Three sisters who shot to fame with their TV reality series Keeping up with the Kaimanawas have placed their equestrian riding centre and ranch-style family homestead properties — complete with a whopping treehouse castle — on the market for sale.
Horse lovers Vicki, Kelly and Amanda Wilson became national celebrities several years ago through their down-to-earth TV show about taming wild Kaimanawa horses, mustered in the Central North Island plateau.
At the time, the three women and their parents, all lived on a trio of neighbouring lifestyle block properties at 27, 184 and 202 Tapuhi Rd, Hukerenui just north of Whāngārei.
However, older sister Vicki is now living in Hawke's Bay where she is breeding and training young horses and equestrian riders while also competing at a high level of showjumping, Amanda is also looking to move to the Central North Island to continue her show jumping career and Kelly is now concentrating on her successful writing career, so the family is selling up its property portfolio.
Included on the home property is one of New Zealand's biggest treehouses — a solidly constructed 15sq m castle built among the thick branches of a totara tree.
This feature symbolises the character and the artisan nature of the property.
Combined, the three lifestyle properties and the various buildings on them have been used as the Wilson clan home, and for hosting their equestrian based adventure camps catering for both kids and adults.
Headlining the portfolio of properties is the Wilsons' "home block" — a 4.237ha landholding with three dwellings, a dormitory-style block sleeping up to 40 attendees at a time, a five-bay horse shed with its own tack and feed room, and fully fenced large showjumping and round yard.
A picturesque river bordering the property provides a swimming hole for humans and a swim lane for horses. The property has an asking price of $875,000.
Over the fence next door, are 10.1350ha of rolling countryside and an established 14-box equestrian complex with feed and tack rooms, wash bay, and living quarters with hot water, solar lights and USB ports (no ablution facilities).
With a well-designed race system across the 30-paddock property, the land and buildings are for sale at $525,000 plus GST if applicable.
Rounding out the Wilson real estate offering, just a couple of kilometres up the road, is 11.6231ha of grazing land, well established for horses and bordered by another river. Fenced into 12 paddocks, with a small outpost building, the property is on the market for sale at $360,000 plus GST if applicable.
All three lots are being sold by Bayleys Whāngārei.
Salespeople Alex Smits and Tracy Dalzell say most of the commercially-run rudimental equine infrastructure at the Hukerenui locations is in place to underpin an upscaling of the Wilson's activities — "taking the girls' passion of horses from a hobby business founded on what they loved doing, to a potentially large-scale commercial education and leisure activities centre".
"For example, the established equestrian amenities are impressive — as would be expected from a family whose reputation was founded on their love and care for both wild horses and their team of show jumpers," Dalzell says.
"There is scope for the existing guest services amenities to be more formally developed and expanded to take the property to a new level of commercial operation."
She says though there is a core of rudimentary accommodation amenities on site for camp participants, there's ample potential to add glamping-grade facilities which could be used to attract a more mainstream guest market, particularly adults.
"There are several flat building platforms located across the blocks which could be built on without detracting from the rural vistas."
Dalzell says the properties could also be bought as residential lifestyle blocks.
"They are available for purchase individually, as one combined entity, or in any combination.
"While the properties complement each other, they also have their own individual merits."