Own a mountain village in New Zealand!

Budding real estate moguls listen up, as I’ve got quite the deal for you. The New Zealand mountain village of Otira is up for sale, and is currently seeking new ownership. The asking price of NZ$1 million (roughly $690,000) gets you all kinds of amenities, including a hotel, town hall, fire station, and 18 houses, although the location may be ideal for everyone.

Otira is located at an altitude of 3445 feet in a remote corner of New Zealand’s Southern Alps. The mountains offer a beautifully scenic backdrop and a near by national park provides plenty of outdoor adventure. But in the winter months, heavy snow can hit the region, and the little town is regularly cut-off from the outside world, sometimes for days at a time, thanks to an untimely blizzard.

The village boasts a population of just 44 residents, most of whom rent the houses that are found there. Many of those work for the TranzAlpine railway which rolls through town twice a day, bringing tourists to the area. The local hotel, which is not much more than a bed and breakfast, is the only place to stay for miles around, and offers up a hot meal and a cold pint of beer to wash it down with. The fire station has been re-purposed as a workshop for the local mechanic, and the school hall has been abandoned for more than a decade.

The current owners, Bill and Christine Hennah, bought the town back in 1998, and have been running, and renovating, it ever since. They are now approaching retirement age, and although they have no plans to leave Otira, the do feel it is time to pass it along to a new owner. They have listed the town on the New Zealand auction site Trade Me, where you can place your bids for this prime piece of real estate.

Who knows, perhaps you’ll be retiring there one day too.

[Photo credit: ALAMY]