Set to turn 80 in February, Mrs Lawson has spent 53 years at 19 Hall Street - the home she and her late husband bought shortly after marrying.

She is downsizing to a property "a block and a half away", with her long-time home set to go under the hammer on Saturday with a guide of $2 to $2.2 million.

The library - erected by her son and painted with the help of her granddaughter - is set to stay, and she hopes it can continue fostering community spirit.

"It's just taken off - people love it. I just had a look at it this afternoon and there's a whole lot of new books in there," Mrs Lawson said.

"I actually got a lovely card from an elderly lady who said that she's house-bound, she relies on her daughter to drive her round and she's just loved the street library - it's made a big difference to her life.

"That made it a bit special really."

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Mrs Lawson said the library had sparked many conversations with neighbours and passers-by.

"You go out the front and you put a book in and all of a sudden there's people there wanting to chat.

"If I read something I love, I can't wait to put it out there so other people can love it as well."

The house has been gradually extended to accommodate Mrs Lawson's two children, and later her three grandchildren and great-grandchild.

A verandah, two extra bedrooms, another bathroom and a swimming pool have helped fill out the 815 square metre property.

"This is a fabulous place to live ... it's an old home built in 1914 .. it's withstood every big storm and the earthquake - they built them strong in those days," Mrs Lawson said.

"We've gradually tacked things on as we've gone along to accommodate us and make it more comfortable and that's what you do - we didn't do it straight away, we took our time and did it over the years.

"My husband and I did a lot of it together, planned it and that was a good experience as well so I've got a lot of lovely memories from here, but the memories can come with me."

Richardson and Wrench will take the home to auction at 3.15pm.