Charity auction to help New Brighton couple - $1 reserve on Red Zoned New Brighton home

A $1 reserve charity auction of their red zoned New Brighton home will help reverse the fortunes of a couple who have suffered hardship through tragic personal circumstances and the devastating consequences of the earthquakes.

Michael and Phyllis Thom’s property at 39 Chimera Crescent, New Brighton, will go under the hammer at a special Harcourts Grenadier Real Estate Ltd auction on Thursday, June 26. The Thoms are hoping to realise enough for return flights to the UK to visit family.

The couple bought their home in 2003, choosing to move to the area where they assisted with church youth programmes.

“They have always done such a lot to help others, and that is one of the reasons why we believe it is time we helped them,” said Tristan Harcourt of Grenadier Real Estate.

Before the September 2010 earthquake, the couple had left town to care for Phyllis’s dying mother on the West Coast. Their time there extended into three months during which they missed their insurance company’s invoice on their freehold home. The insurance was cancelled, and following the September 4 earthquake, they could not obtain insurance and were uninsured on February 22, 2011.

Their suburb was ‘red zoned’, and they eventually received a payout of $81,500 for what had previously been a home worth around $480,000.

Since 22 February 2011, the Thoms have had to find somewhere to live, assist with care for a grandson diagnosed with cancer, and to deal with a number of other unfortunate events.

Tristan Harcourt said the Thoms were legally entitled to sell the “salvageable remnants” of their home, with the property being offered for sale at $1 Reserve.

“Grenadier Real Estate is promoting and conducting the auction at no cost to the Thoms, and others are contributing to advertising costs to promote interest. Mr and Mrs Thom have a dream to visit their surviving relatives in England and Grenadier has also pledged to underwrite this. We’re determined to make this happen for them.

“It will be the purchaser’s choice to take what they want.”
CERA would remove the remaining property at its own cost.

The $1 reserve Charity Auction will take place at 6pm, June 26 at 492 Moorhouse Ave. Open homes at 39 Chimera Crescent will take place this Sunday, June 15 at 3.15pm-4pm and the following Sunday, June 22 between 12pm and 12.45pm. Private viewing is available by appointment.

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