ArchiPro professionals recognised at the 2026 Central North Island House of the Year Awards

The regional results, announced on 2 August, recognised excellence across craftsmanship, interior design, kitchens, bathrooms, outdoor living and smart-home integration. Among this year’s recipients were seven building practices featured on ArchiPro, collectively earning category, lifestyle, Gold and Silver awards.

Petersen Barnes delivered one of the evening’s most comprehensively awarded homes. Its Kaitake residence won the New Home over $4 million category, alongside the Interior Design Award and Plumbing World Bathroom Excellence Award. The Taranaki practice, known for technically demanding custom homes, also received a Gold Award for the project.

In Whanganui, Hardy Construction received the Special Award and won the Bunnings New Home $1 million–$1.5 million category for a residence in Durie Hill. The project also earned the practice a Gold Award, reflecting the precision and craftsmanship central to its work.

Turbine Residential won the Builder’s Own Home category for a residence in Wharewaka, Taupō, which also received a Gold Award. Designed and constructed for the builder itself, the home offered an opportunity to explore ideas around contemporary living, materiality and craftsmanship without compromise.

A significant renovation in Hurworth earned Gareth Collins Building the Renovation over $2 million category award and a Gold Award. Based in New Plymouth, the family-run practice works across Taranaki, delivering new homes and transformations shaped by close client collaboration.

Design Builders was also recognised for its Hawke’s Bay team’s renovation of a home in Whirinaki, Napier. The project won the Renovation $1 million–$2 million category and received a Gold Award. It adds to a substantial national record for the design-and-build practice, which has accumulated more than 160 House of the Year awards during its history.

In Feilding, Narley Construction received a Gold Award for its residential work. Independently owned by Tom and Lisa Driffill, the Manawatū practice is known for delivering highly considered new homes, alterations and light commercial projects.

Landmark Homes New Zealand was represented by its Manawatū-Whanganui team, which won the GIB Show Home category and received a Gold Award for a home in Feilding. The result continues Landmark Homes’ longstanding presence in the awards and reflects the regional team’s approach to high-specification, individually tailored homes.

Other award-winning builders can be found through projects published on ArchiPro. Colab Building, which claimed Supreme House of the Year over $1 million for its Haumoana home, is credited as the home builder behind Matarua Rise, a Hawke’s Bay project featured by Jensen Projects. Award recipients Jennian Homes Manawatū and Sentinel Homes Taranaki are also represented through supplier portfolios, including Jennian Homes Manawatū by Tile Warehouse and the Sentinel Homes Taranaki Showhome by Floorscape.

The awards were supported by a number of leading building and design brands found on ArchiPro, including Resene, Altus Window Systems, PDL by Schneider Electric and GIB.

Together, the results offer a compelling view of the residential work emerging from the central regions: homes defined not by scale or budget alone, but by the quality of their planning, execution and response to the people who will inhabit them. Explore more work by New Zealand’s leading builders and construction professionals, discover the projects shaping contemporary residential design, and connect with the products and suppliers helping bring them to life on ArchiPro.