Auckland media boss confirmed as mystery buyer of $11.2m vacant waterfront Westmere section
The 1000sq m site is just a few doors down from the $26m mansion owned by rich-listers Anna Mowbray and Ali Williams.
Architect David Ponting's design for the home that is being built on the 1000sqm block of land on West End Rd, in Auckland's Westmere.
Its $11.2m price tag includes plans for a luxury five-bedroom, three-bathroom home designed by architect David Ponting, complete with its own boat ramp.
The vendor was Auckland property developer Jason Ellingham, who also owns the neighbouring $5m home where a worker was crushed to death during construction in 2023.
In an unusual deal, Ellingham has agreed to build Phin's new home as part of the purchase price. It's understood Ellingham had planned to build the house for himself but his plans changed.
The vacant site had been on the market for about a year until the contract was inked with Phin.
The Herald sought comment from Phin about the timeline for the build, what attracted him to the site, and how a media company owner could afford his lavish property portfolio.
He declined to comment.
Media man and DJ Tim Phin (left) has posted selfies on his Instagram page posing with supermodels, including Miranda Kerr. Photo / Tim Phin
However, a Society Insider source told the Herald Phin's long-time partner, digital designer Carl Thompson, was believed to have made millions selling a business several years ago and the pair had been living 'hugely extravagantly'.
'With the magazine, everything is sponsored – airfares, hotels, and [Phin] leverages it like that.'
As well as being the founder of Remix Magazine, Tim Phin is a DJ. Photo / Tim Phin
The property was sold by Bayleys agent Cristina Casares.
She told OneRoof that Ellingham was a long-time admirer of Ponting's work and had enlisted the architect to create a private residence with strong architectural form, worthy of the extraordinary setting.
An artist's impression of the five-bedroom home that's planned on the waterfront Westmere site.
The five bedrooms were on the top floor, with the ground floor reserved for the living spaces, which flowed out to the pool, spa and sweeping, flat lawns.
Ponting told OneRoof the inspiration always came back to nature and the home was a homage to the harbour.
'It would have been insane to do anything other than engage with that and do so in such a way that you feel could reach out and touch the water and feel completely immersed in that context.'
Works commence on $11.2m vacant site
Works on the site have recently commenced, with contractors rebuilding a rock seawall around the property.
A resource consent has been issued for the work and rebuild of the existing boat ramp, which sits on land unlawfully reclaimed more than 100 years ago.
Works have commenced on the site to rebuild a rock seawall and existing boat ramp.
The consent decision says ordering the site to be returned to its original form would cause more harm than good due to sediment runoff caused by removing such a large amount of soil and fill.
Part of the site will be designated public reserve, with the owner required to safeguard public access, the decision says.
Auckland Council says a resource consent for the new dwelling was granted in 2022 and the Herald understands construction is due to start shortly.
Lane Nichols is a senior journalist and Auckland desk editor for the New Zealand Herald with more than 20 years' experience in the industry.
Sign up to The Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NZ Herald
4 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Ōtaki to north of Levin highway cost doubles to $2.1b, construction yet to start
'Our Government is committed to the road as it will deliver substantial safety benefits and unlock business and housing growth.' The Greens' transport spokeswoman Julie Anne Genter told the Herald that going ahead with the road after another cost escalation was an example of 'the coalition Government ploughing ahead with a highway at any cost'. She said the Wellington region would be better served by 'rail investment, along with safety improvements to the existing roads'. The new figure was first reported by BusinessDesk, owned by Herald publisher NZME. The road is a link in the Kāpiti Expressway, which connects the capital with the lower North Island. The highway began as a proposal to take the expressway to Levin and beyond. The expressway is a road of national significance project and was built in stages. It links the Transmission Gully motorway with a string of four-lane, grade-separated projects along the Kāpiti coast. It was funded to the tune of $817m in 2020 as one of the NZ Upgrade infrastructure projects by the then-Labour Government. That programme was fraught and most of its road projects increased in cost in the space of just months. By 2021, some of the upgrade projects were dropped, others were scaled back, while others had additional money tipped into them to keep them on track. The Auditor-General later criticised the upgrade programme for being hurried with a focus on announcing projects quickly – in many cases before up-to-date business cases could be completed. The Ōtaki to North of Levin highway was one of the lucky roads to get additional funding to stay on track, with Labour increasing its budget to $1.5b. In May 2025, NZTA went out to the community with some cost-saving proposals as it had escalated to around $1.7b. Those cost-saving proposals were mainly rejected. BusinessDesk reported these changes were rejected because rescoping aspects of the project would have required reconsenting, which could have caused significant and costly delays. An NZTA spokesman said the agency's board opted to put extra money into the project because 'it considers it a high priority relative to other initiatives included in the National Land Transport Programme'. 'The road will be tolled, as announced by the Government in December 2024, with revenue raised and returned to the National Land Transport Fund, which will include the maintenance for Ō2NL [Ōtaki to north of Levin],' he said. Genter, who has criticised the NZ Upgrade roads since they were announced – despite being an associate transport minister in the Government that announced them – warned that tolling would not cover close to the full cost of the road. 'This project won't get the test of paying for itself with tolls,' she said, noting a submission made by the Infrastructure Commission to the Transport and Infrastructure Select Committee last month. That submission said that for a road to completely pay for itself it needed to cost about $32m a km, save motorists 15 minutes and have about 40,000 vehicles travel on it a day. This highway costs about $85m a km and is expected to have more than 20,000 vehicles travel on it each day by the late 2030s, according to NZTA business cases.
NZ Herald
5 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Kiwi actor Sir Sam Neill mourns ‘beloved' pet duck Magda, named after Australian TV star
A New Zealand actor is mourning the loss of his 'dear old' pet duck, who he named after a familiar face on Australian TV. Sir Sam Neill, 77, took to Instagram over the weekend to let his followers know his 'beloved duck' Magda had died.
NZ Herald
6 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Radio host and podcaster Brittany Hockley on fairytale wedding, New Zealand trip and keeping fit
'Let's hope I never have to do that again!' laughs the 37-year-old. But once she finally got to the big day in June, Hockley says she loved every second. 'It was over three days in Bali, and we had all our friends and families together the whole time. It was the most fun we've ever had,' the host tells the Herald. The couple then had a second wedding in Sydney Harbour, which she described as 'Ben's dream'. Brittany Hockley with her husband Ben Siegrist at their second wedding. Photo / Instagram 'Ben's dream was to be able to legally get married on Sydney harbour, the first place he went when landing in Australia for the very first time, two days before he met me for the very first time,' she wrote on Instagram at the time. After the wedding madness subsided, the couple found a welcome break on our shores, jetting to Queenstown last month. 'New Zealand was magical. We absolutely loved Queenstown - how could you not? It was Ben's first time, and I knew he would love it,' she shares. Despite the fact that they couldn't get stuck into adventure, Hockley said they are already looking at a return trip. 'Unfortunately, because of Ben's football contract, we can't do any of the adventure activities (will have to wait until he retires), but we explored the surrounding towns, had the best time at Deer Park, of course, raced on the toboggans and ate our way around the region. Hockley says she feels best when she does a combination of walking, Reformer and weight training. Photo / Lorna Jane 'I cannot wait to come back. I've heard QT is incredible in the summertime, too, so I will need to create an excuse to come back over for a little R&R.' And rest is more than needed after a packed few months, with Hockley also fitting in a collab with activewear brand Lorna Jane. Hockley says it was the perfect fit for someone who spends most of her time in workout clothes. 'I live in activewear and train most days. It's not only functional but has a fashion edge attached, meaning you can go straight from your workout to brunch.' Given her lifestyle and how often she works out, she says the collab was an obvious choice. 'Lorna Jane is a brand I've grown up with, loved and worn for years, so it was a really natural fit.' Hockley says she needs outfits she can wear from the gym, to a café. Photo / Lorna Jane 'I train most days, a mix between some high intensity training, weights, reformer Pilates and probably my fav daily activity, long walks with my pooch Delilah. Four to five times a week, I put my phone down and go and do the sauna and ice bath. I love it and always feel better for it after.' But just like us, the busy star finds some respite in blobbing out on the couch with a great watch. 'As long as I'm eating well and exercising most days, I feel good. I love to sit on the couch for hours at night and binge-watch a good series.'
