Most two-bedroom homes ask you to give something up. Maybe it's a lounge that won't fit your furniture, a bathroom you can barely turn around in, or a bedroom with room for the bed and little else. 1 Taupo Street asks for none of that. This cedar home received a 1993 Waitakere City Council Residential Design Award, and the plaque is still on the home today. The design that earned that recognition still delivers: 110m2 of living across two bedrooms, where every room has the space it deserves. If you're leaving the rental cycle or stepping down from the family home, this is where the compromising stops.

1993 Waitakere City Council Residential Design Award: recognised for its design, with the plaque still on site

* 110m2 floor area: two bedrooms and one bathroom, so every room is generously sized
* Generous main bedroom: room to live in it, not just sleep in it
* North-facing deck: sun from morning to evening, opening onto established landscaped gardens
* Internal access garage: plus a second car park, so you come home straight from the car on wet nights
* Cedar board cladding: with a tile profile roof, full of warmth and character
* Cross-lease title: a half share of an 809m2 site
* Location: New Lynn, on the Green Bay border, minutes from Green Bay village and beach, New Lynn train station and LynnMall
* School zones: Green Bay High School and Green Bay Primary

Like a fine wine, good design only gets better with age. Here you get room for the furniture you're keeping, sun on the deck from morning to evening, and a garden that's already done. Bush walks and the beach are on one side, with the train and LynnMall on the other.

A council award-winning home isn't something you'll find on the next listing you open.