All language subtitles for Country.House.Hunters.New.Zealand.S02E18.720p.TVNZ.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-BTN

- I'm on a hunt to help find everyday
Kiwis their perfect country house.

Things are a little different
out here in the country.

You still have
the hustle and bustle.

Your neighbours can sometimes
be a bit noisy.

Time moves a little slower.

But you don't get this...

in the city.

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Copyright Able 2024

Today I'm in Whangarei to help
Eddo and Sarah find their
dream country home.

The couple have moved over from
the United Kingdom
seeking greener pastures...

That's green, right?
- Yeah.
- That is.

- That was one of the must-haves.
- Yeah.
- Yeah.

- And you are surrounded by
lush, green grass...
- Hi, horsies!

- ...everywhere you look. Hi, horsie!
- Yeah.
- Lovely.

...and somewhere for
the little one to play.

Might need a little bit of work,
but treehouse for Freya.

- Yeah, I think Freya
would love that.

- I think Freya would move in
straight away. That would
be the problem, really.

- So join us as we explore Whangarei

and hopefully find our couple
somewhere to put down roots
and call home.

- So, we've been together
how many years?
- 2016.

- 2016. Since 2016.

In London, it just felt really
impossible to have a family there.

- And also just be in a place
where you're close to nature
and community

and you can go out and do lots of
fun things with the little ones.
- Yeah.

- We knew we wanted to make a move
here, and we were offered a job,

and then we finally made it over
in 2021.

I don't recommend doing it
like we did in COVID.
- No, we had―

- It was quite an adventure
with a three-month-old.
- We came... Yep.

We came with Freya, babe in arms,
and we're in quarantine.

We were really attracted
by Whangarei ― the beaches,
the climate up here.

It's gorgeous weather, isn't it?

With the new house,
we'd love somewhere where
Freya can run around.

And ideally, three bedrooms,
minimum, I think?
- Three beds minimum, yes.

- Our budget is around 850 to 1.2.

- Whangarei is the northernmost
city in New Zealand,

located about two hours' drive
from Tamaki Makaurau Auckland.

The heart of this coastal town
is its marina,

and there's plenty of recreation on
offer, both on and off the water.

The jewel of Whangarei is undoubtedly
the Hundertwasser Art Centre
and Wairau Maori Art Gallery,

which I'll tell you more about later.

With so much on offer,
I'm certain that Eddo and Sarah
will fall in love with Whangarei.

Now, let's head over
to house number one.

This gorgeous home was built
in the '90s and boasts
high ceilings and loads of space.

So, let's see what
Eddo and Sarah think.

Here they are. Kia ora, Sarah!

- Hi. Kia ora.
Lovely to meet you, Matt.

- You too.
And it's Eduardo, isn't it?

- Yeah, call me Eddo!

- Eddo, nice to meet you two finally,
and so nice to be here in Whangarei
looking for a home for you.

Now, the story of you two meeting,
it's a modern-day romance, is that
right?

- Yeah.
- Yeah. Tell me how you guys met.

- Well, you actually said hello.
- It was quite a surprise.

- It was online dating.
I was like, 'Hello.'

- Made the first move?

- I did. And I asked him
to marry me as well.
- I felt really spoilt, yeah.

- Oh, nicely done. Lock it in.
Yeah, excellent.

And now, you've been renting, and now
it's time to make that move into your
first home.

- That would be great.

- Now, let's talk about the
home that you are looking for
here in Whangarei.

Now, look at the scenery that you
are surrounded by here.
- It's gorgeous, yeah.

- Is that important for you?
Views and being in nature?

- You always said green.
- Yep.

- Being surrounded by the
green is the top priority.

- Yeah, that would be really nice.
- Beautiful.

And the budget we're working with ―
around eight up to about 1.2?

- 1.2, yeah, at the moment.
- 1.2. Yep, yep, yep.

- See what happens.

- So, this is a home that was built
in the '90s. Upstairs, there's three
bedrooms ―

downstairs, a completely separate
little dwelling.

So, how does this feel to you?

- The only thing for me would be
the noise from the road.
- Right.

- So will be interesting to hear
what it sounds like inside.
- For sure.

Shall we get inside and take a look
around the first house?

- Lead the way.
- Yes, please.
- Here we go.

Oh, yeah. Welcome in.
- Oh, wow.
- Ooh.

- 'Space' is the word for this area.

It's big, high ceilings. Living,
dining, kitchen, all in the one
space.

Everything in here obviously just
leads you to that view, doesn't it?

Just draws you to that view.
- Yeah.

The views of this place
are just stunning.
- It's just what we were hoping for.

Just the really long rolling hills,
absolutely stunning.
- Yep.

And windows that really
show that off, I think, to the max.

- Now that we're inside, that road
noise really isn't apparent, is it?

- No. It's disappeared.
- Much quieter.

- OK. Have you taken a look
through the kitchen?
What do you think of that?

- Cooking there with that view
is quite special.

- Definitely some potential
I think, yeah.

- So this room could work for you
two, though? It's feeling nice.
- I think so.

Good size, and the light,
as you say, is lovely.
- Well, why don't we head downstairs?

I think there's a nice little space
down there that could work
for your lifestyle as well.

So, let's have a look, eh?
- Yeah.
- This way.

Yeah, so I thought this might be
an interesting area for you.

It's a totally separate
living space ― bathroom,
bedroom, living area.

What do you think of this? Could work
for the family coming to stay?

- Yeah, I think that would be the
key thing, wouldn't it be? For when
your Dad comes or myparents.

A separate space where we don't
bang into each other too much
would be great.

- Well, the downstairs area
was a little small,

but definitely something
you can do so much with, really.

- I'm also thinking maybe
clinic-wise for me in the future.
- Ah, OK.

- So that might work as well.
- Yeah, you can have clients come
and see you in here.

- Yeah.
- OK.

Well, I will leave you to it
for a while. Look around
the rest of the house.

I'll be out the back.
You can come find me there.

- Great. Thank you. Thanks.
- We'll have a gander.
- Yeah. Let's go do it.

- Aha.
- This is a good space.

- Definitely waking up to
a good view.
- Yeah, yeah.

- Start the day nice and bright.
- Have you seen the deck?
- Yeah. Could be breakfast place.

- Yeah.
- We do like having breakfast
outside on a good day.

- Yeah. And the en suite as well.
- Yeah.

No, it's lovely. The house
is really cosy at the moment.

- Yeah.
- We can make it work.
- Yeah.

Do you think it would be
within our budget?

- I have no idea. It's just such
a stunning location, I don't know
if we can afford it.

- Yeah, let's have a chat with Matt.
- All right. Come on.
- OK, great.

- Gidday.
- Hi, Matt.
- Hello. We're back.

- Just been really enjoying this
backyard of yours. Could be yours.

Beautifully landscaped gardens. Yeah,
great little deck area, of course.

You've noticed my favourite ―
the hot tub.

- The hot tub, yes!
- Yeah.

And you've even got some sheep
as your neighbours, just through
there I've just spied.

So, how are we feeling
about this house, first up?

- The road noise isn't too bad here
at all, actually.

- No, that's right.
- No, no.

- More you're gonna hear native birds
rather than road noise, I think.

- It's got all the right things
in it ― a great family space,
a great outdoors.

- And that downstairs space
for guests as well is great.

- So, price. Obviously very
important. You got a sense
of where it might sit?

- It feels like, I don't know,
I'd say 1.5, really.

- Well, I'd say probably about―
a little bit lower.
About a million, I think.

- A million? OK.
- A million. Yeah.

Probably about a million.
- We'll go somewhere in the middle.
- Somewhere.

- So we're looking at around
1.1 to 1.2. So, within budget.

Could be an interesting price
that could work for you.

- Yeah, and it's such a good
location in terms of near the
hospital...

- Oh, right. It's only
a 10-minute drive to the hospital.
- Yeah.

- So, a lot to think about
with house number one.
- Yeah.

- But I've got more options for you.
So, let's head to house number two.

- Let's go take a look.
- Come on.

- Well, the price is in our budget.
- Yeah. Yeah. Um...

- We just have to see
what else is on, I suppose.
- Yeah, yeah.

Reasonable price, I think, for the
amount of space you get, the land
you get, and the location ―

you know, being in this area
of Whangarei that close to
the hospital,

you know, that's a real bonus.

- Well, what a strong start. It had
all of the space that they were after

plus that studio apartment
for their relatives to stay in.

Now, don't go anywhere, because our
next house is the very definition
of farm living.

- How 'bout some cows?
- What?

- No. But some space for chickens.
- Absolutely. Yeah.

- Today I'm in Whangarei, helping
Eddo and Sarah find a place to call
home.

We just explored a spacious, bright
home that boasted an epic view.

Next on the list, though,
is a property that offers
the ultimate country lifestyle.

OK. So house number two.

And this really is country living
at its best.
- It's beautiful.

- Big section this one, about 4.2ha.
- Right.

- So, lots of land for you.
- Yeah.
- And lots of established buildings.

We've got sheds aplenty ― woodsheds,
work sheds, milking sheds.

- How about some cows?
- What?

- No, but some space for chickens.
- Absolutely. Yeah.

And the house itself,
three bedrooms. It's had some
renovations done recently,

so, some really nice modern touches
inside to a classic farmhouse.

Should be good.
You want to look inside?

- Oh, yes.
- Oh, yeah. Let's go.
- Come on then.

- Oh, wow.
- Welcome in. This is the main
sort of family room.

We walked through a separate
living area, and you would've
noticed the kitchen as well.

Brand-new kitchen.
Bathroom is brand-new as well.

- Yeah, and a deck
all the way around.
- Yeah, yeah. Elevated decking.

- We were talking about something
like that.

Quite like it, something that
connects all the rooms in the house.

- Yeah. How does this one feel
for you guys?

- I really like it.
Again, nice big family space.
- Yeah.

- And lots of nice places,
I think, for Freya to play and
for us to spend time together.

- So it's not as open plan as
the first home that we looked at.
But the spaces are connected.

It does flow through from the kitchen
through to this area.

- So somebody cooking, ie you?
It means that we've got some time
to be together

and some space together.
- Exactly. Yeah.

Well, if you do need some furniture,
I mean,

I know that the current owner is
about to live in a bus for a while.

- What?
- He might be looking to sell.
Maybe you could offer him...

- You can do us a deal, Matt.
- Yeah. We'll work something out.

Hey, I'll send you guys off
to the main bedroom to have
a look through there...

- Awesome.
- ...get a good sense of the house,
and once you're done, I'm outside.

- Great.
- See you soon.
- Thanks.

- Oh, what a lovely bedroom.
- Yeah. Really nice,

and I can see some chickens
out the window as well.

- Oh, yeah!

- Yeah, so quite a good size.
- Just kind of what you wanted,
really?

- Yeah.

- It's just so peaceful.
I can't hear anything.

- No. Nice high ceilings as well.
I like the ceilings.

So how much do you think it's worth?
- I was gonna say it's in budget.

Probably. Hopefully 1 million?
- Yeah. I'm guessing around the
million.

Probably 900,000 to a million?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, let's go and ask Matt.

- Yeah, let's go ask Matt.
All right. After you.

- Kia ora.
- Kia ora.
- Heya.

- It really is so peaceful out here
on this lovely deck,

the elevated deck giving you
the views.

See they've got a little lake just
over the fence, just down there.
- Oh, yeah.

- Native trees all around it.
And you've probably already noticed
the fruit trees as well.

- Yeah. Nice lemon tree there.
- And banana tree as well.

- Yeah. There you go.
And... treehouse for Freya.

- Yeah. I think Freya would love
that.

- I think Freya would move in
straight away. That would be
the problem, really.

- So, thinking of your must-haves ―
bit of greenery, some space close
enough to the hospital.

- We're ticking a lot of
boxes already.

- I think we could make it our own.
- We can make it work.

- Uh, if you are liking it,
we should discuss the price.

- Mm.
- OK, so let's go with you first,
I reckon.

- My hope and my estimate
is 1 million.
- What do you think?

- I'm gonna go a little less.
I think about 900,000.

- OK, well, the current price that
we'd be looking for would be 1.150.

- Oh. OK.
- So a little higher than that.

It's in the ballpark, though.
- That is a good number.

- There we go.
That's house number two.
- Great.

- Awesome.
- One more to show you, though.
- Yes.

- Let's hit the road.

- Well, we've been noticing
them ever since we came here
the first time.

There's always bathtubs outside.

People must love it,
especially in the summer,

to have a bath in the wilderness.

- Yeah, it's really cute.
- We might need to try it.
- Yeah, yeah.

- The price is probably a little
bit higher than we'd be thinking of,

especially given there'd be quite a
lot of work here to make this place
our own.

- Starting from the treehouse.
- Yeah, but I think everything's
a negotiation.

- Such a contrast to the first house,

but this rural property definitely
offers everything Eddo and Sarah
are looking for.

Don't go anywhere, though, because
we still need to see the last option.

It's a country home
with some very special neighbours.

But before we do, I'm heading
to the Hundertwasser museum

to learn about the life and work
of this incredible man.

Time for a change of tack, so
I'm popping into Whangarei's
Hundertwasser museum

to learn about a visionary artist
who was ahead of his time. I caught
up with Richard for achat.

Driving into Whangarei nowadays,
you can't help but notice this
incredible building.

It's one of a kind, isn't it?

- People recognise it by the ceramic
work, the giant ceramic columns, by
the golden cupola onthe top.

Those are typical sort of
trademarks.

- Tell me about the man.
What was Hundertwasser like?

- I worked for him for many years
at his home in the Bay of Islands.

Firstly, he saw himself
as a painter, but he was also
an architect and an ecologist.

I mean, he was pushing ideas
and philosophies back in the '70s

that people then thought were way
out there and a bit hippie-like
and crazy,

but stuff like our forested
roof here, it's now mainstream,

and these sorts of things
are demonstrations

of how nature can be blended in
harmony with our living, natural,
and daily life.

- He was ahead of his time.
- Very much ahead of his time.

- Tell me about the centre itself.
What can people expect to see when
they come and visit?

- It's a real visual explosion,
really. The architecture itself
is very unique.

It's very Hundertwasser, but
you won't see anything like this
anywhere else.

There's a Wairau Maori Art Gallery
in the downstairs

and that has changing exhibitions
every three months or so.

And then upstairs, you come here
to this permanent exhibition
for Hundertwasser,

and it really deals with his life
in New Zealand.

Once you've done that,
you go up on the roof
and there's a forested roof,

and a viewing tower at the very top.

You need quite a few hours to spend
while you're here to get
the best value out of it.

- It really does feel like the jewel
in the crown of Whangarei. I love it.

- Absolutely. This place is changing
the face of Whangarei,

and we're just delighted
to be involved with it.

- Now let's get back
to the house hunt.

Property number three was built in
the 1990s, and it's ready to move
straight into.

So, will Eddo and Sarah love it
as much as I do?

OK. Eddo, Sarah. Our third option.

Great location, this one.
I've been thinking of your story,
coming from London.

The reason, or a big part of it,
was wanting to be in amongst nature.

- Oh definitely,
surrounded by trees, nature.

- Horses as well, which is stunning.

- Yeah, this is a great option, this
one. I think you're gonna like it.

Let's head inside.
- All right.

- Come in.

So the third house, probably the
more modern of the three we've looked
at so far.

Built in the '90s, it's had some
renovations done to it.

That kitchen was put in maybe 10 or
12 years ago. So it's got a nice
up-to-date feel.

- Bright. Bright feel.
- Yeah, bright feel, yeah.
- Very bright.

- Yellow kitchen.

- I think we'd probably look
at changing it.

- A fun project,
fun first project. New colour.

- Now, we're facing east that way.
So, morning sun out on the deck

that you can open up those big bifold
doors and get out there and enjoy
your morning coffee.

- Yeah.
- You guys early risers? Would you be
out there enjoying the sunrise?

- I don't think
we have a choice, do we?
- We've got a two-year-old.

- So she's up super early in the
morning, and getting you guys up too.

A real bonus with this property is
there is a completely separate
dwelling outside

and it is just all set up and
ready to go. So, kitchen's out
there, bathroom.

In terms of relatives coming to
stay, I think they'd be really
happy with this place like that.

- Bonus.
- Yeah, that would be great.

- So how does it feel so far?
I know you've only just walked in,

but what sense are you getting
for this home?

- I like it. I like the kind of...
- ...flow.

- Yeah, the flow is really nice.
- It's really good.

You have the morning over there.
The light will follow you through
the day.

- Yeah. All right. I'll let you guys
get a real sense of the home.

Have a good walk around and I'll be
in the gazebo when you're done.

- Awesome. Thank you.
- See you soon.
- Thanks.

- Oh, wow. Oh, look over here.

Wow, this is huge.
- It's bigger than our whole flat
in London, isn't it?

- Yeah, we could fit it between the
two, I think, our old flat. Wow.
- So what do you think, price-wise?

- I think this time I'm right to
say that it probably feels beyond
our budget.

- Yeah, I think definitely over our
budget. So I'd probably say 1.3?

- Should I go with my former 1.5,
see how close I am?

Might end up in the middle.
- I think 1.3. Let's go and see
what Matt thinks.

- Right. Let's go find out.
- OK.

- Gidday.
- Hi, Matt.
- Hello, we're back.

- I mean, that's green right?
- Yeah.
- That is.

- That was one of the must-haves.
- Yep.
- Yep.

- And you are surrounded
by lush, green grass...

- Hi, horsies.
- ...everywhere you look. Hi, horsie.
- Yeah.

- Lovely. Look, this is a pretty
interesting property for you two,
I think.

- Yeah.
- Different from the first two.
- Mm.

- How are you feeling about it?

- The house is great. We could
almost move in tomorrow, it feels.
- Yeah.

- That kind of thing, but―
- It's gonna be over budget,
I'm pretty sure.

- That's what you're guessing?
What are you thinking it's worth?

- I think 1.2, 1.3,
something like that.

- I'm still going with my 1.5,
former 1.5.

- OK, well, you did say that
your budget was 800 to 1.2?
- Mm.

- So I'm using all of that.
- OK.
- About the 1.2 arc.

I mean, 1.2 would possibly get you
this house.

- Oh, wow.
- Ooh, OK. Wow.

- You get a lot for that.
- You do, don't ya?

- That was really unexpected.

- I like that, a nice surprise.
- As you said, you had surprises
in store.

There it is.

- Well, guys, it's been a fantastic
day. Thank you so much for making
this a fun one.

- No, thank you.

- Three interesting houses.
Lots to think about.

That rain is coming in, so it's time
for us to say goodbye
and I'll catch up again soon.

- Awesome.
- Cheers.
- Thanks a lot, Matt. See you soon.

I was surprised by the price.

- Yeah, I was surprised
by the price.

I thought it would be a lot more.

- We've definitely given us
something to think about when
we go home.

- I don't think initially we were
looking for something as modern
as this,

but actually it's sort of
given me some ideas.

I think we can sort of see
ourselves,

perhaps the convenience of moving
into something that's already done.

- Yeah.

- Eddo and Sarah have had some time
to deliberate on the three properties
we checked out,

so it's time for me to head back to
Whangarei to hear which one they've
decided on.

Hi.

Hey, it's so nice to see you guys
again, Eddo and Sarah.
- Yeah, lovely to see you.

- And nice to finally meet
Freya as well. How old are you?

- Two.
- You're two? You're two years old.

Well, hopefully, before you turn
three, maybe Mummy and Daddy
might be moving into a new house?

Who knows? So we did have a great
day looking around three
really interesting homes.

The first place we looked at,
I remember the hot tub out the back

and that beautifully
landscaped garden.
- Yeah.

- What did you guys think of
that first option?

- I kind of feel the road was just
kind of in the way, I feel.
- Yeah. Mm.

It didn't have that kind of
detachment from the road―

- Just enough to put you off
a little bit from that first one.
- A little bit, yeah.

- But then we went out to the second
home, real country-style house.
- Yeah.

It was beautiful. I really loved it.

- I thought it was absolutely
gorgeous.

And I can see why you
would've fallen in love
with it immediately, so...

- Yeah. The setting
was just gorgeous.
- Exactly. Yeah, yeah.

- Then we looked at the third home,

the much more modern of the
three houses that we looked at.

That big open plan living area and
that gazebo outside was great as
well, wasn't it?

- Oh, yeah. You can see yourself
having so many events over there.

- And it was kind of finished.
It was done. Yeah.
- Yeah.

- Trying to figure out which way
you two are leaning at the moment,
and you're hard to read.

- Mm.
So, tell me what's been going on.
What has your conversation been like?

- We both have a favourite.
- Yes. I really love the
second house we saw.

I thought it was just gorgeous.
- OK.

- There'd be a real opportunity for
us to put our mark on it and to make
it home,

and it just had a lovely feeling
when you walked into it.

- We'd be up for it. I mean,
we are hoping eventually for
another little one,

so I was kind of leaning more
towards the third one,
a little bit finished already.

We get to move in, then make it our
own kind of thing.

- So you're leaning towards house
number three, you're leaning
towards house number two.

Yes.

They were both beautiful houses,
and I think we've just got a lot
more thinking to do about it.

- If you want to make an offer on one
of those houses, I'd be happy.

It was a lot of fun meeting you two.
And honestly I think, either way
whatever happens for you guys,

you're gonna have a great
time living here in Whangarei.
- Oh, yeah.

- Oh, Freya, it must be your bedtime
soon, is it? Probably not, eh.

Nah, stay up all night!
- Definitely not.
Definitely not.

- Freya's not tired.
Freya's not tired.

- So thanks for making it
such a fun experience.

And I look forward to finding out
what your decision is.

- And thank you, Matt,
for your help.
- Thanks so much.

- Well, it turns out we had a couple
of good options in the end there,

but I think Eddo and Sarah have an
idea of what's on the market now,

and they'll eventually choose a home
that suits the whole family.

So, good luck,
and let the hunt continue.

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