House of the week

A leading Munster and Ireland rugby man is highest bidder on a fine family home in recent months on Cork city’s Blackrock Road — now, another top offer comes along to join the select scrum of suburban homes up for grabs.

While the house that caught the lofty player’s eye over the Christmas spell is an all-done up semi-d with swagger, this new kid joining the scant line-out on the Blackrock Road is an older, wiser head. It’s a c1940s detached five-bed, on a half-acre of tended ground with mature trees ringing its fringes, it’s got a rose bed in its centre, and it all looks like a ball was never kicked on it, or a divot heeled up on its lawns. It’s called Cranleigh, and it’s a runner.

Carrying a €875,000 asking price with agent Timothy Sullivan, who’s enthused about its immediate prospects, Cranleigh is at the junction of the Blackrock Road and Crab Lane, within a walk or a cycle of the city centre. It’s only ever had two owners, and whoever buys it this time around will be lucky, it’s rare to get so much living and garden space so close to town.

A 2,200 sq ft solid, square block of a two-storey house, on very private, flat-level gardens tended with care, it’s the sort of conversion project that will be easy to take on. It needs updating, sure, but it’s grand as it is too, maybe the sort of home a family might wisely colonise for a period before rushing into major changes to get a feel for its flow, and where the sun plays out best of all.

It’s been underpinned, with drains replaced, but looks like it never slipped an inch in any direction, and has two-thirds of its grounds to the south, including a sunny sweep of terrace and patio, with a 150’ long boundary to the west along Crab Lane itself.

There are four wide bay windows here, two up, two down, for light and sun-soaking, and this aspect must serve to keep the house warm in most weathers. In any case, the oil central heating has just recently been replaced with a gas condenser boiler, so efficiency is already on the way.

Entry point is on the northern side, with enough off-street parking for a fleet of cars by the door, and there’s also a double garage. Cranleigh’s got room and secured garden access on either side, so the option is there to add a wing in either direction, east or west.

As it stands, the kitchen’s a fairly basic space on the eastern flank, but it opens via a utility to a wide courtyard by the garages, so this is an obvious spot to add on a new sunny kitchen. Or how about extending on the other gable, for evening and better garden views? Hang it all, can’t you also go out directly to the sun and the south, onto the patio? It’s not like you’d lose valuable garden space, there’s loads left. Or how about a skirt of extra space, on all three sides?

As it stands, adaptable Cranleigh has five bedrooms, two very big to the front and bay windowed to either side, and one to back, all have sinks in situ, so one or two could easily be made a dressing room/en suites.

Its two main reception rooms (there’s also a study/TV den) are right where you’d want for sunny garden views, and common areas like the hall and landing are similarly well-placed in this sensible floor plan.

VERDICT: So easy to update — but if you want to build from scratch on the Blackrock Road see the site for sale on page 5.