Trading up: Dunmanway, West Cork €299,950

Sq m: 265 (2,850 sq ft)

Just in case the work done at Horseshoe Cottage doesn’t speak for itself, you could always ask Charlie from Cheshire to parrot a few lines — after all, this house’s resident 16-year old pet parrot has seen all (and can repeat all) of the blood, sweat, tears and cusses that went into its salvation.

Now a supremely well-feathered nest, and a true labour of love and stone lugging, Dunmanway’s Horseshoe Cottage is being sold by its British owners who are moving closer to the sea for fishing.

Dating to the early 1880, this stone home was partly dismantled and then painstakingly reassembled, stone by stone by skilled masons, raised a couple of feet in height, for proper bedrooms, and then extended, all done top to toe in 2007.

As a result, this 2,800 sq ft quirky and quality house now has three bedrooms with one en suite, a modern and bright 500 sq ft main living area in the new section, has underfloor heating, proper damp proofing, and has a very creditable C1 BER too. Guiding at €299,950, agent Noel O’Donovan of Hodnett Forde says both house (with three solid fuel stoves for extra cosiness) and its half acre of tended gardens with vegetable beds and stone outbuildings are simply idyllic.

VERDICT: A feather in owners’ cap.