Price fall makes Augusta Drive a green dream come true

THE 2009 Augusta Masters might be recently over, and scooped by Angel Cabrera, but there’s a chance now for more ordinary souls to make the cut at Cork’s Augusta link – thanks to a decline in prices.

Augusta Drive is the name of a row of big, detached houses overlooking Douglas Golf Club in Cork’s southeastern suburbs.

Built back around 2003, these large O’Brien and O’Flynn-built homes were bid to and over €1.1 million at the peak of the Irish housing bubble.

Now, No 11, one of the better-finished houses here has come up for sale in mint order, seeking €875,000 and likely to sell for close to that sum, via Olivia O’Leary of Thomas J O’Driscoll estate agents.

That’s back to price levels of about 2005, and for that sort of sum it comes with 2,300 sq ft of space, overlooking the fairways of Douglas’ lush and gentle golf course and right next to a fairy fort. Developers Castlelands Construction have, of course, plans to relocate the Douglas club to two new courses t Ballinrea, and to replace this existing course with up to 1,000 new homes. But, given the handicap of a slumped housing market, the existing course may be around a lot longer than they initially envisaged - as may the views from Augusta Drive.

There’s 24 houses in all in this sloping row, with sympathetic brick facades and red tile roofs. They’re the biggest of all the houses in the c 600 house Maryborough Woods scheme by O’B & O’F, with access from both Maryborough Hill and Carr’s Hill, with Douglas village half a mile away.

According to Ms O’Leary, No 11 has interior designer quality finishes, along with a good layout of rooms.

There’s a big family room, and a bright sitting room 21’ by 15’ with sandstone fireplace and side windows, bay window, corniced ceilings and wiring for surround sound with the Canadian pine floor continuing through double doors to a 15’ by 11’ dining room.

The house’s well-specified kitchen has units in birch, a trendy Smeg cooker, American fridge, a tiled floor in neutral shades, and a shallow window bay with a dining space. The utility has units in Birch, and the floor is tiled, as is the hall, and understairs storage space.

Overhead No 11 has five carpeted bedrooms, with two en suite bathrooms and the master bedroom has French doors to a tiled balcony, overlooking the golf course.

The main family bathroom has a Jacuzzi bath, with recessed TV screen, while the shower and in the master bed en suite is pumped.

The house has gas heating, cobble-lock drive and paved patio, with Wendy House/garden shed and the sheltered gardens have been recently landscaped, graced by apple trees.