One of the homes on Towai St.
A World War II soldier's smart investment in prime
Auckland land has provided a windfall for his family 80 years
later.
Doug Miller's four sections in Towai St in the booming suburb
of St Heliers sold at auction for $7.035 million, a figure
well above his two children's expectations and the current
valuation of $5.02 million.
Mr Miller, who died four years ago, and his wife, Mavis,
bought the section at No 21 for £450, with money borrowed
from her parents, before he went off to fight in Egypt and
Libya in 1939. The area, 10km east of central Auckland, was
at the time considered to be on the outskirts of the city,
but is now a central suburb with an average house price of
$963,899.
Mr Miller's son John told the Herald: "Dad's brothers asked
him why he had bought in the sticks."
When he came home in the 1940s, Mr Miller built the home that
still stands on the land today and over the years bought
three neighbouring sites at numbers 23, 25 and 29.
Public records do not hold information on the sale prices for
23 and 25 as they are historic, but Quotable Value shows No
29 was bought in 1987 for $205,000. It was sold at auction
this month for $1.275 million to a developer, who also bought
25 and 23, which were sold as a parcel, for $4.4 million.
Mr Miller's daughter Lester bought her former childhood home
at 21 for $1.36 million to keep in the family. A witness
inside the Bayleys auction room said the developer also bid
on the family home but when Lester won, the room applauded
and she burst into tears and hugged family members.
The neighbouring houses had been rented out over the years,
often by various members of the family, John Miller said.
The total area of the land was 6051sq m, with the section at
23 having the biggest share at 3478sq m. It had a valuation
of $2.25 million alone.
Towai St
21 sold $1.36 million, CV $980,000, 919sq m section
23 sold (with 25) $4.4 million, CV $2,250,000, 3478sq m
section
25 sold (with 23) $4.4 million, CV $900,000, 827sq m section
29 sold $1.275 million, CV $890,000, 827sq m
TOTAL: CV $5.02 million, 6051sq m
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