkyTower."
He says the views have lived up to the promise, having inspected the completed apartment.
The Sugartree development is constructed of precast concrete, steel, and aluminium joinery.
The apartment has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a deck looking north. "I love outdoor living and the deck is private."
With a thriving business in Christchurch, he wants to free up the capital in this apartment and has told his agent he is a motivated vendor.
"We will be selling on the day. We picked it up at the right price 18 months ago and I'm sure we'll be on the right side of the ledger. The way Auckland's property market is going, it isn't stopping because there aren't enough houses."
He thinks their penthouse apartment will appeal to first home buyers, maybe a young couple or even an elderly couple.
The sale does include a parking space on a separate title. "If someone doesn't want a car park, we can sell it separately."
