Starter home: Blackrock, Cork, €185,000

There’s lots of rooms up over this shop/cafe, finds Trish Dromey.     

As well as being very well renovated this two bed mid-terraced house at 6 Libertas Villas is well located near Cork’s suburban Blackrock village.

In the past a section at the front was taken out for a commercial premises, which left this house with a slightly unusual layout. But, it still has 850 sq ft of living space which includes two bedrooms as well as an attic conversion.

Bought in a neglected state by a builder in late 2014 for €94,000, it’s since been comprehensively upgraded.

Rewired and re-plumbed, it has a new kitchen, porcelain tiled flooring, carpets and bathroom suites. External walls have been drylined and the BER has gone up from E1 to a B3.

The house went on the market last summer with a guide of €179,000, went sale agreed, but this has now fallen through and it’s on Savills books at €1850,000, a reflection on how much the market has strengthened in six months.

At ground level there’s an open plan kitchen dining with modern kitchen units and timber flooring and also an understairs guest WC. Upstairs there is a bathroom and two carpeted bedrooms including one en suite and in the converted attic there are two carpeted rooms with skylights, which could be used for storage or as office space. The builder completed renovations by paving the garden, adding decking, raised timber flowerbeds and a brick barbeque.

Auctioneer Claire Dennehy of Savills says the condition of the property and the location, so close to Blackrock village and amenity walks, are the key selling points.

VERDICT: Nothing left to be done at No 6.

Blackrock, Cork

€185,000

Size: 79 sq m (850 sq ft)

Bedrooms: 2

Bathrooms: 3

BER: B3

Best Feature: Blackrock