Big demand expected for four-bed terrace

Tommy Barker is seduced by a grand old Victorian beauty with plenty of charm.

DONE and dusted, bright and shining, all spruced up over the last three years, the Victorian terraced home Kia Ora is making property market waves already.

The four-bedroomed terraced home is on the popular Old Blackrock Road in Cork city, an area set to get even more in demand in the next few years as the former Rochelle school and nearby in-fill sites get developed.

Kia Ora is 'one we prepared earlier', a home dating back to 1880 with lots of the trimmings of the period, including old fireplaces, sanded floors, and it is lit up by a slinky sun-room extension to the back, off the kitchen.

It has replacement timber double-glazed sash windows (full marks for the attention to detail) and dry-lining, and carries a €350,000-plus guide price with Ann O'Mahony of Sherry FitzGerald. Viewers will be taken by the work done by the vendors during their tenure here: how far over the guide price it will go in bidding remains to be seen, but €400,000 could be an outside marker.

As a general price indicator, five new homes are being built in a niche in-fill scheme directly behind this terraced home: agents Irish and European have two townhouses there to sell, at €450,000 and €460,000 for 1,160 and 1,305 sq ft townhouses. (Prices for the O'Callaghan Properties' Rochelle scheme nearby haven't yet been determined.)

Kia Ora comes along with 1,650 sq ft of space, but comparisons in terms of euro per square foot here don't really equate as the new home and period homes markets rarely overlap except perhaps here where location is the driver.

This two-storey house with a deep bay window at each level is at the Blackrock end of the Old Blackrock Road, still within walking distance of the city, and accessible to the link road via Boreenmanna Road.

It has on-street parking, rear pedestrian access to the south-facing back garden, and has gas heating, sash windows and a render and dash exterior to the front and a walled-in gravelled front garden.

Internally, once through the brick arched entrance door, rooms include hall with old tiled floor, high-ceilinged living room with bay window and black marble fireplace, and dining room behind which leads in turn to the super-bright kitchen/sun room.

There's an arched link between the dining room and kitchen, and the lure of the sun streaming from the added-on, lean-to glass roof will ensure this will be the real living heart of this house.

This room has a solid timber floor and understated kitchen in maple, complete with island unit to match.

The first floor has three bedrooms, one with bay window and built-ins and all have fireplaces. There's a main bathroom with cast iron bath, plus adjoining shower room and utility, and bedroom four is up again at attic level with Velux.

Viewings kicked off last week with a bang, and interest is already huge, says Ann O'Mahony of Sherry FitzGerald.