€15m Ballyknockane guide

BACK on the market within three years of its last sale, Ballyknockane Lodge in Co Tipperary is also showing a massive five-fold increase in the price tag.

The last time around this 4,750 acre estate sold for close on €3 million through joint agents John Shelley of Shelley and Purcell in Carrick-on-Shannon and Callum Bain of Ganly Walters.

This time Callum Bain carries the can alone, and he has given a €15m guide price for this fen and woodland estate.

One of the biggest farms in Tipperary, Ballyknockane achieved some notoriety when sold last time round as it was the property of Ansbacher ‘name’, Kenneth O’Reilly Hyland, a former director of the Central Bank.

An extremely private estate in a stunning, if fairly bleak situation, Ballyknockane is mostly comprised of open mountain moorland with 1,000 acres of commercial forestry, currently let on a 100-year lease, of which there are 60 years yet to run. The five-bedroomed main house sits on the foothills of Sliabh na mBan and is reported to have a great micro-climate, which allows the 50-acre arboretum around the property to flourish. Himalayan rhododendrons, with flowers the size of dinner plates, thrive in the south-facing and sheltered aspect.

Despite its unwieldy size, Ballyknockane is a manageable property, especially for those with the wherewithal to match the price tag. In the O’Reilly Hyland days there was only one full-time gardener. Now, the wild mountain land around the house is being pitched as suitable for forestry and windfarms.

In the current climate both enterprises may well be economical propositions, but with property taking a dive in capital investment terms only those looking for a trophy estate will bother to look around this part of South Tipperary.

However, demesnes of this size are extremely rare, and the ground is eminently suitable for the hunting, shooting and fishing brigade.

In 1979, for the princely sum of £120,000, O’Reilly Hyland bought the property built in 1867 by the Marquis of Ormond. He invested in upgrading the lodge and gardens, redeveloping the coach house and building three cottages.

The estate, which lies halfway between Clonmel and Carrick-on-Suir, has the Victorian stone lodge as its central building, with the cottages and coach house ranged around.

Ballyknockane is listed as having historical and architectural interest, allowing the owner to apply for various tax reliefs on income and grants for renovation work.

Ballyknockane‘ Lodge was built by the Marquess of Ormond and the present ‘s current owner is a Limerick businessman, Tony Sheedy, who divides his time between Ireland and the US.