Home for Sale in Akaroa, Canterbury, New Zealand

Slice of Paradise with Spectacular Harbour Views

Daisy Hill Cottage sits in lush gardens on 3/4 acre at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac overlooking the historic Banks Peninsula seaside village of Akaroa. Built in 1861, the house has been tastefully enlarged over the years, still retaining the charm and character of a Victorian country home.

Secluded from its closest neighbors, and affording complete privacy, Daisy Hill enjoys spectacular, unobstructed views over Akaroa Harbour and the mountains beyond. From the house, the balconies, and the deck, it feels as though you are in a world of your own, alive with the calls of bellbirds, fantails, and numerous other songbirds. Yet you are only a few minutes' walk from downtown Akaroa, a self-sufficient town--- the only place in NZ that was settled by the French---and one of the most beautiful locations in the country. Christchurch, the South Island's largest city, is just a little more than an hour's drive away.

Daisy Hill is fully furnished and equipped: linens and towels, blankets and pillows, pots and pans, dishes and cutlery, TV, DVD, radios---you name it, it's there. Also about a year's supply of firewood, cut to size for our super-efficient wood-burning stove that heats the entire house in winter. You could start living here the day you take possession!

In addition to the house, itself, there is a smaller, also very solid building (a "sleep-out") down the driveway, with two rooms: a finished room which we use as an office, and an unfinished room, used for storage. There is a water hookup to the sleep-out, so a bathroom and/or kitchen could easily be added.

Daisy Hill Cottage underwent a thorough inspection less than 2 years ago, and passed with flying colors. (Our inspector, who recently retired as the chief building inspector of Christchurch, told us the house was good for least another 150 years!) It is in excellent condition, inside and out. We love Daisy Hill, and are only selling it because we live in the US, have to pay for it with ever more worthless US dollars, and are finding it increasingly difficult to travel back and forth.

The current rateable (assessed) value of Daisy Hill Cottage, as of 1 July 2008, is $685,000.