Huntly House is a 1911 villa mansion originally from Palmerston North but relocated to rural south Auckland in February 2017 and is situated by the water in Clarks Beach.
The house has undergone almost 3 years full time of a very sympathetic renovation with all the standard insulation, ventilation and heating upgrades expected of a modern home.
The studio room - formerly the house's generator room, is located at the service area of main house with a separate entrance. Huntly House was the first home in Palmerston North with it's own power supply which, along with the size of the home, in its day was an indication of the wealth, social standing and professional reputation of the owner.
Up until 1942 the home had been a private residence but after the death of owner Mrs Grace Burges Huntly House entered into many decades of alternative uses including a boutique hotel, a boarding house, a flat and hostel, a car yard and mechanics workshop before it was finally abandoned and left to the ravages of time, squatters and vandals. On the brink of demolition to clear her once majestic one acre garden site, Huntly House was thrown a life line when purchased by a Dutch family to once again be restored to her former glory as a private residence. Huntly was moved from her original site out to Kelvin Grove, Palmerston North where for almost 30 years was owned by one family who painstakingly restored the house.
Sadly Huntly found herself alone after being sold and needing to be moved off the site to make way for a new development.
We purchased Huntly House in 2016, moved her to the Franklin region in early 2017 and completed another major renovation in Dec 2019. Our vision is to share this magnificent home with others who appreciate the grace and rich craftmanship of the villa period in New Zealand architectural history.