Trading up: Kerry Pike, Cork €140,000+

Sq m: 203/221

Two half-finished houses went up for sale a week before Christmas and both are now under offer with Robert O’Keeffe of Irish and European.

“I had 250 people on a list to ring and it’s been hectic since,” the auctioneer says, and despite not having to open doors and display lounges, the stream of buyers with their builders has been hectic, he adds.

The properties, Types A and D of the Mitchell’s Court scheme in Kerry Pike, on the north-western rim of Cork’s Green Belt, were much sought-after, even through a recession and potential buyers were waiting for the half-finished houses to come up.

The units were given a guide of €140,000 apiece but there’s a current offer of €153,000 on the A type, (221 sq m/ four bedrooms) and an offer of €123,000 on the D type, 203 sq m/ four bedrooms).

A small scheme of large houses in a wooded setting over the Lee Valley, the cost of finishing the properties varies, says O’Keeffe, depending on the quality of interior, but he suggests that anywhere in excess of €200,000 would provide a very luxurious property, fully finished.

Buyers would have to get their own engineering and building advice.

VERDICT: As the bidding response shows, there’s merit in buying a job lot.