Starter home: Far from the last straw at Rivendell

After a spell under corrugated steel, original thatch has been restored, writes Tommy Barker.

COMING up on 200 years of age, the roadside cottage Rivendell is probably in better shape that it has ever been: it’s certainly as cosy as can be.

Location is on a bend on a road on the way to Currabinny in Cork harbour, and this centuries’ old home had a view of the harbour until very recently: a house built across the way encroached on that view — but you can still glimpse water from the gardens, says estate agent Roy Dennehy, based in nearby Carrigaline.

He seeks offers around €220,000 for the cottage’s owner, who bought it about five years ago from a UK couple. She decided after buying this most romantic-looking of houses to put back the thatch on top, taking off the corrugated iron roof that had done a utilitarian job for previous decades.

The wee two-bed home has about 750 sq ft of space past its half door entry, all upgraded, with good insulation levels, some new floors, wood-sheeted ceilings, and a new country-style kitchen with Belfast sink, wood tops, range cooker, and heating is via a solid fuel stove in the inglenook hearth and it has a back-boiler. There’s side and back cottage gardens, plus a garage.

VERDICT: Rivendell is the real deal.