Sale of Sultan's NZ homes believed to have fetched $35 million

In the biggest single residential real estate transaction in New Zealand, one of the world's richest men has quit the country in one hit.

The sale took more than a year to close, said real estate agent Graham Wall of Coles Real Estate in Parnell, who handled the deal.

Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah may not be too excited about his windfall; even without it, Forbes magazine puts his wealth at US$20 billion ($29.3 billion).

He acquired his first Auckland mansion, Waimanu on Argyle St, a decade ago, then bought additional properties in the neighbourhood.

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