Rapid rise in fortunes at city pad: Friars Walk, Cork, €180,000

Sq m 67 (725 sq ft)

All done up in the past few months is No 7 Maymount, and almost as rapidly it’s back in the marketplace as an almost unrecognisable home.

The compact three-bed townhouse in a characterful cul-de-sac off Friars Road is guided at €180,000 by estate agent Mark Gosling, of Behan Irwin Gosling. A perusal of the Property Price Register shows No 7’s last sale in July of this year, at a mere €84,000, and prices of neighbouring homes at Maymount (a few dozen, in all) have gone from €54,000 to €75,000 in the past year for do-er uppers.

No 7’s clearly in a different price league, but is stand-out in all other respects too, insists Mr Gosling who says the rapid, quality turnaround by its woman owner/serial renovater is remarkable. And, the market pick-up in prices in the past year also means there’s profit to be made for those who bought low at market trough, and are now selling after further investing into a partially recovered city market.

Earlier this year, No 7 was drab, never painted on its external walls with old sash windows retained, had neither heating nor an inside toilet, for example, and was basic — to say the least — inside. Now, its old sash windows have been renovated (with window baskets, all very TV make-over, but still smart), gas heating has been installed along with a new kitchen, wiring and plumbing, new lighting, plastering and fresh paintwork A bathroom has also been installed with a corner shower in the rear add-on. Floors are walnut downstairs, and carpeted upstairs and old fireplaces have been made a feature.

Mark Gosling says the property “will appeal to both an owner-occupier looking for the convenience of city living or an investor looking for a quality rental.” Attention was paid to detail and a few design touches, and even a simple thing like graveling the back yard, painting the walls white and putting in a corner seat/storage unit made of painted deck timbers is transformative, and effective.

VERDICT: A smart buy, then and now.