No toilet? No problem: New Zealand house without bathroom sells for £1m

Estate agents say demand for homes in neighbourhood is through the roof

(Barfoot & Thompson)

A property in New Zealand missing a bathroom and in visible disrepair has sold for a cool $2m (£1m), it has been reported.

The 1920's bungalow on Ariki Street, in the desirable neighbourhood of Grey Lynn, Auckland, is in "need of urgent renovation", an estate agent ad says.

Despite the lack of washing facilities and the need for major investment, it sold on Thursday morning after bidding opened at $1.75m, according to Stuff.

Pictures of the decaying three-bedroom home show an outdated kitchen, which has had its flooring ripped up and a garden that needs landscaping.

Barfoot & Thompson, the estate agent which listed the 480m² freehold building, described it as "the most affordable character entry to homeownership available in Grey Lynn," highlighting sky-high house prices in Auckland.

The city's council puts the capital value of the bungalow at $1.65m and says at least $200,000 is needed to repair the "blank canvas" property.

"Zoned 'single house zone' under the unitary plan, you can rest assured the investment you're making here in the beating heart of Grey Lynn will be well rewarded and sought after by future owners preferring a character-filled neighbourhood rather than urban intensification on their doorstep," the estate agent advertisement ads.

Campbell Dunoon, Barfoot and Thompson’s seller, said properties in the affluent suburb are in high demand.

“People who I would call traditional retail buyers would in the previous years buy a property to move into are now buying a property to do up and then move into,” he told Stuff.

“There are certainly more people like that.”

Some analysts have suggested New Zealand's success in combating Covid-19 is a factor in spiralling house prices.

When the pandemic first hit, most experts predicted house prices would fall. Instead, prices had in February risen by more than 19 per cent over the previous 12 months, putting them out of reach for many people wanting to buy their first home.

The government has since introduced a number of initiatives that it said would address the issue.