Seller who couldn’t find her husband finds buyer for massive Canterbury house

Natasha Smith couldn’t find her husband, but she has found a buyer for their massive house in Rolleston.

The seven-bedroom, 411sq m house with a swimming pool was advertised on OneRoof earlier this year with a very funny catchphrase.

The topline of Harcourts agents Michelle and Simon Corkindale’s listing copy for the Waterbridge Way property was: “Can’t find my husband!”

“Our seller keeps losing her husband! What started as a dream home has turned into a hide-and-seek championship, and they’re officially retiring from the game. It’s time to downsize.”

The property sold in October for $2.1175 million – above its RV of $1.9m.

Michelle Corkindale, who is the vendor’s aunt, told OneRoof the house had attracted a lot of interest.

“We had loads of hits. The most we’ve ever seen on any of our properties. It was the photo of the swimming pool and the tagline.

“People would come to the open home and go, ‘I’ve lost my kids,’ or ‘No, you’re right, I’ve lost my husband.’”

Corkindale told OneRoof the buyers needed to sell their property first before they could go unconditional. The vendors, Smith and her husband Jason, also had to wait for their sale before they could purchase their next home.

“There was a chain of one, two, three, four properties: one before the (buyers’ house), the buyers’ one, then this one, and then Tasha and Jason, the one they were buying.

“They’re moving to a larger piece of land and a house that needs renovating.”

Corkindale told OneRoof the buyers planned to run a business from the property.

“They also have an adult family living with them. They’ve come off a lifestyle block and wanted less land but still wanted garaging and office space.”

“They didn’t want to go to a small piece of land, so it worked well for them. The swimming pool’s a bonus,” said Corkindale.

Smith told OneRoof earlier this year sometimes she hadn’t been able to find her husband during the 25 years they had lived at the house. Their children and grandchildren had often been hard to locate too.

“The kids love it because there’s plenty of space to hide and seek.”

Smith told OneRoof the home had expanded over the years. Whenever the family needed more space, builder Jason added to it.

“What started as a small family home grew and grew,” she said.

“We’ve got grandchildren, nieces and nephews, older friends, people from all around New Zealand who come and stay with us. There’s plenty of space for them.”

Corkindale told OneRoof the Rolleston market had been fairly buoyant in recent months.

“If it’s a good property and it’s presented well, then it’s going to sell. I’ve only got one sticking at the moment, and I have two offers on it, but just not at the level (the vendors want). Sometimes it’s just owners saying, ‘This is what I want, and I’ll wait for it.’ But we had great auctions last week.

“I think there’s a good, positive attitude out there. With Christchurch and Canterbury, we’ve got such an influx of people coming in. It’s got to be good for the real estate market.”