Address to impress

BACK in 2000, the Ballincollig bypass was just a blueprint and the new town centre was still a working army barracks.

But with the future in mind, local Co Cork landowner Denis O’Driscoll decided to grow houses instead of fruit on his Carriganarra farm, achieving planning permission for a scheme of 32 one-off houses.

At the time, the site costs were at the £200,000 mark — expensive but offering a fully serviced, ready-to-go product.

A number were purchased immediately and by 2002, a few developers got in on the action and began to build to sell. By 2004 prices for some Limeworth houses reached the €750,000 mark and by early 2007, asking prices were in the region of €1.2 million.

This estate on the rim of the bypass is a perfect case study for the Celtic Tiger boom, starting low in 2000 and appreciating rapidly.

The depreciation however, felt throughout the country, has been relatively mild here, as borne out by the latest sale offering.

No 15 is a 3,500 square foot house, (one of the largest in the estate) and it’s newly launched with Sherry FitzGerald this week at €785,000.

The home of a local engineer, it has a fine finish with a decent, south-west facing site.

The three-storey house has the kind of aspect where almost every room gets sun at some stage of the day and there’s a flow of rooms from east to west, with a sunroom projection at the back to make the most of the position.

There’s a light touch to the decoration too, which is way above average and includes some very attractive themed children’s rooms.

There are five bedrooms, five bathrooms, two formal and two informal living rooms and a great working kitchen.

The gardens are fully finished, with ground-level deck at the rear and plenty of parking to the front.

Limeworth has lots of children playing throughout the day and there’s a safe green at the centre with a distance to go before one gets to the ‘big road’. And then it’s a short walk to Ballincollig, and a quick hop to the South Ring, with the North Ring expected at some stage.

This will be accessed at Poulavone, close by, and while the decision for the route linking the northern and southern banks of the Lee has been made, it’s not likely to happen in the short to medium term.

However, in terms of accessibility, while still retaining a quiet, almost rural location, Limeworth has one of the best addresses in Ballincollig.