This is not the kind of home that can be done justice in a half hour open home, so Hayley and Mike are selling it privately, with agents politely declined, and they’ll be patient about finding the right next owner.

As with the others in the Claude Megson club, nobody knows the architecture better than the people who live in the house, explains Mike.

“It will take as long as it takes to sell,” says the professional photographer, a Frank Lloyd Wright fan.

At a private appointment, Hayley, an IT project manager, will show buyers around and then she’ll go off to her office and leave people to explore it by themselves. This is a home that the couple visited five times before buying, so she’s keen to give people the appropriate time.

Hayley and Mike are planning a couple of half day open home events in August to allow people to spend hours there if they want.

Architects are unsurprisingly lining up to view the home and the couple will hold an evening for architects on July 23.

With an architectural home of historic interest, doing the usual “comps” on recent sales in the area isn’t going to work. Another Claude Megson home in Remuera, with a CV of $7.5 million sold for over $10 million in Arney Road in the last year, Mike says.

The couple who are planning a move to the Waikato, are expecting a price in the $4.4 to $4.7 million mark. There will be tears when they leave, a home where the couple married and raised their young daughters.

“It needs to be purchased by someone who’ll love it and preserve it,” says Hayley.

Copy of Claude Megson-designed Barr House

The gen on Claude Megson and his style

The facts of Barr House

Step inside Barr House

Why the owners are selling privately