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A tricky site and good design come together in Christchurch.
It’s always interesting to see the sort of houses architects design for themselves, but Regan Johnston modestly diverts the credit for his own abode. Houses design themselves, he says. If so, his family home nestled into the hill above Sumner Beach in Christchurch is indeed a clever house. It has picked up a fistful of awards and catered masterfully to the needs of its inhabitants: Regan and his wife, Melanie Lynn, their 15-month-old daughter, Harper, and Apple, an elderly beagle.
Anna mcleod/NZ House & Garden
Left, Melanie Lynn in the kitchen of the Sumner Beach home she shares with husband Regan Johnston, their young daughter, Harper, and Apple, an elderly beagle. Right, sun streams into the lower lounge.
“We wouldn’t have seen these buyers a year ago. These properties are trophies.” An example was the $2.9 million auction sale on Friday of a Richmond Hill house, which set a record for the neighbourhood, Heazlewood said.
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CoreLogic s head of research Nick Goodall says a change in attitude meant people were moving out of Wellington city and going further afield. (FIle photo) The house was designed by the seller, architect Regan Johnston, and has won several awards. Heazlewood said among the drawcards were the ocean views and high-end fittings and finishes. Agents were seeing buyers wanting properties that “ticked all the boxes” and they were not constrained by a budget, he said.