PHOTO: Graeme Hart pictured on his super yacht Odyssey during the America’s Cup in March 2021.
Billionaire and NBR Lister Graeme Hart has branched into the Auckland residential real estate market, paying top dollar for run-down houses with development potential in the Mt Wellington area of Auckland.
Property records show newly incorporated subsidiaries of Hart’s company Fernbrook Investments went on a buying spree in October and November last year.
On October 19, the government introduced the Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Bill to remove constraints on urban intensification in major cities.
The Bill was passed on December 20.
Real estate agent Glen Foster of Harcourts said the area’s zoning and the easing of resource consent rules was driving demand for properties.
Frog in a sock
“It’s like a frog in a sock and they’re just going off. They’re not lasting five minutes,” he said.
“There is quite a lot of sales being done not through real estate agents. Sold quietly. Big pieces of land.
“There’s a few developers going around saying to real estate agents: ‘Find us some land and we’ll buy them. We don’t want to go to auction. We don’t want to fight against anyone else.’ ”
Companies Office records show Fernbrook has 10 subsidiaries whose names correspond to individual property addresses.
Of those 10, property records show six completed residential property purchases of those addresses in October and November. Real estate listings show a further three were reported sold in those same months although no details are yet available on the property register.
The largest purchase was a 1353 sq m section and house in Ellerslie for $3.4 million.
A similar size house and section at Mataroa Rd in Mt Wellington was acquired for $2.7m.
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