Trading up: Ardbrack, Kinsale €575,000

Sq m: 162 (1,750 sq ft)

There are two different BER ratings coming with this five-bed detached house outside Kinsale, at Arbrack. This is because it has a temporary split personality, currently divided into a three-bed home (C2 BER) to the left, with bedrooms upstairs, and a two-bed apartment (C3 BER), downstairs, and each section has its own kitchen and sun room.

Just a stud wall divides the two, says selling agent Johnny O’Flynn of Sherry FitzGerald, as he pins a €575,000 asking price to the property on a site of one-third of an acre.

Sounds dear? Consider this — in the past four years covered by the Property Price Register, the cheapest house to sell in Ardbrack was for €285,000; €300k-€500k was more the norm, and last year saw sales of €1.1m, and €3m recorded. So, no cheap seats here.

The interior is bright, says Mr O’Flynn, there’s about 1,750 sq ft in all, and the garden’s a good size, well-kept with mature boundaries.

VERDICT: Pity there’s no sea views, but the location’s ever-popular, with pent-up demand locally.