A dairy farm in Katikati is up for mortgagee sale following failed attempts to turn the 149 hectare land into an exclusive enclave of lifestyle blocks.

According to a statement released by Bayleys Real Estate agents, developers had a vision to subdivide the land into some 41 lifestyle residential site – each having an equal ownership of the former working farm where infrastructure and livestock would be maintained.

Simon Anderson from Bayleys says the farm will go to mortgagee auction on April 26 at the company's Tauranga offices.

He predicts the farm will most likely be purchased by someone with a farming background to convert the land back to its original productive use.

The farm is being sold with 44,717 Fonterra shares.

'A degree of investment is needed to refurbish parts of the infrastructure up to modern standards, although the ‘bones' of the property are well structured and ready to run again. 'Any modernisation will of course have a corresponding boost to the productive output, and it is here that the long-term value of the farm lies.”

The Katikati farm comes with a 146 square metre four-bedroom residential home built in the 1950s, and an 86sqm detached garage.