Substantially reduced price for Sunday’s Well property

THE ecstasy and the agony.

In the interim you’ve made ready to move, told friends and relations and, usually, have put the legal train in motion to buy another property.

The devastation hits not only one family, but in some cases, a whole chain of families. And you could say, in the long run, it affects all of us.

In the case of this three-storey period property at 78 Sunday’s Well Road in Cork city, which appeared on these pages late last year, the owners were relocating when their sale fell through.

The move is made, but the house is now substantially reduced from an initial €770,000 guide to €575,00 through Michael O’Donovan of Sherry FitzGerald.

The engineering problems which halted the sale are now cleared up, (money down the drain, so to speak), and the house is now ship shape and Bristol fashion for selling.

With good space and in a location close to UCC and CUH, it should still have a ready market of buyers.

Once through the door, however, this house will more than impress. It has to one of the better renovations jobs in the city and layers contemporary fittings onto the frame of a Victorian semi.

So, there are replacement double-glazed panels in original frames, but matt chrome finishes that pick up on the stylish door furniture. And it really works, putting cutting-edge new on old.

The kitchen, meanwhile is high gloss white and black with grey composite sink and marble worktop and the floor is a dark grey porcelain that plays with light.

Philippe Starck Ghost chairs sit around a simple oak table — very subtle, very now.

And all this in a venerable old building, where tones are in grey and white, with many fine pieces on wall, mantelpieces and shelves.

The coup of the remodelling is in the bathrooms: clever, unique and very spa-like both main bathrooms are a joy to see and probably even better to use.

These are on two half landings, along with two bedrooms apiece over the top floors, while the main reception rooms run into each other on the ground floor.

The kitchen is to the rear and at the back there’s a neat little entertainment area, with built-in barbecue and then steps leading up to Shanakiel Road. This is handy for dropping and moving groceries, coal, or furniture.

No 78 has a long, south-facing garden to the front and is less than a two minutes walk from Wellington Bridge.