A Franklin District coastal property overlooking the Tasman Sea in one of the lesser known spots of the Auckland region, and long established as a dairy farm, is offered for public sale for the first time in 155 years.

Andrew Hamilton is the sixth generation of his family to farm the 53 hectare Awhitu property, 35 kilometres north west of Waiuku. Andrew’s ancestors, James and Margaret Hamilton, arrived in New Zealand from the west of Scotland in August 1863, taking up a property they had been allocated and moving to Awhitu to begin clearing the land in 1867. 

By the time James and Margaret died late in the nineteenth century, their six surviving sons and one daughter, all with large families of their own, were farming more than 1800 hectares in and around Awhitu. Although the Hamilton influence has diminished over the generations, it remains on various local place names.

Andrew and his wife Lisa bought the property from a cousin in 2005. 

“Their son, Geoff Hamilton, was an only child. His parents owned the farm when he was born, and he still lives with us, aged 93. 

“Geoff’s parents ran it as a dairy farm, though earlier it farmed sheep and they raised pigs. They used to supply milk to Onehunga, which went away on the ferry that ran across Manukau Harbour.

“Other Hamilton families are still around, with a strong connection to the area. A few years ago there were still six different Hamilton families locally,” says Andrew. 

Although he and Lisa plan to retain their farming links on the peninsula, they have decided to sell this property and engaged Adrian van Mil of PGG Wrightson Real Estate, Pukekohe to offer the farm to the market for the first time ever. He describes it as a special parcel of land.

“In a spectacular location, coastal lifestyle blocks of this size, offering ocean views from almost every spot on the farm, are rare. 

“This is a versatile property with easy contour, potential to cut hay or grow and harvest various crops, graze the land, or continue milking through the 12 aside dairy shed, with viability for the 32 hectare milking platform to sustain either cows or sheep.” 

Adrian says Awhitu lives up to its name, which means ‘longing to return.’

“Awhitu Peninsula offers a country lifestyle and spectacular scenery, increasingly with a touch of city sophistication.

“It comprises 900 households for a population of approximately 2400, which swells considerably through summer and at weekends in more than 600 baches dedicated to enjoyment of the harbour bays, Awhitu Regional Park and the dramatic west coast Tasman beaches such as Karioitahi and Waimatuku,” he says.

Totaling 22,000 hectares, predominantly rural with a mix of dairy, beef and sheep farming, as well as some horticulture and exotic forestry, Awhitu Peninsula is 40 kilometres long and ranges from eight to ten kilometres wide.

Property Express - Out Now

Welcome to our autumn 2023 edition of PGG Wrightson Real Estate’s Property Express. From the first page to the last, this magazine is packed with premier rural properties which could be the setting for your next chapter.

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