48-acre South Cork holding with a guide price of €1.2m
Ballyorban House
Any time a substantial agricultural holding comes on the market in any of the outlying areas around Cork city, there is an instant buzz.
In the past few years, the rare tracts that have presented to the market have achieved understandably high prices of over €20,000 per acre.
One should expect something along those lines for a 48.4-acre property that has just come on the market with Sherry Fitzgerald.
As Sheila O’Flynn, Managing Director of the Cork office of Sherry Fitzgerald says, the farm represents the kind of rarity that a number of potential buyers have been waiting for.
The holding is located in the area of Ballyorban, in a much sought-after part of the southern Cork suburbs, close to Maryborough, Douglas, Monkstown and Passage West. It is five kilometres from Douglas Village Shopping Centre, Monkstown and Carrigaline, and six kilometres from the Ringaskiddy ferry terminal. Cork city centre is nine kilometres away.
“I think that this will cause a nice bit of excitement,” said Ms O’Flynn of the property that contains a four-bedroom bungalow and garden and which can be sold in two lots if the market so desires. “It’s on a well-known road in Monkstown (Ballyorban Road) and there are beautiful houses on this road.
The lands are of top quality and are currently laid out in a mixture of permanent pasture and stubble. It is in one block with clearly-defined boundaries and access from one field to another.
There is good water supply to the land, which comes from a tap located in the farmyard.
The yard itself has a collection of derelict farmyard buildings, which are in need of total renovation.
There is road access but the extent of the road frontage is limited. However, there is enough to enable subdivision of the property.
“I wouldn’t think that there is any development potential,” Ms O’Flynn points out, ruling out the obvious question that one might pose for a property on the Cork city/county boundary. The Development Plan notes this holding as a green space.
“It’s a very open piece of ground and it has a very sunny aspect,” Ms O’Flynn added.
The house is well presented and overlooks the Ballyorban Road, with the lands stretching behind it and behind a number of the other detached homes along the road. The accommodation stretches to over 1,200ft2 of living space and includes an entrance hall, living room, sitting room, kitchen/dining area, bathroom and four bedrooms.
“The house is in good condition,” said Ms O’Flynn. “You can upgrade it for sure but you can live in it as it is... We do want to sell the entire holding as is, but if someone was interested in just the land and would let the house and a couple of acres go, then we’re happy to keep the bungalow and sell that separately if one needs to.
"We’ll give the first option to someone looking to buy the farm in its entirety.”
The guide price is in the region of €1.2m.
At €24,800 per acre, this is very much in keeping with similarly-located pieces of land that have sold in recent years.
And considering that the house alone is a considerable asset that could be much sought-after in its own right, the guide price may very well end up being a conservative one.
