Attention to detail in five-bedroom beauty

A PASSING glance and you’d assume that Cnoc Mhuire is a brand new build, but the Well Road house has been standing for quite a while.

The Douglas, Cork property, purchased in the last decade as a three-bed detached, has been gutted and rebuilt with a higher specification and an extra 1,600 square feet.

The bare material was pretty good though. Cnoc Mhuire has a fine, south-west facing location on Churchyard Lane and while there are houses all round, it’s not crowded at the rear. In fact it’s hardly overlooked and has a green space in Ardmahon estate at the rear.

It’s now a luxurious, five-bedroomed beauty with an impeccable finish and a neutral flavour that allows anyone to put their own style on the house.

The basic palette includes Travertine tiling, oak flooring, oak joinery with glazed doors and staircase, low toned walls and carpet only on the staircases and in the bedrooms.

The attention to detail is excellent, with a projecting entrance porch that opens up a formerly short corridor and creates more breathing space.

The front garden is now cobbled, with plenty of room for parking and turning, but with little upkeep needed. A similar finish at the back means it’s clean and neat, leaving more time for sipping wine and less for sweeping and spraying.

The only part of the original 1960s house is the front room with its bay window, although that is now floored in wide plank oak with a sandstone fireplace.

Double doors lead through to the piece de resistance, a huge open-plan living space, rising to the apex and with a fully glazed gable projecting south-west.

Most of this wall consists of three sets of double doors, which means the entire room can be opened up in summer.

One portion of this big, square space retains the original ceiling height and it’s the cosy sitting corner with L-shaped suite and a gas-fired, matt steel hanging stove.

Opposite is a door leading through to a guest bathroom and then to a large utility with separate access to the garden, a design that keeps the working and messy functions of a house to a dedicated quarter.

The kitchen, meanwhile, is tucked into its own rectangle facing to the east and defended by a high breakfast bar/island that screens all the working bits while still providing seating for four. Really clever, it has everything to hand and a large, walk-in pantry allows for minimalism in the storage units.

The dining table is set in the middle of the room and is big enough for large family Christmases, says the owner, adding that they’ve also had upwards of 80 people at a large party in summer where the house and garden were used with ease. The sensible flooring also means there’s no problem with spillages.

Really, there’s is nothing to do in this professionally-finished house, save to move in. Wiring is integrated, with satellite system, and there’s a gym on the ground floor to the right of the main hallway. Why? Because putting treadmills on timber floors is stressful and noisy, so ground floor it is, the owner says.

This section of the house represents the extension, where the results can be seen most effectively in the master bedroom which is a luxury suite with soaring ceilings, walk-in wardrobe, big bathroom and a sitting area accessed through the former box room. It’s pretty impressive.

The rest of the bedrooms and bathrooms are smart and modern, with two double rooms off the main landing, one of which has a good en-suite bathroom, while the main bathroom is very sleek with glass bowl sink and travertine tiling.

A proper stairs continues up to the attic floor, which is a wide open space ready for any use.

Cnoc Mhuire is on offer at €750,000 through Kevin Barry of Barry Auctioneers and he’s already logging New Year viewings, he says, particularly as the house is now nearly €44,000 cheaper with the new stamp duty regime.

The property is a walk toDouglas village, but also close to the new private hospital in Mahon, whence a buyer could appear: it’s that kind of house.