Bidding war over Tamati Coffey's house

Former television presenter and Rotorua Labour hopeful Tamati Coffey has sold his plush Auckland pad for more than double its valuation price.

Coffey and his partner Tim Smith sold their Herne Bay home at auction on Wednesday, with the hammer going down on a final offer of $631,000.

A listing with real estate agency Barfoot and Thompson put its CV price at $305,000.

Nine bidders fought to secure the 56sqm two-bedroom unit on Jervois Rd, real estate agent Matt O'Rourke said, a record number for a property on his books.

A bit of a bidding war broke out, he said, with the winning bid "smashing through the reserve price".

"[Coffey] was over the moon," Mr O'Rourke said.

Nobody at the auction knew who the seller was, so it was unlikely Coffey's celebrity fuelled the high bids.

APNZ