Saturday, October 22, 2011
The top-class homes at Ashley have it all — and at slashed prices too, writes Tommy Barker
SIGNIFICANT price cuts, high energy efficiency ratings, solar panels, extensive wiring for technology and entertainment and a host more extras, plus a plush interior finish and fit-out will bring the new-build Edwardian style houses at Ashley back on buyers’ radar: that, and a showhouse opening this afternoon 2 to 4pm.
The appointment of a new joint selling agent, a fresh marketing campaign and prices which must be below original cost see four of these Rochestown Road Cork homes offered at 580,000 apiece, or €670,00 for the extremely high-spec walk-in showhouse job -— down from the €1.3 million hope when first launched in October 2009. Now, there’s a second round of price cuts, the site is cleaned up, and two remaining sites are being grassed pending sales so that buyers of these four will have green surrounds.
These houses were built by a team involving members of the O’Connor family, some of who were behind Cork’s best-selling Lindville scheme in Blackrock. Lindville was Victorian in character, Ashely by contrast is Edwardian/Arts and Crafts style, with huge detail paid to external finishes, and easy to live with floor-plans whilst also being three-storey houses.
Sheila O’Flynn and Ann O’Mahony of Sherry FitzGerald (joining now with agents Savills) rave about the standards seen in the €670,000 fully-finished showhouse, done by architect Fiona McDonald, although buyers need to be aware they mightn’t get everything to the same level in the three other, externally-finished only, similar 2,700 sq ft homes.
They’re all rich in architectural detailing outside, with an Arts and Crafts look and some hand-made clay feature bricks (the essential structure is timber-framed,) with French clay tile roofs, finials, bonnet tiles on the sloping ridges and roof hips, window sills are granite and windows are quality, low-e sash double glazing (there’s also attractive rounded, period appropriate windows, with lead canopies. Houses are wired for CAT 5 IT links, plus alarm, and the showhouse has multi-media sound in all rooms, even in the coved ceiling en suite shower rooms. There’s also a central vacuum system gone into all four houses to date.
Location is by the church on Rochestown Road, just off the south ring road, and individual site sizes are compact, at best, with the largest site shown to best effect in the landscaping accompanying the €670k showhouse.
Oh, what conflicts? Given there’s €90,000 separating what will be the finished state of three of the houses, and the showhouse done to the sort of standard that might not be seen until the next economic boom, it is likely some buyers will be scrabbling to afford the bigger spend. Truth be told, there’s far inferior second-hand stock out there at the same and higher price levels, although most likely in finished, settled mature locations and almost certainly on bigger sites than here.
Layout sees a large formal drawing room to the front with bay window, a study, and a massive L-shaped kitchen/dining/family space, some 30’ wide and the steps down to the family rom bring the other long dimension of the ‘L’ to about 28’. The first floor has three en suite bedrooms, with a further big en suite fourth bedroom with dressing area at second floor level. Showhouse bathrooms are in white Carrara marble, with Villeroy and Bock sanitary ware and Hans Grohe powered showers, and the kitchen is hand-made in solid tulip wood and granite, with Smeg double oven, while the step-d0wn family space has a sealed solid wood stove he help keep up the house’s ‘A’ BER rating.
VERDICT: The fantastic showhouse is as good as when done two years ago, its grounds are more mature, but buyers will have to make a small leap to imagine just how the others, as yet unfinished inside, will compare. But, there’s unprecedented value now.
Location: Rochestown, Cork
Price: €580,000 and €670,000
Size: 252 sq m (2,700 sq ft)
Bedrooms: 4
BER rating: A
Broadband: Yes
Best feature: Quality materials, classic design
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