The development that other developers want the inside goss on

10 March 2021

Apartments and terraced houses are popping up all over Auckland. But one project is performing so well that other developers are trying to uncover its secret.

College & Mason in Mt Wellington’s Stonefields is being developed by Nigel McKenna from the Templeton Group. McKenna is one of New Zealand’s most experienced developers and has been responsible for projects like the well-known restaurant, hotel and apartment complex that lines the waterfront at Viaduct Harbour, Beaumont Quarter, Lighter Quay and the recent Chambers & Station heritage conversion. When it’s complete, College & Mason will be home to 93 brand-new designer terraced homes, ranging from two to five bedrooms.

Stages one and two sold out in record time (stage two even had a waiting list), and 50 per cent of the third and final stage, which was only released a few weeks ago, is already under contract.

“I see a lot of projects all over the country and how they’re performing in this current market, and without a doubt College & Mason is performing exceptionally high in inquiries and sales,” says Suzie Wigglesworth, Bayleys’ national director for residential projects. “A lot of developers have been asking us what Templeton is doing that they are not. Ultimately it comes down to design, suburb, price point and available stock.” Wigglesworth says that while Stonefields has a lot of apartments and terraced homes, no one has taken a new development to market in the area for a long time so demand for this kind of housing is high.