House a Suir-fire winner complete with hot tub

A JAUNDICED, perhaps jaded, or merely insightful Irish town planner once remarked that Irish house hunters were easily pleased.

We just want a bungalow, on an acre, with river views and only a minute from the city centre, he surmised dryly.

The story, as is now occasionally re-told, is generally taken to apply to Cork, and St Patrick’s Street, or to Dublin’s O’Connell Street, and as an aspirational wish-list it could as readily apply to Limerick or Waterford.

Wait a minute: Waterford? Ah, here’s one we prepared earlier...

Patra, a new market arrival guiding €750,000, is just up for sale with Brian O’Shea of O’Shea O’Toole auctioneers, is all of that seemingly-impossible impossible wish list, and then some. Like, a hot tub anchored in front, to literally soak in the views from. Or, to be viewed in as you soak.

A 2,000 sq ft single storey home which includes a self-contained apartment, Patra is high up above the River Suir and facing all of Waterford city across the way, at Newrath, on a sloping acre, and with a room-sized section of decking to sit out on, and all but hover above Waterford from.

Selling agent Brian O’Shea says it is just a minute from city centre — by fast car, motorbike, or downhill skiing, once the Rice bridge isn’t open to let shipping through. Then again, from this Suir-footed perch, you can check shipping activity as well as the state of the roads, even before leaving your own front door.

The house, a few decades old, is likely to be a family/executive buy, with kudos alone in the setting and plenty of space inside and out. The agents say it’s in excellent condition, with bright rooms, the best of local views and proximity not only to the city centre but also to Waterford Golf Club, with easy access to Dublin/Kilkenny roads as well.

It has four bedrooms, two reception rooms, hall with slate floor, a 20’ by 10’ kitchen with oil stove, two bathrooms and one en suite.

There’s attic storage with Velux, oil central heating, double glazing and landscaped gardens.